Happy birthday, LeBron: What's left for King James to achieve?

LeBron James turns 33 today, and like many all-time greats, he remains at the top of his game.

Michael Jordan won MVP and led the league in scoring en route to completing his second three-peat. Kobe Bryant was still one of the league's best scorers while stubbornly dragging a lifeless Los Angeles Lakers team to its last playoff appearance.

The decline came afterwards. Jordan called it a career (for the second time), while injuries turned Bryant into a limping shell of himself by 35. James, equipped with his indestructible stature and immaculate health, is built for greater durability, but even he must sense his mortality.

James remains in his prime, but he is undoubtedly in the back end of his career, which means he must use his time wisely. What's left for The King to accomplish?

More rings

Adding more titles to his resume should be his main focus going forward.

As it stands right now, not winning enough rings is the only hesitation as to where James ranks all time. He said this year that he doesn't care about barbershop talk, but greatness is how others see you, and arguments tend to become reductive after a player retires.

Whether it's fair or not, "rings" will be the bottom line for his career, and as of right now, James sits at three. That puts him in a tie with Larry Bird, but he still trails the likes of Shaquille O'Neal (4), Tim Duncan (5), Bryant (5), and Jordan (6). To be considered as the best of all time, James needs more rings.

That will be the main consideration for James as he enters free agency next summer. Who gives him the best chance at winning a title? Can he assemble another team to defeat the Golden State Warriors?

Become the all-time scorer

It's crazy that a player who doesn't even think of himself as a scorer might finish with more points than anybody in NBA history.

James, who is already the seventh-leading scorer in league history, is roughly 8,600 points back of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. How quickly he reaches that number will be tied to how gracefully James ages. If he averages 25 points per game, he can get there in about four years. If he averages 20, it will take five. If he does a modest 17, he can get it done in six.

The more understated race is James' pursuit of finishing top five in assists, a spot that is currently held by Magic (10,141 assists). At his career average of seven assists per game, James could surpass Magic in four years. If he holds out a bit longer, there's a fair chance of besting both Mark Jackson (10,334) and Steve Nash (10,335) to land in third.

Recreate the Griffey situation

James isn't interested in sticking around the NBA just for the sake of it, but he does want a chance at playing against his son one day.

"I know I won't be able to play at this level forever," James told GQ this summer. "But to be washed and play … I don't know if I can play washed ... but I damn sure would love to stick around if my oldest son can have an opportunity to play against me. That'd be, that'd be the icing on the cake right there."

His eldest child, LeBron James Jr., is still a 13-year-old. But if everything goes right, if he staves off otherworldly expectations like his father did, if he wants to follow in those footsteps, there's a chance of Senior and Junior being in the league at the same time.

Junior would be 18 while Senior would be 38. It's not that ridiculous. They could be the Ken Griffey family of basketball.

What's the story?

Most importantly, James needs to decide who he wants to be remembered as.

Going back to the examples of Jordan and Bryant, they were busy writing their narratives when they got to their mid-30s. Jordan wrapped up his sixth title to become the greatest of all time, while Bryant reinvented himself as the Black Mamba that counseled young players in need.

How will James brand himself? What's his legacy? We're about to find out.

The first step will come down to how James approaches his last chapter in free agency. He can form another superteam with a ready-made contender in Houston, become an international icon by re-situating himself in Hollywood, remain in the East by skipping to Philadelphia or staying put in Cleveland, or maybe he tosses out a curveball. Titles will be the main goal, but not the only factor.

No matter where he ends up, James will inevitably continue to expand his influence. The King is becoming more political, more empathetic, more charitable, more witty, and more outspoken by the day. His maturation into the model citizen is truly inspiring. James has pushed the boundaries for what it means to be a modern athlete. He's wildly exceeded the wildest of expectations and did so without a single blemish.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)