What we all knew was coming is finally official. LeBron James is continuing his relationship with the Los Angeles Lakers for the near future.
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, James intends to sign a two-year, $104 million max deal, with a no trade clause, with the Lakers, less than 24 hours after they signed his son, rookie Bronny James, to a two-year guaranteed deal.
James decided to opt out of his previous contract on Saturday afternoon, worth $51.1M with his agent and childhood friend Rich Paul informing ESPN that James was open to negotiating a deal that would pay him less money than he was eligible for to allow general manager Rob Pelinka to work his magic and sign an “impact player.”
The 39-year-old, who will turn 40 on December 30, is the oldest active player in the League but shows no significant signs of decline going into his 22nd season in 2024-25 and will match Hall of Famer Vince Carter for the most NBA seasons played all time. James played at an all-NBA level, averaging 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists in 35 minutes per game in the 2023-2024 season.
James joined the Lakers in 2018, inking a four-year, $154 million deal. He signed a two-year, $97.1 million extension with Los Angeles in 2022, which included the player option he declined for this upcoming season.
Embed from Getty ImagesLast season, James became the first player to make 20 All-Star teams, passing the captain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, whom he had already eclipsed for the all-time scoring mark, for the most in NBA history.
During the 2024 All-Star weekend in February, James said that he wanted to retire as a Laker like many of the legends before him.
“I am a Laker, and I’ve been very happy being a Laker the last six years, and hopefully it stays that way,” James said, just before making a record-breaking 20th All-Star appearance.
Another dominating factor was James’ 19-year-old son, Bronny, who was drafted by the Lakers with the No. 55 overall pick on Thursday. James has repeatedly stated that he hopes to play his final NBA season with Bronny, and now that Junior has reportedly signed on with the Lakers, that dream is set to become reality. LeBron and Bronny will officially be the fourth father-son duo to play together in professional sports history.
James alongside Anthony Davis, helped lead the Lakers to their 17th title in the NBA bubble in 2020, collecting his fourth overall championship. In the years that followed, the Lakers have struggled mightily. They were sent packing in the first round of the 2021 and 2024 playoffs and missed the postseason completely in 2022.
James and the Lakers reached the 2023 Western Conference finals but were swept by the eventual NBA champion Denver Nuggets.
By returning to the Lakers, James will attempt to make another run at the championship under the leadership of his former podcast partner and new coach JJ Redick, who signed a four-year, $32M contract with the Lakers on June 20 and who replaces Darvin Ham.
