Lakers: NBA Analyst Believes LeBron James is Here to Stay in Los Angeles
Things do not appear to be good between the Lakers and LeBron James. For a guy that has carried the team all season long, the front office doesn't appear to be trying to appease him. That made for a very awkward All-Star break in Cleveland this past week, where James had fans in Los Angeles very concerned.
James spoke at will about his willingness to come back to Cleveland at the end of his career. He is still under contract with the Lakers for another season, and they have the opportunity to extend him all the way up until August 4th.
But what exactly will James do? He wants to play on the same team as his son Bronny, who could be draft eligible in 2024. Given the draft capital that the Lakers currently have, it seems unlikely he would land here.
That scenario combined with James' open disdain for how the Lakers handled the deadline has led to assumptions. The main one, of course, is that Bron will be looking to leave Los Angeles at some point.
But The Atheltic's Shams Charania isn't convinced James is going anywhere, contrary to popular belief. He spoke on the Pat McAfee Show this week about James and said that he does not expect him to skip town to head to Cleveland.
"I personally don't see a scenario where LeBron James is bolting from the Lakers to the Cavs. ... From everything I've been told his plan is to be a Laker for the foreseeable future."
James openly praised other GMs around professional sports this past week, a clear shot at how the Lakers went through the deadline. There also seemed to be some miscommunication about the team not making trades, as Rob Pelinka had noted Bron was onboard with that.
But if there is one guy that you want to keep happy, it's LeBron. And it doesn't seem like the Lakers are trying to do that right now.
