The NBA Schedule Rollout Proves LeBron Is STILL The Face Of The League At 41 Years Old, And You Can Pound Sand If You Disagree

Roy Rochlin. Getty Images.

For years, the casuals have been trying to dethrone LeBron James. They tried to say Steph was the new face of the league. Kawhi. Giannis. Jokic. Wemby. Time and time again, these haters have looked towards other NBA superstars and BEGGED for them to supplant The King. 

But in Year 24, as he is quickly approaching 42 years of age, the entire league still revolves around LeBron.

I'll never forget when LeBron was dragging his decision out for weeks, and Adam Silver complained publicly that they couldn't put together the regular season schedule until LeBron picked a new team. The media companies were pissed, as was the league office. LeBron had put the entire Association on hold until he ultimately chose Philadelphia. That's aura. That's gravitas. 

Of course, once he finally picked Philly, the league responded by giving the Sixers as many nationally-televised games as possible. The most national games a team can play is 34, and the Sixers wound up receiving that maximum allotment. The LeBron effect on full display. 

And as we've seen today, the Sixers are now getting the very first primetime game of 2026 on Opening Night. LeBron's going to Madison Square Garden to take on the reigning champion Knicks. It'll be Ring Night in New York, so ticket prices would be through the roof regardless. But because the Knicks are taking on the GOAT that night, it's now the most expensive ticket for a home opener in NBA history. The current get-in price is a whopping $2000, which is only 0.1% of Brandon Walker's annual salary, but that's obviously a pretty penny for anybody else. 

Oh, but one team that will not be playing on Opening Night is the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite being one of the biggest brands in the league and having one of the biggest stars in the sport in Luka Doncic, the NBA couldn't give less of a fuck about the Lakers now that LeBron has left LA. It'll be the first time that NBA Opening Night hasn't featured the Lakeshow since 2019. Their sorry asses will have to wait until day two to get the season started. 

The only love I've seen the Lakers receive in this early schedule rollout is on Christmas Day. They'll get that prime 5:00 Christmas time slot when they face off with -- you guessed it -- LeBron James. So I'll tweak my statement from the last paragraph: The league will only give a fuck about the Lakers when LeBron's playing them and that's it. They're salivating over the idea of The King going up against his former team (and against his son, for that matter), but once again, HE is the draw there. Not the Lakers. Not LA. That game is only a story because of LeBron. 

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People can deny it all they want. They can say he's washed or that he doesn't have it like he used to. It doesn't matter. LeBron James still runs the show in the National Basketball Association.