LAS VEGAS — LeBron James created quite a buzz when he walked into the Thomas & Mack Center to watch his son Bronny play at Summer League for the Lakers (and Bronny is looking pretty good).
However, despite the vibes fans may get from headlines and social media, LeBron is not generating much buzz in Las Vegas about his potential trade or exit from the Lakers as one might think. It’s a topic, but one that often relatively quickly turns to shrugs. That’s because the dynamics are understood, and there is no clear endgame. Here’s where things stand.
• The Lakers are looking past LeBron now to their Luka Doncic future, but believe they can contend with that duo this season. LeBron understands the Lakers’ focus but also understandably may not be happy about it. ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst wrote about this recently:
James understood the Lakers taking advantage of an opportunity to pivot to the younger superstar. But from James’ perspective, sources said, nuance was sometimes lost during the transition. Doncic had never asked to be a Laker. James, for his part, had chosen L.A., coming in 2018 when the team had missed the playoffs five consecutive seasons, the worst run for the franchise since it moved from Minneapolis. Two years later, James had helped deliver a 17th championship.
[LeBron’s agent Rich] Paul also had to formally inform the Lakers that James intended to pick up the final year of his contract after the team did not engage in any substantial discussions about extending him by a year or two, sources said, as they had done twice previously during James’ Lakers’ tenure.
• LeBron would have to request a trade to make it happen (he has a no-trade clause) and has not done so. What’s more, Paul “hasn’t even discussed the possibility of wanting a trade in the future” with the Lakers, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin said during the broadcast of the Lakers’ Sunday Summer League game. Because he has a no-trade clause, LeBron would have leverage and complete control over any trade process.
• Four teams did reach out to Paul to at least kick the tires on a LeBron trade, McMenamin added.
• The challenge in finding a trade is that LeBron wants to contend and be in a city and with a franchise of his choosing. He could stay in the Western Conference, but then he would still have to beat out Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant and Houston, Nikola Jokić and an improved Denver roster, Anthony Edwards and Minnesota, and the list goes on and on. He could try and force a trade to the East, but the deals to New York or Cleveland or wherever would gut those rosters of depth and make those teams considerably older with a very short window (for example, the Cavaliers Darius Garland for LeBron swap makes them 15 years older and it’s debatable how much better, if at all).
What sparked all this was Paul’s statement to ESPN’s Shams Charania when LeBron exercised his player option for this season.
“LeBron wants to compete for a championship. He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we’ve had for eight years with Jeanie [Buss] and Rob [Pelinka] and consider the Lakers as a critical part of his career.
“We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what’s best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career. He wants to make every season he has left count, and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and want what’s best for him.”
Ultimately, what’s best for him this season, where he potentially can contend, may very well be staying with the Lakers. This is a 50-win team that comes together for a full training camp and now has a center in Deandre Ayton, the Lakers are going to be good (if they can get enough stops).
That’s not going to stop the headlines, however.
