When LeBron James first signed with the Lakers in 2018, nobody imagined it would ever be like this.
Just two and a half years after winning the title, James (who is now 38 years old) has been left to lead one of the worst teams in the NBA. Worse still, the Lakers don’t even own their own pick for the upcoming draft, meaning they stand to gain absolutely nothing from their struggles this season.
In truth, there’s really nothing left for the Lakers to play for this season and everybody knows it. As you might have guessed, it’s much to the dismay of LeBron.
In fact, according to one insider, James would have strongly considered forcing his way out behind the scenes if he was eligible to be traded this season.
“I honestly believe that if he could be traded before the trade deadline, which he can’t be, he might be pushing for that behind the scenes right now,” Ethan Skolnick said on Sedano & Kap. “But he can’t, so that’s not an option. … He should be finishing his career in a place like Cleveland or Miami…and try to finish up and win there. If the Lakers, look if they don’t want him, somebody else will take him. And it does not seem to me like they want him.”
NBA insider says if LeBron James could be traded before deadline, he might be pushing for that behind the scenes: https://t.co/sF4Xo8WEhO
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) January 4, 2023
The Lakers have always maintained their loyalty to LeBron, and their commitment to winning, but they sure haven’t acted like it. Instead of maximizing the talent around Bron, and doing whatever they can to make the most of the time he has left in this league, they are letting him waste another spectacular individual season.
Will LeBron James Leave The Lakers?
The situation is pretty bad, and it would be worrying if LeBron wasn’t bothered by his team’s performance. But what are the odds he actually departs when this season finally ends? As it turns out, fans still have a reason to be optimistic about James’ long-term future as Laker.
Family reasons and LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION, as we’ve noted here many times, were the true driving forces that prompted James to leave Cleveland for Hollywood in the summer of 2018. Those are believed to be the same forces that would keep him from urging the Lakers to ship him somewhere that he has an actual chance at ring No. 5. His oldest son Bronny is a high school senior. Another son, Bryce, is a high school sophomore. They’re budding prospects thriving in Southern California. James presumably doesn’t want to uproot them (via Marc Stein).
For LeBron, it’s not as simple as jumping to the next team. As frustrated as he may be with Rob Pelinka and Jeanie Buss, he’s got a family to think about, and forcing them to move cities now (at the height of their High School careers) would be far from ideal.
It looks like LeBron will have to make some tough decisions in the near future, and it could have a profound impact on the Lakers and the NBA at large.
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