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LeBron James and Kendrick Perkins were formerly teammates on the Cleveland Cavaliers back in the 2010s. Perkins played 17 games for the Cavaliers in the 2014-15 regular season and averaged 2.6 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.
He also appeared in one contest with the Cavaliers during the 2017-18 campaign, which marked James’ final season of his second stint in Cleveland.
Perkins, now long retired from the NBA and a sports analyst for ESPN, boldly claimed on social media that this season could be James’ swan song in the league.
It’s of note that Perkins made the social media post on the heels of one of James’ worst offensive performances of the 2024-25 season. Against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 29, James finished with his second-lowest point total of the campaign, scoring 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the floor and 0-of-4 from 3-point range.
James didn’t make up for his lackluster scoring effort against Oklahoma City by facilitating, either. He totaled six assists but finished with nearly as many turnovers (five) in a game the Lakers lost by a final score of 101-93 to fall to 11-8 on the season.
In defense of Perkins’ claim, James has seen his effectiveness as a scorer dip this season compared to years past. The 39-year-old is averaging 22.3 points per game, his lowest scoring average since his inaugural season in the league.
James’ current two-point field-goal percentage of 55.1 percent is also his worst in quite some time.
Despite all of that, James has still proven at times this season that he can light up the scoreboard at his advanced age. He’s scored as many as 39 points in a single game since the start of the campaign, and he dropped 31 against the Orlando Magic not all that long ago on Nov. 21.
James’ next chance to get back on the right track from a scoring standpoint will come when the Lakers take on the Utah Jazz on Sunday. The Jazz own a record of just 2-8 across their last 10 contests and are on a three-game losing streak. The last time Utah picked up a victory was on Nov. 23.
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