The amount of money LeBron James is willing to accept in his next contract will help determine where he plays next season or if he plays at all, according to Dave McMenamin and Tim Bontemps of ESPN. James will be an unrestricted free agent this summer, which is an unusual position as he typically holds a player option that gives him leverage in determining his future.
“Will he play for the mid-level exception? For the minimum?” one scout asked the authors. “A big part of this is knowing what he will be willing to do [financially].”
McMenamin and Bontemps point out that if James is willing to accept a veteran’s minimum deal just to continue his career, he becomes an attractive option for any team in the league. If he demands the full non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which will be about $15MM, or tries to work out a sign-and-trade, his next team may have to make other roster moves to get below the first tax apron.
The Lakers will hold James’ Bird rights and won’t face the same salary restrictions as their competitors. However, the need to re-sign free agent Austin Reaves, who could be in line for a max deal, will affect how much L.A. might be willing to spend in other areas. Sources tell the authors that along with Reaves, the Lakers are hoping to reach new deals with Jaxson Hayes, Luke Kennard and possibly Rui Hachimura if he can be re-signed at a reasonable price.
McMenamin and Bontemps list the Warriors, Cavaliers, Knicks, Nuggets and Clippers as teams to watch if James decides to go elsewhere.
There’s more on the Lakers:
- Head coach JJ Redick is touting Luka Doncic for Most Valuable Player honors, McMenamin adds in a separate story. L.A. went 15-2 in March with Doncic scoring 600 points, making him one of 10 players in NBA history to reach that total in any month. “He’s the engine that’s driving all of our winning,” Redick said. “Certainly, we have a ton of guys starring in their roles, but he’s the driver.” Doncic declined a chance to campaign for himself as MVP, per Melissa Rohlin of The California Post (Twitter video link).
- The Lakers have been getting improved play at center with the postseason approaching, notes Khobi Price of The California Post. It’s a welcome change from last year, when Redick was sometimes forced to use centerless lineups in a first-round loss to Minnesota.
- Marcus Smart will miss his sixth straight game with an ankle contusion when the Lakers travel to Oklahoma City on Thursday, per Law Murray of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Zero chance LeBron retires after this season
Will be interesting how far the Lakers go in the playoffs. That will have a big impact on the value of all their free agents, from Ayton, Smart, Rui, Luke, even Hayes and Bron.
If the Lakers trade away Vando, Knecht and Bronn (even if they have to give away a second round pick and cash to get it done) and keep noneof their free agents (including Ayton and Smart go elsewhere), they can open up $86M of cap space with Luka, Reaves $21M cap hold), Jake and Thiero. They can do lots of combos of keeping some of their free agents and getting new ones.
Gonna need a lot more than a 2nd to unload Vando
Second and $7m in cash. Can also be part of a trade if Rui or Bron need a sign and trade.
The clock doesn’t start on LeBron’s retirement until he announces it a season ahead of time. He isn’t leaving without a full year farewell.
Yes, but if he keeps this whole “Uhhh.. I dunno, who knows if this is my last year…” then he can still get more free All Star and All NBA selections by virtue of ‘oh, he deserves it, it could be his last year!’
When a guy is 20/6/7 shouting over 50% from the floor as a 3rd option and a still be popular player then I dont think he needs trickery to get an all l star nod.
Have fun when he comes to one of your teams and reveals just how inflated those numbers are.
We shall see how popular LeBron really is this off-season. Cleveland?
No chance Bron plays for the MLE let alone the minimum, regardless of value he adds to a team at this point in his career, I think it might be an ugly set of negotiations.
Two sides to this. First, yes, I don’t see him taking anything less than the type of deal Kyrie or Harden got either. People forget the year they drafted LeSoul, there was talk of LeUnc taking a pay cut to help the team. It ended up only being for like $1-2mm IIRC.
On the flipside, we know he’s obsessed with chasing Jordan’s legacy (Kobe is still better), so I do think it’s possible he takes a 1 year MLE to busride his way to another ring. Then he can be resigned to the amount of money he actually thinks he’s worth.
What is getting #6 going to do to displace MJ. It’s so crazy that ppl think he’s hanging around just to win a chip. it’s post of it because he’s a winner but you really think the Lakers would have been the best choice to “busride ” himself to #4 or #5 for they matter? That’s laughable.