LeBron James begins his record 23rd NBA season in Lakers’ starting lineup against Jazz

LOS ANGELES (AP) – LeBron James has begun his unprecedented 23rd NBA season, starting for the Los Angeles Lakers against Utah on Tuesday night.

The 40-year-old James had been sidelined since the start of training camp by sciatica, keeping him out of the preseason and the Lakers’ first 14 games of the regular season. James, who had never before missed a season opener, returned to contact basketball activity last week before participating in his first Lakers practice of the new season Monday.

About 30 minutes before tipoff, the team confirmed James would start for the 1,561st time in his 1,563rd regular-season games. He got a loud ovation when he was announced first in the Lakers’ starting lineup.

He made a poor inbounds pass for a turnover in the opening minute and missed his only shot of the quarter, but James also had two assists. He checked out 5 1/2 minutes into the quarter and sat on his usual elevated seat on the Lakers’ bench before returning to the court late in the first quarter.

James said Monday that his body isn’t in ideal game shape, but he was eager to get started on his latest milestone achievement in a career packed with distinction.

A day later, James formally became the first player ever to participate in 23 NBA seasons.

Vince Carter played in 22 seasons in a career that concluded in 2020, while five players have made it through 21 seasons: Robert Parish, Kevin Willis, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki and 40-year-old Chris Paul, who currently plays for the Los Angeles Clippers. Philadelphia guard Kyle Lowry is in his 20th season.

“LeBron is, for a lot of us that played with him, or some of these guys that grew up watching him, he’s a superhero,” said Lakers coach JJ Redick, who played 15 NBA seasons. “What he’s been able to do in this game, there’s a handful of guys that have been able to do it.”

With this debut, James is now just 48 games behind Parish’s NBA record for regular-season games played (1,611). James already holds another NBA record with 1,855 regular-season and playoff games combined – 58 more than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – along with the record for most total minutes played.

James has repeatedly said he isn’t assuming this season will be his last, but he also hasn’t decided whether he’ll play another year. His most recent offseason was injury-plagued, with two months of recovery after spraining his knee ligament during the Lakers’ first-round playoff loss to Minnesota followed by a painful bout of sciatica – pain in the nerves running from the buttocks and down the back of the legs.

James became the top scorer in NBA history in February 2023. Last March, he became the first NBA player to put up 50,000 total points in the regular season and playoffs combined.

James is a four-time NBA champion, winning the NBA Finals MVP award each time. He has four league MVP awards and 21 All-Star selections.

His career began with the Cleveland Cavaliers in October 2003, a year before the birth of his oldest son and current Lakers teammate, Bronny James.

James led the Lakers to the franchise’s 17th championship in the Florida bubble in 2020. Los Angeles made the Western Conference finals again in 2023, and it won the Pacific Division title last spring after acquiring Luka Doncic, James’ self-described favorite current player, near midseason.

The Lakers also hosted the Jazz when Doncic debuted with his new team Feb. 10.

Los Angeles’ next game isn’t until Sunday – also against the Jazz in Salt Lake City.