Lakers' LeBron James to Retire ... Or Get Traded to Luka Doncic's Mavs?
The seventh-seeded Los Angeles Lakers' Cinderella NBA playoff run came to an end on Monday night as Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets completed a sweep in the Western Conference Finals.
Despite 40 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists and two steals from 38-year-old LeBron James, the depth of the Nuggets was just too much for the overachieving Lakers to overcome. After the game, James made some comments that seemed like he's considering retirement this summer.
"I've got a lot to think about," James said. "Just personally with me moving forward with the game of basketball. I've got a lot to think about."
Meanwhile, if retirement isn't on the table for James, perhaps a potential trade out of L.A. will be. Despite all the rumors surrounding the Lakers' potential pursuits of Dallas Mavericks star guard Kyrie Irving in free agency, the NBA's new CBA makes that hard to accomplish.
According to BetOnline.ag, the Mavs have 10/1 odds of being James' next team if he's traded. The New York Knicks are the first team on that list with 3/1 odds.
At DallasBasketball.com, we've always said that if James and Irving truly want to team up again, the most logical way for them to do that would be to join forces with Luka Doncic in Dallas. A trio of Doncic, Irving and James would be more of a title contender than James and Irving would be on a stripped down Lakers roster.
Regardless of what happens with James over the summer, this NBA offseason is setting up to be one of the crazier ones we’ve seen in a while. The Mavs have big moves to make in order to build a true championship contender around Doncic, who is fresh off his fourth All-NBA First Team selection in five years.
Stay tuned to DallasBasketball.com for updates as we get closer to the draft on June 22 and free agency on June 30.
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