The 2003 NBA Draft class was supposed to be special—and it was. But as time marches on, 57 of the 58 players from that legendary class have hung up their sneakers for good. The lone exception? LeBron James, who at 41 years old is still defying every rule of athletic aging.

Jarvis Hayes, a lottery pick from that same draft, now 44, can barely manage a pickup game with his teenage sons. "I just can’t move like I used to," Hayes admits. "I don't want to end up in the emergency room with a popped Achilles." His story is the norm for the class of 2003—a group that has scattered into careers as coaches, analysts, entrepreneurs, and even fruit farmers.

But while his peers have slowed down, LeBron James is doing the opposite. With thinning hair and a salt-and-pepper beard, he's still throwing down reverse windmill slams and dropping near triple-doubles like it's 2009. In this year's playoffs, with Luka Doncic sidelined and Austin Reaves unavailable, James single-handedly carried the Lakers past the younger, more athletic Houston Rockets. Then, in the Western Conference semifinals opener against reigning champion Oklahoma City, he led all scorers with 27 points.

"The man has made close to $580 million in contract money and he's still grinding like an undrafted rookie," says Troy Bell, the 16th pick in that 2003 draft. It's a reminder that while time catches up with almost everyone, LeBron James remains the one player who refuses to let it win.