The Cleveland Cavaliers are out of the 2026 NBA Playoffs after a 130-93 Game 4 loss to the New York Knicks ensured they were swept in the Eastern Conference Finals. The franchise is expected to be one of the few destinations LeBron James will seriously consider as a free agent, with a chance to retire by bringing a second championship back to Cleveland.
The Cavaliers are expected to make some changes in the offseason, with James Harden expected to enter free agency and coach Kenny Atkinson rumored to potentially be replaced by Jason Kidd. All of this will be done while keeping their pursuit of LeBron in mind, who they can’t engage with as a free agent until June 30.
Given the Cavaliers’ salary situation as the third-most expensive team heading into the offseason in the second apron, the team can’t open up the salary space to sign LeBron with a competitive offer without making major trades. Many have been expecting the 41-year-old James might compromise and join on a minimum contract to keep the core competitive, but ESPN’s Brian Windhorst revealed that it would be highly unlikely that LeBron reunites with the Cavaliers on a minimum contract.
“The Cavs, today, can sign LeBron for $3 million. He made $54 million this year. To my knowledge, LeBron is not prepared to take that kind of a pay cut. And, you have to have the conversations, a core problem with the Cavs is that two of their core players can’t defend. James Harden and Donovan Mitchell are guys who get attacked in the Playoffs. So, if you’re going to bring in a 42-year-old LeBron James, that won’t solve that.”
Windhorst also spoke about the Cavaliers potentially needing to explore trades involving frontcourt duo Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen to be serious contenders in the race for LeBron.
“If you’re willing to touch the idea of Jarrett Allen, if you’re willing to touch the idea of Evan Mobley, there will be other options, and you explore that pathway. That pathway could lead you to LeBron James.”
With Windhorst confirming that Harden is almost guaranteed to return on a multi-year deal, it seems the Cavaliers are locked into luring James to join a squad where the backcourt duo of Harden and Mitchell will continue. The Cavaliers could have an opportunity to trade Mobley for Giannis Antetokounmpo, but that trade might make opening salary space for LeBron James even harder.
The best potential route to ensure LeBron gets paid and joins the Cavaliers comes with a sign-and-trade where the Cavaliers send Allen ($28,000,000) and Max Strus ($16,660,836) to the Lakers for LeBron to accommodate James on a salary up to $44 million. Allen and Strus would be great fits alongside Luka Doncic on the Lakers, and this would help the Lakers not lose their franchise cornerstone for the last eight years for nothing.
LeBron James averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists in the 2025-26 season with the Lakers, taking a step up in the postseason by averaging 23.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists.
If not the sign-and-trade with Allen, the team could look to move off Allen and Mobley for cheaper but productive 3-and-D perimeter players like Herb Jones and Trey Murphy III, and a cheap defense-oriented 3-and-D center like Jay Huff to surround LeBron James, Harden, and Mitchell with the defensive tools they need to be competitive.
It’s unrealistic to imagine the Cavaliers would make such drastic moves to accommodate signing LeBron for his 24th season in the NBA, so this will be a developing situation.
