LeBron James is pushing the Lakers to make changes before the 2024-25 season.
The end is near for LeBron James’ basketball career but just how long he has left is impossible to say for sure right now. According to The Atheltic’s Sam Amick, the plan right now for James, a 20x All-Star, is to play a couple more seasons at most but he will pull back over time if the Lakers cannot contend.
“LeBron James wants to play 2-3 more years but might not push the limits if the Lakers can’t contend,” said Amick. “If the Lakers don’t make any big moves I know it will be, to some degree, uncomfortable and I think it’s fair to report that if it happens there will be. conversation between their camp and the Lakers about why and where is this going and how do you see it vs how do we see it.”
LeBron James may be going on 40, but he’s still in the business of winning. After averaging 25.7 points, 8.3 assists, and 7.3 rebounds per game on 54% shooting this past season, LeBron (4x NBA champion) proved that he’s still one of the elites and that he can maintain his All-Star status until he eventually retires.
With a $51 million player option next season, LeBron has a major choice to make this summer and it’s no secret that his choice will be based on how he wants to spend his final years in the NBA.
If the Lakers make some moves and maximize the roster, James is likely to stay and try to help them make one last stand. If the Lakers stand pat and opt to run it back next season, LeBron may seriously reconsider his loyalties. At the very least, he’ll hold back his talent and coast out the last games until the end.
The pressure is on for the Lakers this summer and it’s clear that the players, and new head coach JJ Redick, expect to be in a position to compete for the championship and it means that a lot of work must be done to improve their chances.
The Lakers Have Been Waiting For This Free Agency
The Purple and Gold have a lot riding on this summer. With their championship duo in jeopardy, the Lakers will need to convince LeBron (a 4x NBA champion) that they can keep up with rising threats in the West that include the Thunder, Grizzlies, Nuggets, Mavericks, and Minnesota Timberwolves.
This offseason is also the one they’ve been carefully planning for years now. They’ve skipped out on stars like Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, and others with this summer in mind and they need to capitalize on this if they want to justify what they’ve been selling for years now.
“The Lakers have been hyping this period for quite some time as kind of the thing off in the distance they would be able to move for a player of real significance,” said Amick. “And really justifying patience earlier because of this spot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”
In many ways, the 2024 offseason is a turning point for the Lakers franchise and it will have major implications on how LeBron finishes his career. If he had it his way, he’d spend his final two seasons in Los Angeles with his son, competing in the playoffs year after year. But with so many variables at play, it’s impossible to say how this will end for the Lakers and how much better or worse they’ll be when next season starts.