LeBron James will not return to the Los Angeles Lakers and is planning to continue his career elsewhere in what would be a record extending 24th NBA season.
A person familiar with the decision confirmed the development on Tuesday, speaking on condition of anonymity because James had yet to make the announcement publicly. The move was first reported by ESPN, citing James’ longtime agent and Klutch Sports chief executive, Rich Paul.
James becomes eligible to begin official discussions with teams from 6 p.m. EDT on Tuesday when the NBA free agency window opens, although he cannot formally sign with a new club until the league’s off season moratorium ends on July 6.
Several destinations are expected to emerge as potential landing spots for the four time NBA champion, including the Golden State Warriors.
Long serving Warriors forward Draymond Green recently declined to exercise his $27.6 million player option for next season, a move widely seen as giving the franchise greater flexibility to pursue significant roster additions.
“Personally, I’m always willing to work with the team on whatever is best, especially at this point in my career,” Green said on the latest episode of his podcast, which was released Tuesday.
“So my decision to opt out was for a few reasons. As you all know, I’ve always taken the approach of working with the organization. I’ve been in one place for 14 years. It’s more of a family to me than anything.”
A move to Golden State would reunite James with close friends and long time rivals including Green, Stephen Curry and Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.
James spent eight seasons with the Lakers, the longest uninterrupted spell of his career with a single franchise. During that period, he guided the club to the 2020 NBA title, became the league’s all time leading scorer and added several milestones to an already unmatched resume.
The NBA superstar spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers before joining the Miami Heat, where he won the first two of his four NBA championships. He later returned to Cleveland for another four seasons before signing with the Lakers in 2018.
James remains the oldest active player in the NBA and will turn 42 in December. He became the first player in league history to complete 23 seasons and is set to add at least one more to that total.
He also became the first NBA player to share the court with his son, with Bronny James featuring alongside him for the Lakers.
James’ list of achievements remains unrivalled.
He is a 22 time All Star, a 21 time All NBA selection, a four time NBA Most Valuable Player, a four time NBA Finals MVP, a three time All Star Game MVP and a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
He is coming off a season in which he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game. Across more than 1,600 NBA appearances, James has averaged 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
