LOS ANGELES — LeBron James has made his decision.
After eight years with the Lakers, James – the four-time MVP, 2020 NBA Champion and future first-ballot Hall of Famer – is continuing his career, but it will not be with the Lakers, his agent Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul told the Southern California News Group on Tuesday morning.
The Lakers wanted to bring back James, president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka said as such during his end-of-season press conference in May. Coach JJ Redick repeated Pelinka’s sentiment that the Lakers would be happy to return the trio of James, Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic together for another season.
But the Lakers are no longer revolving around James. The 41-year-old star was not at the forefront of the team’s plans for the offseason. With $52 million in projected cap space to spend through free agency and trades, any decision on James was likely going to come later in the offseason when the Lakers had spent most of their cap space retaining some of their eight unrestricted free agents and exploring who else could join the Lakers for the second full season of Doncic.
James’ tenure with the Lakers, no matter how one cuts it, was nothing short of special. James was an eight-time All-Star with the Lakers, leading the franchise into the COVID-19 bubble in Florida to win an improbable NBA championship in 2020 alongside Anthony Davis and former coach Frank Vogel. He broke numerous records. As a Laker, James played the most games in NBA history, scored the most points (passing another franchise icon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and his record on Feb. 7, 2023) and surged into his 23rd season in the NBA leading the Lakers.
But most importantly for James, as he repeated multiple times across the last two seasons, he got to play alongside his son, Bronny James, with the Lakers, becoming the first father-son duo to share the court at the same time. Bronny James’ contract became fully guaranteed with the Lakers as of Monday evening.
When asked at the season’s end about his eight years with the Lakers, the longest stretch he has had with any team in his NBA career, LeBron James shared what his top moments as a member of the franchise were.
“There’s a lot,” he said. “Obviously winning a championship in 2020, (that) would stand at the top. That was the reason why I came here, to restore that level of play and restore this franchise back to what it was known for, winning championships and playing at a high level. And to be out there with that group and go out there and win a championship, and us competing at a championship level was something that I envisioned and was able to accomplish that.”
Heading into the offseason, James said that when he made his decision on what was next, that the media would be first to know. That could have been retirement. But James, who has shocked the league since 2003 with his star power and skill, had one more stunning announcement in him – news that will lead to a record 24th season.
James, who made $52.6 million with the Lakers last season before becoming an unrestricted free agent, will almost surely take a dramatic pay cut regardless of where his final years in the NBA will take place. James averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists for the Lakers last season, reclaiming the star mantle as he led his team into the second round of the NBA playoffs as Doncic dealt with a season-ending hamstring strain.
Rumors began to swirl on over the weekend that the Golden State Warriors were serious contenders for James – which only began to gain steam after Draymond Green rejected his $27.7 million player option – and that the Lakers’ Western Conference rivals would be making a serious play for the 41-year-old superstar.
The earthquake-like news Tuesday makes three things for certain.
James is no longer a Laker and will not end his career in Los Angeles.
The franchise is squarely Doncic’s to lead heading into the years ahead.
And the Lakers now have an offseason of an ever-shifting identity ahead under Pelinka and new ownership.
More to come on this story.