LeBron James, the oldest active player in the NBA, turned 40 on Monday. As his career is seemingly beginning to reach its conclusion, James reminded everyone that he's still got a little bit of gas left in the tank.

The 22-year NBA veteran spoke to the media on Monday, and it comes as no surprise that his future in the league was one of the main topics of discussion. James was candid when addressing reporters, and even revealed how long he thinks he'd be able to compete at a high level in the NBA, assuming it was something he still desired to do.

"It won't be because I can't play this game at a high level," James said when asked what will bring on his eventual retirement from basketball.

"To be honest, if I really wanted to, I could probably play this game at a high level for probably about––weird that I might say this, but I've got another five to seven years if I wanted to. But I'm not gonna do that," he said.

In year 22, James is still one of the most productive players in the NBA, averaging 23.5 points, 9.0 assists and 7.9 rebounds per night. He's in line to make what would be his 21st All-Star Game this season, having given new meaning to the term, "perennial All-Star."

In his eyes, and based on how his body feels after having spent more than half of his entire life playing in the NBA, James still thinks he'd still have what it takes to be a quality player in the league when he's around 45 to 47 years old. For reference, the oldest player ever to appear in an NBA game was Nat Hickey, who last played at the age of 45 years and 363 days old back in 1948.

As for when James does eventually decide to retire from the NBA, he made clear that he wouldn't consider coming out of retirement, even if the urge to play persisted.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as LeBron James Boldly Assesses How Long He Could Play in NBA, 'If I Wanted to'.