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- The Lakers are currently waiting on LeBron James’ decision about his future before making any moves this offseason .
- Agents and executives reportedly believe James will not provide clarity on if he plans to sign an extension with the team before the start of free agency .
- James is reportedly considering not signing an extension with the Lakers this offseason and back to a year-by-year approach.
LeBron James’ contract situation is beginning to become an issue for the Lakers.
James, who is entering the final year of his contract, is currently making it difficult for the Lakers to plan their future by not letting them know if he’s going to sign an extension with the team before the start of free agency.
Via Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report
The Lakers were paralyzed at the trade deadline without clarity from James, and they remain so. The star forward is eligible for an extension on August 4, but most of the team’s moves will need to happen in June and July.
The Lakers are stuck without a commitment from James, whose contract expires after the 2022-23 season. Competing executives and agents do not expect the team to get clarity from James ahead of the draft and free agency.
James could help make decisions easier if he verbally commits to an additional two seasons, timing his contract with Anthony Davis through 2024-25 (although Davis has an early termination option to leave one year sooner). Unpleasant salary is easier to digest in trade if the Lakers are reinvested in James with Davis. The last thing the team would want to do is eat up its 2023-24 cap space on players it doesn’t value with James leaving as an unrestricted free agent.
Sam Amick of The Athletic has reported that LeBron is considering not signing an extension with the team and possibly going back to a year-by-year approach similar to when he was in Cleveland.
Via The Athletic
“Based on my conversations with people who have a strong sense of such things, it’s clear James is considering playing out this contract rather than signing a two-year extension this summer. If flexibility and freedom are the goals here, James (who is owed $44.4 million next season) could go back to the year-by-year approach he perfected in his second Cleveland stop,”