How difficult is it to play for 19 seasons? There are only 6 players in the NBA, and James is about to break the historical record

As we all know, basketball is a very intense physical confrontation, especially in the NBA, a league with the highest competitive level, which requires even higher requirements for players. In addition, the NBA has talented rookies from all over the world every year, so many players will be replaced if they are not careful. Because of this, most players' NBA careers are even more than 5 seasons, and those who can play in the NBA until the age of 30 are already considered among the best.

If you want to play in the NBA for 19 seasons, you must first have a certain strength and then maintain your physical condition well enough. So far, only 6 players in the NBA have achieved this achievement, including three rookies in 2007, and James is about to set a new record in the new season.

6. Conley (19 seasons)

Average of 14.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.4 steals in his career, in 2007, Conley was selected as the fourth pick in the first round. He was reused since his rookie season and quickly became a firm starter. At that time, Conley not only scored and passed the ball on the offensive end, but also performed very well on the defensive end. Later, after reaching the peak, he was also selected for the best defensive team. Under Conley's leadership, the Grizzlies became one of the toughest teams in the West, and they have reached the Western Conference Finals before.

Later Conley joined the Jazz, and in the 2020-2021 season he helped the team win the No. 1 record in the West. At the same time, he was also selected as the All-Star this year. Later, Conley was traded to the Timberwolves, where he became the mentor for young players such as Edwards, and he also activated a cake-eating insider like Gobert. Because Conley is very important to the Timberwolves, the team has not found a replacement for him until now, so the two sides signed a two-year, 21 million contract extension last year.

5. Horford (19 seasons)

Average of 12.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.1 blocks in his career, Horford played at that time relatively traditionally, and he basically did not shoot three-pointers on the court. In that era, Horford's style of playing helped him be selected into the All-Star many times, and he was also selected into the Best Team. Later, due to the change in the NBA's style of playing, Horford also made a transformation to adapt to the game, so he has become a real space-type insider since 2015.

This transformation not only helped Horford become a more suitable inside player for the NBA in the new era, but also greatly extended his career, so that he was able to help the Celtics finally win the championship at the age of 37 in 2024. Horford still averaged 8 points, 6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 blocks per game in the playoffs, so he is still very popular in the free market. Teams such as the Warriors and the Lakers are his potential next home.

4. Durant (19 seasons)

Average of 27.2 points, 7 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1 steal and 1.1 blocks in his career. As one of the best scorers in the NBA in the past 20 years, Durant has played top-notch since entering the league. He averaged 20.3 points per game in his rookie season, and then he quickly won his first scoring trophy. In the Thunder's peak year, Durant averaged 32 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game. This season, he also successfully won the MVP+ scoring champion. Later, he joined the Warriors, and Durant could win at will without exerting force in the regular season. Therefore, he would only exert force in the playoffs or even the finals. Not only did he win two championships, but he was also elected as FMVP twice.

Durant suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon in 2019. He thought his condition would decline very significantly, but later he still had an outstanding competitive state after his comeback. Durant averaged 34.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game in the 2021 playoffs. If Irving hadn't been injured, the Nets would have had a great chance of winning the championship that year. Now Durant has joined the Suns again, and his playing style is very complementary to this team. How far the team can go next season depends on his scoring status.

3. Lowry (20 seasons)

Average of 13.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 6.1 assists and 1.3 steals in his career

In 2007, Lowry was selected by the Grizzlies with the 24th pick in the first round, but he was not reused here at the beginning. After making some progress, he got more opportunities from the second year, so he also performed better. Later, Lowry was traded to the Rockets, where he ushered in more obvious progress. In the last year of the Rockets, he also averaged 14.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and then he joined the Raptors again.

At the Raptors, Lowry played the best form of his career, and he was selected into the All-Star and 1 All-Series. In the 2019-2020 season, he averaged 19.4 points, 5 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Lowry joined the Heat in 2021 to win the championship, and in 2023 he also successfully helped the team reach the finals. Later, Lowry joined the 76ers. Although his condition continued to decline during this period, as the leader of the team's locker room, he still contributed to the team. So during this offseason, the 76ers renewed Lowry with the contract with the veteran's basic salary, so he will officially start his 20th season.

2. Paul (21 seasons)

Average of 17 points, 4.4 rebounds, 9.2 assists and 2 steals in his career

Paul, who entered the league in 2005, quickly adapted to the intensity of the NBA, so he averaged 16.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 2.2 steals in his rookie season. He naturally quickly settled on the core position of the team.. Paul had already achieved MVP level in the 2007-2008 season. This year, he averaged 21.1 points, 4 rebounds, 11.6 assists and 2.7 steals per game, and led the team to the second place in the West. Unfortunately, he lost to Kobe in the MVP competition.

Later, for a long time, Paul was the top three point guard in the league. Whenever he joined a new team, he could always help the team make progress, such as leading the Rockets to the regular season team record in 2018 + reaching the Western Conference Finals, and leading the Suns to the Finals in 2021. Although Paul is now 40 years old, he still averaged 8.8 points and 7.4 assists last season, so he still received a lot of attention from the team this offseason, but he has not made a decision yet.

1. James (23 seasons)

Average of 27 points, 7.5 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1.5 steals in his career, James, who has been highly anticipated since his debut, has played an outstanding performance of 20+5+5 per game in his first year of his career. Under his leadership, the Cavaliers quickly ended their reconstruction and broke the team history record in 2007 and won the Eastern Conference Championship. James later won two MVPs. With his help, the Cavaliers achieved the first place in the regular season league for two consecutive years, but because they fell in the playoffs every year, this also gave him the idea of leaving the team.

In 2010, James joined the Heat, where he became a better player. In 2012 and 2013, he won MVP+FMVP consecutively. As he grew older, not only did James not decline as predicted by the outside world, he instead "becomes more and more evil as he grows older". Later, he won two FMVPs in 2016 and 2020. James, who is now 40 years old, is selected for the All-A-Second Team again this year, and he is about to start his 23rd season of his career, which has set a new record, and his next performance will once again break people's perception of players of this age group.