The Los Angeles Lakers are in a precarious position; particularly, the front office must go about their business in a delicate manner. The reason for that is a somewhat strained relationship with LeBron James, the legendary NBA player who brought an NBA Championship back to L.A. back in 2020 but hasn’t found postseason success with the team since then.
At 40 years old, James can still carry an offense, but GM Rob Pelinka and co. have to start thinking about the future. That’s why they jumped at the opportunity to acquire Luka Doncic earlier this year. Although it didn’t lead to significant progress in the playoffs, it gave them a face of the franchise for when James retires. This all hasn’t sat too well with James, whose contract situation is as much up in the air as Doncic’s. Although both players were already under contract for the upcoming season, both want new, big deals going forward. But it sounds like only one of them will get it.
Luka Doncic to sign mega contract extension at end of Jordan Brand tour
Doncic is that guy, with the front office just ironing out details and playing the waiting game until it’s officially signed and announced. According to a report from Brett Siegel at ClutchPoints, Doncic is waiting for his Jordan Brand tour to finish in Los Angeles this weekend to sign the contract, allowing the Lakers star to get plenty of exposure on the tour and culminate it with a flashy new contract.
Meanwhile, James can’t do anything but watch from his home. The Lakers have begun treating James like their second star; something that James is simply not used to. But he will have to get used to it, because James doesn’t appear to be going anywhere just yet.
The Lakers reportedly plan to let James play out the remaining final year of his contract. Once the 2025-26 season ends, James will be free to hit free agency if he wants to continue playing somewhere else. Ideally for everyone involved, the Lakers win it all in James’ final season there.
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