LeBron James is potentially getting traded this summer. So many writers may have written this over his 23-year career, but there was rarely any substance to those rumors until now. The 40-year-old Lakers veteran picked up the $52.6 million player option that sent the rumor mill on a tailspin.
Following Rich Paul’s statement clarifying James’ intentions with the team upon picking up this player option, the whole NBA world started discussing the possibility of James getting traded this summer.
His son, Bronny James, who was drafted by the Lakers last season to fulfill his father’s wish of playing with him on the same team before retiring, could now also be on the move if his father decides to request a trade. He was asked what he felt about these trade rumors.
“Yeah actually, one of my friends called me, talking about what I was going to do cause they’ve seen my dad—whatever, I didn’t see it, he called me, I was like ‘Yeah I have no idea what you’re talking about’— I don’t really pay attention to that stuff. There’s a lot of stuff going around that I don’t really pay attention to.”
When asked whether he got a sense of what LeBron’s intentions were from the way the Lakers may have addressed it as a franchise in internal team talks, he clarified that James said nothing about it, at least to him.
“We don’t really talk about much, but I think when stuff like that comes up, he just tells me to not worry about it, not even pay attention to it, just lock in to what you have going on right now. And that’s what’s going to keep me better and make me focused, so it’s good that he tells me not to pay attention to that stuff.”
Will Bronny James Stay With The Lakers?
Bronny James averaged 2.3 points, 0.8 assists, and 0.7 rebounds in 27 games played for the Lakers in 2024-25. After James, on multiple occasions, expressed his desire to play with his son on the same team, many analysts believed that the only reason the Lakers drafted Bronny was to please his father, LeBron James. Now that James no longer has that influence on the front office moves, and he may be on his way out of the team, the next question that comes to mind is about Bronny’s future in the league.
Bronny James is entering the second year of a four-year, $7.8 million, rookie contract in which three years are guaranteed and the last year is a team option. Many analysts are assuming that in a trade of LeBron James, his son Bronny would also be leaving the Lakers. While that may not be true, considering that James also wants to play with Bryce on the same team, potentially, if possible, then he would like Bronny to also join him on the team where he will be headed, if he requests a trade.
As of now, Bronny is locked into working hard to fight for a spot in the rotation as a Lakers player. He has indicated that his father has not included him in any trade discussions so far, and he doesn’t know if those discussions are happening or not in the first place. He is currently focused on building his future with the Lakers.
