The final seconds are ticking in LeBron James’ legendary playing career, and the question of “what’s next” will be on everyone’s mind once he walks off the court one final time.

The four-time NBA champion is going day by day as an NBA professional and hasn’t given any clear indication whether there will be a season 24. The 41-year-old is fresh off another All-Star appearance, and the run-in this year might just be his last as an NBA player.

It doesn’t matter whether he continues or finally retires, but James’ retirement plan will certainly not involve fading entirely out of the spotlight. Everyone who has followed the four-time MVP from his high school days knows that he always operated at a different frequency. In 2010, he made the first public flex of player agency in the modern era with “The Decision.” In 2022, he became the first active NBA billionaire, and it is not hard to see why, considering he turned a simple 1% stake at Fenway Sports Group into a value north of $140 million as the parent company crossed the $14 billion mark. 

The court has always been a launchpad to something big for the league’s all time leading scorer, and while most superstars spend their prime years chasing the luxury life an NBA career offers, he went big, and it could be much bigger when he finally calls it a career.

Five Moves that Could Redefine LeBron’s Career after Basketball

Leading an NBA Ownership Group or Expansion Franchise Bid

Even in his active years, James has always entertained the idea of owning, or at least part-owning, an NBA franchise. The timing is perfect, with the league putting a potential expansion on the table, allowing James to potentially leverage his Fenway Sports Group experience, Klutch Sports network, and billionaire relationships to land a new franchise, or even buy into an existing one.

Michael Jordan did the same, but what he lacked was such leverage as he entered with a front office role as his only experience. James’ FSG stake may be just 1%, but it has opened doors to boardroom credibility across multiple sports. If not for the rule that prohibits active players from owning a stake in an NBA team, he would have ventured into basketball by now.

Scaling the SpringHill-Fulwell Media Conglomerate  

James cofounded the SpringHill Company back in 2020, and in 2024, they merged with British-based Fulwell 73 in a deal that saw the combined entity secure around $40 million from investors. Fulwell has some incredible credits to its name, including “The Grammys” and “The Kardashians.” The NBA superstar can go full-time as an executive producer or strategic director behind the scenes of some great television productions. 

This may be a behind-the-scenes role, but his legacy can be amplified on screen, like what Jordan did with “The Last Dance,” a 10-part docuseries that aired on ESPN in 2020. The merger is not entirely based on James, however; his brand status as a global icon was rocket fuel for it. Any athlete-driven documentaries, unscripted series or dedicated sports-media vertical will rival that of ESPN or Netflix, because his name is behind it.

Co-Founding and Fronting a Player-Equity Global Basketball League

Basketball has always been James’ lifeblood. He has played the game for over two decades, and leaving the sport won’t be an easy adjustment period for the 41-year-old. If owning an NBA franchise doesn’t work out, there is always plan B even if not in the NBA. Maverick Carter, James’ longtime business partner, has been raising $5 billion for an international league. 

The model is a city-to-city touring team and player equity stakes, something NBA rules currently block for active players. The project’s momentum has stalled over the past months, but James stepping in and showing genuine interest will certainly breathe life into it. This would redefine global basketball because the NBA has enjoyed monopoly power for decades and the proposed league offers global markets across Europe, Asia and Africa, which the NBA can’t yet. The association does have the European game, but that is only for the benefit of the league. 

James’ involvement lends instant credibility and star power that no startup league has ever had. The NBA can either adapt or be forced to compete.

Orchestrating a Diversified Sports-Tech Conglomerate Across Continents

James is perhaps yet not Jordan in the business world, but he has made some right calls. His Blaze Pizza investment, which was under $1 million in 2012, grew to over $35 million by 2017 and has continued compounding. James’ FSG stake is already $142 million, indicating he is building an impressive investment portfolio. 

With his investment in youth basketball with Made Hoops, he can become the lead investor and strategic architect for a portfolio that includes sports-tech from AI training platforms, fan-engagement apps, esports, international club acquisitions and even health/wellness brands. He is essentially migrating into ownership of the industries that once profited from him. 

National and International Expansion of the I Promise Holistic Support Ecosystem

James could decide to escape from the stress of business by continuing his philanthropy mission. The LeBron James Family Foundation serves over 1,400 students and families, and the I Promise School in Akron is a big frontrunner. There have been free college tuition guarantees, family GED/job programs, counseling, health services, clothing and even physical infrastructure. 

Kids are now provided with a chance to pursue their dreams with families not worrying about the basic needs. James could stop being “the basketball guy who opened a school” and become a reformer to solve systemic failure better than many governments. 

LeBron Could Redefine the Retired Athlete Blueprint

James has achieved virtually every thing possible in a basketball career, and when his Lakers contract expires this summer, all eyes will be on him.

Most retired superstars take media gigs, some business ventures or a quiet exit. Not James, because he has already built something entirely different even before his career marches to a finish, and it could well be an innovative blueprint that gets every future star retiree to rethink what retirement even means. 

That is the kind of influence the 22-time NBA All-Star has in the two-plus decades he has been a global juggernaut. That move to Miami back in 2010 was a declaration, the first of its kind that allowed players control their own destinies. Other players followed suit, and when James ventured into different investments, they also followed. The likes of Kevin Durant became investors off the court, and he also founded his own company “Thirty Five Ventures” in 2017. 

Traditional retirement for most NBA greats has often followed the same predictable path for years, which then lead to around 60% having no suitable capital investment or financial stream after some years. Many chase coaching gigs that rarely stick, or commentary roles that also keep them close to the game but never in charge. James is already rewriting that narrative — and retirement for him will be the next power move.

James established himself even before retiring, and other players will no doubt take a page from his book to be strategically aligning with ownership, content control and social impact at a large scale. Kind of how James changed the way athletes manage their active professional careers, knowing his astuteness when it comes to pioneering, he has a real shot at overhauling what it means to succeed in life after basketball.

Retirement is not an easy adjustment period for players who spent years chasing relevance and embracing the spotlight. To have all that gone brings about different waves of emotions. Some would like to finally leave normal lives, others want to stay connected to the. But those who treat their prime like seed capital move into situations to affect real change, and that is where James fits in.