It appears if the Los Angeles Lakers have their way, LeBron James would retire with the franchise. The Athletic’s Sam Amick is reporting that the Lakers would ‘strongly prefer’ that James ends his storied NBA career with them.
“His statement to reporters regarding his contract is the only part that truly matters when it comes to the power dynamics in play here,” Amick wrote. “Team sources say the Lakers would strongly prefer that James retire in their jersey someday, meaning he holds all the cards until his contract situation gets figured out. The Lakers’ top decision makers have no illusions about that much.”
It seems the only question here really is whether LeBron, who is averaging 24.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game this season, wants to retire as a Laker. The 39-year-old has a $51.4 million player option for 2024-25, and he could opt out of it to become a free agent this summer.
LeBron refused to commit to the Lakers when asked about his player option, as he stated he did not know what he was going to do with it. It has seemed pretty clear that he wants the Lakers to make some moves to turn around what has been a disappointing 2023-24 season, where they currently sport a 27-25 record.
With LA having failed to pull off any moves and with the February 8 trade deadline fast approaching, James has been using some interesting tactics to pressure the team. Eyebrows were first raised when LeBron posted an hourglass emoji on X after the Lakers were blown out by the Atlanta Hawks last month, implying that time was running out for someone.
Then after a game against the New York Knicks earlier this month, James chose to wear a Knicks towel during his postgame interview. NBA insider Brian Windhorst firmly believes LeBron was using that Knicks towel to pressure the Lakers into making a move.
The Lakers really have a tough decision to make here. Do they stand pat and risk James leaving in the offseason, or do they sacrifice their future by giving up a valuable asset like their 2029 first-round pick in a big trade so that he stays? In an ideal world, they would want to have LeBron and that pick, but one of the two will be gone soon you’d think.
The Lakers Never Considered Trading LeBron James
It had also recently been reported that the Lakers were looking to trade LeBron, but it would appear that was not the case. As per Amick’s sources, the Lakers never considered trading the 20-time All-Star.
“A high-ranking Lakers source, meanwhile, scoffed at the idea that the Lakers would even consider trading James,” Amick wrote. “But so long as the goal remains for this partnership to continue, it certainly behooves the Lakers to take James’ voice into account. If, that is, he chooses to use it in a direct manner with team officials rather than this sort of passive-aggressive style.”
LeBron has always been the king of passive aggressiveness and that’s not going to change. It just seems so obvious from the outside that he wants change, that I don’t see why the Lakers need him to come forward and spell it out. It will be interesting to see if the front office can pull off a move now, though, as they are running out of time.
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