The Los Angeles Lakers are officially in the post-LeBron James era now, and Collin Sexton is one of the many new faces they have brought in this summer. Funnily enough, this is the second time James has left a team in the same offseason that Sexton arrived, and the latter joked about it during his first media availability since becoming a Laker.
“He’s just leaving every time I arrive,” Sexton said, via Lakers Nation. “… One of the other coaches made the same joke yesterday. It’s cool. I’ve always wanted to team up with him, for sure.”
Oh, we’ve known that Sexton has always wanted to team up with James. He made that clear after he was drafted.
The Cleveland Cavaliers had selected Sexton with the No. 8 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft on June 21, 2018. The Cavaliers had made four straight NBA Finals at that point, with James leading the way. He was set to be a free agent that summer, though, and everyone in Cleveland was desperate for him to stay.
So, after Sexton was drafted, ESPN’s Maria Taylor asked him to make his pitch to James to stay with the Cavaliers.
“Man, LeBron, let’s do it,” Sexton said. “Let’s do it. I see you need a few pieces… Let’s go back to the Finals, let’s do it.”
Unfortunately, Sexton was not able to convince James. On July 1, 2018, he agreed to sign with the Lakers. The Cavaliers promptly collapsed without James, going 19-63 in 2018-19. Forget getting back to the NBA Finals; they didn’t even come close to making the playoffs.
Sexton might have imagined at the time that he would get to play in the playoffs at some point in the coming years, but he never did. The 27-year-old is entering his ninth season in the NBA now and has never played a playoff game.
Sexton should finally get his first taste of the playoffs with the Lakers. He agreed to a two-year, $19 million deal with them on July 1, 2026. Unlike 2018, Sexton knew this time around that he wouldn’t get to play with James. The 41-year-old informed the Lakers on June 30, 2026, that he wasn’t going to return.
The Lakers will now be counting on the likes of Sexton to help fill the void left by James. The 6’3″ guard averaged 15.4 points, 2.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.1 blocks per game for the Charlotte Hornets and the Chicago Bulls in 2025-26.
Sexton is going to be that spark plug off the bench. The Lakers haven’t really had a good one in a while. As for why Sexton chose them, he wants to win.
“Honestly, I would say just like opportunity,” Sexton said. “Opportunity to go out and win and be able to compete each and every night. I feel like that’s something that needs to be shown that I bring each and every day is that one to compete, but also the one to win.”
The Lakers should do a whole lot of winning in the regular season, at least. They have completely retooled their roster as they look to become a title contender, and Sexton was asked what head coach JJ Redick and general manager Rob Pelinka had told him about the team’s vision.
“I would say the toughness,” Sexton said. “They want to be able to compete in all aspects on the defensive side, but also on offensive side. And just being able to change the pace of the game whenever it’s needed. I feel like sometimes walking the ball up and letting other teams set up defense is tough. And sometimes you got to be able to change the flow.
“So we talked, and it was a really good conversation,” Sexton continued. “They believe in me, and I just feel like at the end of the day, whenever a coach believes in you, like you said, he’s going to be hard on me and yelling and screaming. I like that. That’s what gets the best from me.”
Redick is going to let his players know when he’s not happy with them. Sexton doesn’t see that as a problem. Also, while he won’t get to play with James on the Lakers, he does get to team up with a special talent in Luka Doncic. Sexton has had plenty of battles with Doncic over the years and is now looking forward to playing with him.
“Luka is a tremendous player,” Sexton said. “He’s one of those people that can think the game two, three steps ahead. And being on this team, we can just feed off of him. At the end of the day, just whatever he needs from us, being able to pick it up and give him energy as well.
“I feel like a lot of times, having other guys around that can make plays, whether it’s shoot the ball or get to the paint, making plays for others, it’s going to help him,” Sexton continued. “Even in like when the fourth quarter comes now, it’s like, okay, you might have to guard him straight up. And that’s when he’s able to pick you apart.”
Doncic and Sexton were actually both part of the 2018 draft class. The Slovenian didn’t seem to enjoy playing with No. 1 pick Deandre Ayton last season, and he’d be hoping this proves to be a better partnership.
Getting back to James, we still don’t know where he is going. There are five leading suitors now: the Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Golden State Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, and Minnesota Timberwolves.
