Age is just a number – and for the NBA, that number has gotten a lot smaller.
USA TODAY analyzed historical player-age data from Basketball-Reference, which maintains NBA statistics dating back to 1946-47, and found that the NBA's average age has fallen nearly two years since the 1999-00 season, from 27.7 to 25.9 last season.
Kirk Goldsberry, a basketball writer who was previously the San Antonio Spurs' vice president for strategic research, initially highlighted the age difference in an Instagram post last month. Goldsberry specifically found that 34.2% of the NBA player population was 30 or older at the turn of the century, but that dropped to nearly half – 17.5% – in 2025-26.
At 41 years old, it turns out that LeBron James and his fellow veterans
are a disappearing breed.
However, this shift toward younger players isn’t unprecedented.
In fact, the NBA previously had a league average age of under 26.5 in the 1950s and early 1960s. The average age then rose, peaking in the 1999-00 season to 27.7.
But the average has slowly decreased since then. The last year with an average age above 27 was the 2003-04 season.
And last season, the average dipped to 25.9, which is one of the youngest seasons in NBA history (the ‘50s and ‘60s reached 25.8 across five seasons).
On opening night, the average age for the 2026-27 season is slightly higher than last year at 26.1. However, the average could shift as players join or leave rosters throughout the season.
Why does the average age matter?
While the NBA has gotten younger overall, one thing has held true for the past several decades: winning champions have generally been older than league average.
In fact, out of the last 31 NBA champions, just two had a playoff roster with an average age below the NBA average: the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009 and the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2025.
And on those Lakers, the four players with the most regular-season minutes were older than the league’s 26.5 average age for the 2008-09 season. The Thunder, meanwhile, were a true band of youngsters led by a 26-year-old Shai Gilgeous-Alexander − who was only slightly older than the 2024-25 NBA average of 25.8.
So while the NBA's average age has gotten younger overall, championship teams have often skewed older than the rest of the league.
Average NBA team ages 2026-27
Heading into the upcoming season, USA TODAY looked at all 30 teams’ opening-week rosters to determine which teams are the youngest and oldest. The analysis used rosters finalized Oct. 19 and calculated player ages as of Jan. 31, 2027, consistent with the age methodology of Basketball-Reference, which USA TODAY used for historical seasons. This keeps player-age calculations consistent across seasons.
The oldest team in the league is the Golden State Warriors, led by 38-year-old Stephen Curry, with an average age of more than 29. That roster also includes 40-year-old Al Horford and 37-year-old Jimmy Butler.
On the other end of the spectrum is the Brooklyn Nets and their quartet of 20-year-olds: Nolan Traore, Ben Saraf, Mikel Brown Jr. and Egor Demin.
There's also the Memphis Grizzlies and their roster with an average age of 24.28. That includes two 19-year-olds − Cameron Boozer and Karim Lopez − and is the only one with two such players. Born in July 2007, third-overall pick Boozer is the youngest player this season.
LeBron James, who at 41 is the NBA’s oldest active player, headlines the Philadelphia 76ers. However, despite James’ veteran presence, the 76ers are far from the oldest team in the league and are over two years younger than the Warriors on average at 26.88.
Here’s a look at the average age for every NBA team heading into the 2026-27 season:
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: As LeBron James got older, the NBA got younger
