The LeBron James saga continues for the Los Angeles Lakers. While he hasn’t requested a trade and seems content with staying with the team for the 2025-26 season, his actions this offseason have suggested that he wouldn’t be opposed to getting moved.
The Lakers are building around Luka Doncic, and he’s a good enough player for the team to compete for a championship. However, Los Angeles likely still needs more pieces if they’re going to get back to the NBA Finals.
James is 40 and isn’t very patient at this point in his career. He did lead the Lakers to one championship in 2020, but the team has struggled to be consistently competitive since. Yahoo Sports’ Tom Haberstroh was asked to give a prediction for the 2025-26 NBA season, and he thinks the season ends with James playing elsewhere.
“Go big or go home: LeBron James will not be on the Lakers at the end of the season,” Haberstroh wrote. “It made sense for the Lakers to trade James from the moment they traded for Dončić. Paying a 40-year-old max money is a hindrance to building a contender around a 26-year-old perennial MVP candidate. It just is. Who knows how the Lakers find a partner to match salaries for James, but they would be wise to acquire whatever they can for one of the game’s all-time greats before he could leave them in 2026 free agency.”
He then singled out the Cleveland Cavaliers as James’ most likely landing spot.
“LeBron waives his no-trade clause and OK’s a trade to the Cavs,” Haberstroh wrote. “He’s coming home — again. It won’t be easy, but if the Cavs get off to a slow start, Darius Garland’s contract could be large enough to grease the wheels in a three- or four-team trade.”
Would Garland Be Good Fit on Lakers?
If the Lakers are going to trade James, they’re going to want something in return. Garland would be an interesting player to get back.
He’s a two-time All-Star who averaged 20.6 points per game last season. The only issue there is that he has a redundant skillset compared to that of Austin Reaves and Doncic. The Lakers could roll with a guard-heavy lineup, but the defense would be a major issue. The team might prefer a different player in return if they’re going to lose James.
Could Lakers Drop off in Standings?
The Lakers finished last season as the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, but lost in the first round of the playoffs. Though the team added center Deandre Ayton and guard Marcus Smart, some aren’t buying them as contenders.
Haberstroh named the Lakers as the team most likely to have the biggest fall in the standings this season.
“From a standings standpoint, I don’t see how the Lakers stay at a No. 3 seed again,” Haberstroh wrote. “I’m a believer in Skinny Luka, but if LeBron James is at all checked out, there’s not nearly enough depth on this roster to sustain a level required to claim first-round home-court advantage. I fear the talent drop-off after Luka Dončić, James and Austin Reaves will doom them this season.
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