Surprising Team Named ‘Best Positioned’ for LeBron James Move From Lakers

LeBron James has made a Hall-of-Fame career out of delivering unprecedented feats to NBA fans, from breaking the all-time scoring record set by a previous Los Angeles Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s four decades ago, to his record streak of 21 straight years as an NBA All-Star, to earning All-NBA honors at the age of 40.

But on June 29 he did something that may not have been brand new for any NBA player, but for James it was. He chose to unilaterally exercise his option, at a salary of $52.6 million, to renew his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers for one more season.

James Has Always Chosen Opt-Out in Past

Twice before in his career, James has had the choice of exercising a player option or becoming a free agent — in 2014 when he opted out his contract with the Miami Heat to sign once again with his original team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and again in 2018 when he opted out of his Cleveland deal to sign a free agent contract with the Lakers.

This time, however, he opted for the security of staying with the Lakers. At the same time, his agent Rich Paul made statements that seemed to indicate that the 22-year-veteran was not happy with the Lakers’ commitment to winning another championship in a short window.

Those statements led to waves of trade rumors and speculation that cointinue even today, a full month later. But according to media reports, James has had no talks with the Lakers involving a trade — which he would have to approve, if one were to happen — or a buyout of his contract.

No Trades For James Materializing

Certainly no actual trades have come close to materializing and it now appears far more likely that James will remain a Laker through the upcoming season.

But what about next season?

James will be 41 years old, and already has a personal net worth according to Forbes of $1.2 billion. He could easily opt for retirement.

But if he does not, he will become a free agent for the fourth time, and according to a new analysis by NBA expert Sam Quinn of CBS Sports, a surprising team may be “best positioned” to sign him.

Most speculation around James centers on teams such as the Golden State Warriors, who defeated James’ Cleveland teams three times in the NBA Finals, and the Denver Nuggets where the four-time MVP would team with three-timer Nikola Jokić.

James Could Change Teams and Stay in Los Angeles

Or James could choose to stay in the Los Angeles Area — the southern suburb of Inglewood to be specific. Because that is now the home of the Los Angeles Clippers.

“On paper, this plan appeals to pretty much everyone involved. James could remain in Los Angeles and stick it to the Lakers. (Clippers owner) Steve Ballmer has been trying to do that ever since he bought the team, and in this case, he could do so without giving up draft picks or cramming his books with long-term salary,” wrote Quinn. “The Clippers could still maintain their long-term flexibility. They’d just be able to do it while attempting to win in the present with James, (James) Harden and (Kawhi) Leonard, who likely wouldn’t require long-term commitments.”

The only question around the Clippers’ dream scenario, according to Quinn, would be “how much depth the Clippers would be able to keep.”

Both James and Harden would likely need to accept some degree of pay cut to allow the Clippers to build a roster around them.

But, “considering how affordable some of the Clipper role players are, it wouldn’t have to be a very big one to matter,” Quinn wrote.