LeBron James is taking his talents elsewhere.
The basketball living legend and four-time NBA champion informed the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday — the first day of free agency — that he’s planning on playing for another team next season, James’s representative, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul, told ESPN.
“James chose to inform the Lakers well before start of free agency tonight out of courtesy and appreciation for their run together, and to allow L.A. to conduct its offseason business,” reported ESPN’s Shams Charania, adding, “The Lakers expressed to James that they wanted him back, but the NBA’s all-time leading scorer decides to move on elsewhere.”
“LeBron James is one of the greatest athletes in history. We will always be thankful for his eight years with the Lakers — including the title he led us to in 2020 under the toughest imaginable circumstances and the countless records he broke in purple and gold,” Lakers governor Jeanie Buss said in a statement. “We wish him all the best in the future, both on the court and off. He will always be a cherished part of the Lakers family.”
James, 41, announced that he’d be leaving the Lakers one day after his son Bronny’s $2.3 million contract with the Lakers became fully guaranteed (despite only averaging 4.8 points per game in limited playing time at USC due to a congenital heart defect, James convinced the Lakers to draft his son in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, which led to charges of nepotism).
The decision marks the end of his eight-year tenure with the Lakers, resulting in an NBA championship in 2020 during the notorious NBA Bubble season where, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, players competed for the title in a bio-secure bubble in Walt Disney World, Florida. James was unanimously named NBA Finals MVP that year (his fourth), averaging a stellar 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.5 assists on 59% shooting.
Since that title, it’s been a bit of a mixed bag for James’s oft-injured Lakers. The team reached the Conference Finals in 2023, where they were swept by the Denver Nuggets, but also experienced several first round playoff exits. Last season, James heroically led the Lakers to a first round upset over the Houston Rockets without the services of star teammate Luka Dončić before being swept by the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Semifinals.
Now, the Luka Dončić era in L.A. has officially begun. In a move that shocked the entire NBA, the Lakers stole away Dončić — considered one of the most dynamic young players in the league — last year from the Dallas Mavericks for injury-addled big Anthony Davis, swing guard Max Christie and a first round pick. It was such a poorly received move by the Mavs that the entire fanbase called for the firing of general manager Nico Harrison, who eventually got the ax. Dončić will be joined by Austin Reaves, who recently agreed to a four-year, $185 million contract to stay with the Lakers — the largest ever for an undrafted player. The Lakers are still in search of a viable lob threat to pair with Dončić off the pick and roll, and have long courted Knicks big man Mitchell Robinson, who’s poised to be a free agent if the team doesn’t re-sign him.
It seems the Knicks winning their first NBA championship in 53 years has thrown the entire league into a state of disarray, scattering players in different directions. Milwaukee Bucks legend Giannis Antetokounmpo, aka “The Greek Freak,” was shipped to the Miami Heat; the Hornets traded LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves, pairing him in the backcourt with Anthony Edwards; the Portland Trail Blazers acquired Ja Morant from the Memphis Grizzlies; the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown wants out after he was dangled for Giannis; and, after a year of off-court controversy (that resulted in a Pulitzer Prize for Pablo Torre), Kawhi Leonard is heavily rumored to be leaving the Clippers, perhaps for a reunion with the Toronto Raptors, who he led to the NBA title in 2019.
As for James, it remains to be seen what he’ll do next. Returning to his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers, who he took to five NBA Finals and one unforgettable championship in 2016, leading the team back from a 3-1 deficit against the mighty Golden State Warriors, would be poetic. James could be the missing piece for the Cavaliers, who were swept in the Eastern Conference Semifinals by the Knicks, that finally gets them over the hump. Imagine a starting lineup of James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, LeBron James, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen?
Like the NBA great whose No. 23 jersey number he dons, James could play for the Washington Wizards alongside ex-teammate Anthony Davis, Trae Young and No. 1 draft pick AJ Dybantsa, though the Wizards are a cursed franchise and the Washington, D.C. market might not be the biggest draw to James, who has a number of off-court ventures he presides over, including the production company SpringHill, which has produced films and series for Netflix and HBO.
Another rumored destination for James is joining the greatest shooter ever, Stephen Curry, on the Golden State Warriors — a full-circle moment of sorts from when James famously took in Curry’s games during his time at Davidson College. However, it would be an odd move in the grand scheme of things, given his rivalry with the Warriors during the late-2010s.
He could also retire and rest on his laurels (he is 41 after all!), though by the look of things, James still has plenty left in the tank. Though he didn’t make an All-NBA team for the first time in 21 seasons (he didn’t meet the 65-game threshold to qualify), he’s still an excellent player when healthy, averaging 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds a game last season on 51% shooting.
One thing is certain: Wherever he ends up, he’ll draw big crowds and generate plenty of headlines.
