LeBron James Decides to Decline Player Option, Explore New Deal with LakersLeBron James Decides to Decline Player Option, Explore New Deal with Lakers Four-time Los Angeles Lakers champion LeBron James has decided to decline his $51.4 million player option for next season, paving the way for a new contract with the team, according to league sources. James, who will turn 40 on December 30, had a deadline of 5 p.m. ET on Saturday to make a decision on his player option. Under the current cap guidance, the Lakers can offer him a maximum of three years and $160 million as a free agent. Alternatively, James could have opted into his $51.4 million contract for next season and signed an extension in late August. The Lakers have repeatedly expressed their desire for James to return and are willing to offer him a max extension. The team also drafted his son, Bronny, with the 55th overall pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday, potentially increasing the likelihood of James’s return. James has long expressed a desire to play with Bronny in the NBA. In 2022, he told The Athletic, “My last year (in the NBA) will be played with my son.” However, he later adjusted his stance, indicating that he would also be happy to face Bronny on the court. During his six seasons with the Lakers, James has averaged 27.0 points per game in the regular season and helped the team win the NBA title in 2020. He is also on the brink of surpassing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the league’s all-time leading scorer. James’s decision to decline his player option sets the stage for ongoing negotiations between him and the Lakers. The expectation is that he will ultimately return to Los Angeles on a new deal.
Four-time Los Angeles Lakers champion LeBron James plans to forgo his $51.4 million player option for next season, league sources have told The Athletics on Saturday. James is expected to return to the Lakers on a new deal.
James, who turns 40 on Dec. 30, has until 5 p.m. ET on Saturday to officially decide whether to exercise his 2024-25 player option.
Just in: Four-time Los Angeles Lakers champion LeBron James plans to forgo his $51.4 million player option for next season, sources say @TheAthletic @Stadium. James is expected to return to the Lakers with a new deal. photo.twitter.com/wQAbSAwCQD
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 29, 2024
The most the Lakers can offer him as a free agent is three years and $160 million based on current cap guidance. The other option to guarantee James’ return to the Lakers would be for him to opt into his $51.4 million deal for next season and then sign an extension in late August.
The Athletics Previously reported that the Lakers wanted James to return, were open to offering him a max extension and were willing to draft his son Bronny this year. That happened on Thursday when the Lakers selected Bronny with the 55th overall pick in the NBA Draft, capping a year of questions about Bronny’s future in the game.
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James has long expressed a desire to play with Bronny in the pros, which is telling The Athletics in 2022: “My last year (in the NBA) will be played with my son.” The superstar forward changed that sentiment in 2023, telling ESPN that his goal would also be realized by playing with Bronny “in the same uniform or (in) a match against him.”
In his six years as a Laker, James has averaged 27.0 points per game in the regular season and collected 9,436 of his NBA-record 40,474 regular season points. During his four postseason trips with Los Angeles, he averaged 26.1 points per game and helped the Lakers to an NBA title in 2020.
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