LeBron James: Biography, Career & Stats
LeBron James is an American forward from Akron, Ohio, and the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. He has won four NBA championships and four Finals MVP awards with three different teams, and in 2026 he began an unprecedented 24th NBA season with the Philadelphia 76ers. He is the only player in league history with at least 40,000 points, 11,500 rebounds and 11,500 assists.
4× NBA MVP (2009, 2010, 2012, 2013)
4× NBA champion and Finals MVP
43,440
NBA all-time record · 1,622 games
12,016
4th all-time · 7.4 per game
4
2012, 2013 (Heat) · 2016 (Cavaliers) · 2020 (Lakers)
22
an NBA record · 2005–2026
Athlete Profile
James has been the dominant figure of the NBA since he entered the league straight from high school in 2003. The key facts about his life and game are below.
Full name
LeBron Raymone James
Born
30 December 1984, Akron, Ohio (age 41)
Nicknames
“King James”, “The Chosen One”
Height / weight
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), 250 lb (113 kg)
Position
Small forward / power forward
Draft
2003, 1st overall, Cleveland Cavaliers
Teams
Cleveland Cavaliers (2003–2010, 2014–2018), Miami Heat (2010–2014), Los Angeles Lakers (2018–2026), Philadelphia 76ers (2026–present)
Honours
4× NBA champion, 4× Finals MVP, 4× MVP, 22× All-Star, NBA 75th Anniversary Team
Olympics
Gold 2008, 2012, 2024 · bronze 2004
Early Life
James was born in Akron to Gloria Marie James, who was 16 at the time. He lived for a period with the family of the youth football coach Frank Walker, who introduced him to basketball at the age of nine. He began organised basketball in fifth grade and played AAU ball with the Northeast Ohio Shooting Stars.
At St. Vincent–St. Mary High School in Akron he won Division III state titles as a freshman (27–0) and as a sophomore (26–1). He was named Ohio Mr. Basketball three times and Gatorade National Player of the Year in 2002 and 2003, and he averaged 31.6 points, 9.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists as a senior.
Career
James’s career covers four franchises and more than two decades, from a number-one pick in 2003 to a record-extending 24th season in 2026. The key stages are below.
Number one pick and Rookie of the Year
The Cleveland Cavaliers selected James first overall in 2003, and he wore No. 23 in honour of Michael Jordan. In his NBA debut against Sacramento he scored 25 points with 9 assists, 6 rebounds and 4 steals. He was named Rookie of the Year for the 2003–04 season.
First NBA Finals
James led the Cavaliers to the NBA Finals in 2007, where they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs.
Scoring title and back-to-back MVP awards
James won the scoring title in 2008 and the league MVP award in 2009 and 2010. He left Cleveland in 2010 after repeated playoff disappointments.
The Decision and two titles in Miami
On 8 July 2010 James announced on a live ESPN special that he would sign with the Miami Heat. The Heat reached the Finals in all four of his seasons there and won back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013. James took the regular-season MVP award and the Finals MVP award in both years.
Return to Cleveland and the 2016 title
James returned to the Cavaliers in 2014 and played in the Finals in each of his four seasons back. In 2016 Cleveland won its first NBA championship, and James won his third Finals MVP award.
Lakers and the 2020 championship
James signed with the Los Angeles Lakers in the summer of 2018. The team missed the playoffs in 2019, then won the 2020 championship, the franchise’s 17th, with James named Finals MVP. He also led the league in assists that season.
The all-time scoring record
On 7 February 2023 James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. In December 2023 he won the NBA Cup with the Lakers and was named the tournament’s MVP.
40,000 points and a father–son first
On 28 February 2024 James became the first player to reach 40,000 career points. On 2 April 2024 he passed Oscar Schmidt as the leading scorer in the history of professional basketball worldwide. On 22 October 2024 he and his son Bronny became the first father and son to play in an NBA game together, in the Lakers’ season opener against Minnesota.
50,000 career points
On 4 March 2025 James passed 50,000 career points across the regular season and playoffs.
Career Statistics and Honours
James is the NBA’s all-time leader in more than a dozen regular-season categories and holds nearly every individual playoff record. Regular-season totals below run through the end of the 2025–26 season.
Medals and marks
| Mark | Detail |
|---|---|
| NBA champion | 4: 2012 and 2013 (Heat), 2016 (Cavaliers), 2020 (Lakers) |
| Finals MVP | 4, in the same years; the only player to win it with three different teams |
| NBA MVP | 4: 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013 |
| All-Star | 22 selections, an NBA record (2005–2026); All-Star Game MVP in 2006, 2008 and 2018 |
| All-NBA | 21 selections, including a record 13 First Team |
| All-Defensive Team | 6 selections |
| Rookie of the Year | 2003–04 |
| League leader | Scoring champion 2007–08; assists leader 2019–20 |
| NBA Cup | Champion and MVP, 2023 |
| NBA 75th Anniversary Team | Named in 2021 |
| AP Male Athlete of the Year | 2013, 2016, 2018, 2020 |
| Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year | 2012, 2016, 2020 |
| Olympic medals | Gold 2008, 2012, 2024; bronze 2004 |
Career totals, regular season
| Games | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | 3-pointers made |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,622 | 43,440 | 12,095 | 12,016 | 2,417 | 1,185 | 2,636 |
Career averages
| Competition | Games | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG% | 3P% | FT% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular season | 1,622 | 26.8 | 7.5 | 7.4 | 50.6 | 34.8 | 73.7 |
| Playoffs | 302 | 28.2 | 8.9 | 7.2 | 49.5 | 33.2 | 74.1 |
James has also scored 8,521 points in the playoffs. He holds the NBA records for seasons played, games played, minutes played and field goals made, and he is fourth in career assists and sixth in career steals. He became the first player to appear in 300 playoff games on 7 May 2026. His 2025–26 season was his 23rd in a row averaging at least 20 points per game.
International Career
James has represented the United States at four Olympic Games and won three gold medals, the last as team captain in Paris in 2024.
He won bronze at the 2004 Athens Olympics as a 19-year-old rookie and bronze at the 2006 FIBA World Championship. He then won Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008 and in London in 2012. At the 2024 Paris Games he captained the U.S. team to its fifth straight gold medal, carried the flag at the opening ceremony and was named the FIBA Men’s Olympic MVP.
2026–27 Season
James is in his 24th NBA season, an NBA record, and for the first time since 2018 he is playing for a new team. These are the key moments from 2025–26 and the start of the new season.
A late start after sciatica
James missed the first 14 games of 2025–26 with sciatica and made his season debut on 18 November with 11 points and 12 assists. He became the first player to appear in 23 NBA seasons.
A streak ends and a triple-double record
His streak of 1,297 consecutive games with at least 10 points ended on 4 December. On 12 February he became the oldest player to record a triple-double in NBA history.
More career milestones
On 5 March James passed Abdul-Jabbar for the most career field goals made, and on 10 April he recorded his 12,000th career assist. He finished the regular season with 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists in 60 games and was named an All-Star for the 22nd time.
Playoff exit to Oklahoma City
The Lakers beat the Houston Rockets in six games in the first round. In the second round they lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder, and James finished the series with 24 points and 12 rebounds in his last game as a Laker.
Leaving the Lakers for Philadelphia
On 30 June 2026 James told the Lakers that he would play elsewhere in 2026–27. He spent eight seasons in Los Angeles, his longest stint with any franchise, averaging 25.9 points, 7.9 assists and 7.7 rebounds in 479 games. On 24 July he announced that he would join the Philadelphia 76ers, calling it his “last decision”. He agreed to a two-year, $8 million contract with a player option for 2027–28.
76ers debut in New York
James made his regular-season debut for Philadelphia on 20 October at Madison Square Garden, scoring 14 points with 9 rebounds and 7 assists in a 106–100 win over the defending champion Knicks. It was the first time one of his team debuts ended in a win. He plays alongside Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown and Joel Embiid under coach Nick Nurse.
Beyond the court
In July 2018 James opened the I Promise School in Akron, a public school run with the LeBron James Family Foundation for at-risk children. He is married to Savannah James, and his eldest son Bronny was drafted by the Lakers in 2024. He also starred in the film Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021).
FAQ
He scored 43,440 points in the regular season through 2025–26, the most in NBA history, and 8,521 in the playoffs. He was the first player to pass 40,000 career points, on 28 February 2024.
He has won four: two with the Miami Heat (2012, 2013), one with the Cleveland Cavaliers (2016) and one with the Los Angeles Lakers (2020). He was Finals MVP each time.
He plays for the Philadelphia 76ers. He joined them in July 2026 after eight seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, on a two-year contract with a player option for 2027–28.
James told the Lakers on 30 June 2026 that he planned to play elsewhere. Sources close to him said he felt it was time to move on, and no further reason has been given.
He was born on 30 December 1984, so he is 41 and turns 42 in December 2026.
He has four: bronze in 2004 and gold in 2008, 2012 and 2024.
He was born in Akron, Ohio, and went to St. Vincent–St. Mary High School there before the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted him first overall in 2003.