LeBron James, the NBA's all-time leading scorer, is uncertain about his future in the league after the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Minnesota Timberwolves. The 40-year-old, in his 22nd professional season, couldn't prevent the Timberwolves from securing a 4-1 series victory with a 103-96 win in Game 5 at the Crypto.com Arena.

James, who signed a two-year deal with the Lakers in 2024, mentioned that he will take time during the off-season to consider his future. When asked about how many more years he plans to play, James responded, "I don't know. It's something that I will sit down with my family, my wife, and my support group and kind of just talk through and see what happens, and just have a conversation with myself on how long I want to continue to play."

Despite the disappointing end to the season, James highlighted playing alongside his son, Bronny, as the most gratifying part of the season. "Number one, for sure," said James. "That's not even close. To be able to play the game that I love and to be able to be alongside my son, this whole year has been one of the most gratifying, satisfying journeys I've ever been on."

The Timberwolves' Rudy Gobert was instrumental in the victory, registering 27 points and 24 rebounds. "It feels great," Gobert said. "We had a season with ups and downs so to come here and play the way we did means a lot. We just have a bunch of guys that want to win, and a lot of guys who have been through adversity throughout their career and their life, and we love each other. All the things we went through throughout the season prepared us for this moment."

In other playoff action, the Houston Rockets kept their hopes alive with a 131-116 win against the Golden State Warriors in Game 5, reducing their series deficit to 3-2. Fred VanVleet led the Rockets with 26 points, while Amen Thompson added 25 and Dillon Brooks contributed 24. The Rockets led by as much as 31 points, prompting Warriors coach Steve Kerr to rest his starters in the third quarter. Game 6 is set for 02:00 BST on Saturday at Chase Center in San Francisco.