2025-26 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Why not? 24 million would put about 80-90 players paid more than him. At worst he is a top 30 player... from my point of view, that's one of the best value contracts in the NBA at that point.

 

His play on the court is worth $25-30m, just no one on the open market can pay that from a team he'd think twice about. Ticket sales, merch and interest he's a supermax until he retires.

I'm hoping we can get him at the $15-20m range though and that's a cut he's willing to take to allow us to upgrade the roster and give him one last legit shot at a chip. But if he does, that's even more pressure on Rob to actually go for it and stop dangling the carrot for summer x.

 

If he went to the Lakers and said sign and trade me to NY for Bridges they wouldn’t do it? NY would do it in a heartbeat.He still has some leverage because you don’t want him leaving for nothing and the Lakers reputation for taking care of superstar players means something

 

He'll never play there as long as Dolan is in the building and he's said as much.

That aside, the issue with a S&T is he'd be going to a place because he thinks he can win there. By us getting something back from that team, you're weakening the team and their title odds

 

People change their minds all the time and who you give up matters.LeBron for Bridges strengthens NY. That’s just an example anyways to show LeBron isn’t a lame duck in this situation

 

I think there is two sides to Lebron signing somewhere. Does he want to be there and do they have the means to get him.

Brooklyn and Chicago will have cap space, but Lebron won't want to go there.

So if we assume he is open to going to the Warriors, Cleveland, Us or a contender potentially like the Knicks or Clippers?

Warriors:

• Old team that maybe has one last run in them
• Curry, Butler, Green, KP, Horford, Melton, Moody, BP, Gui & GP
• They can offer Lebron TP-MLE or MLE if they cut some people?
  
• Salary: 15m
• Possible but unlikely

Cleveland:

• Good team that's missing a few parts and has some questions like will Harden opt out and resign
• Mitchell, Harden, Mobley, Allen, Strus, Schroeder
• They're at 210m without resigning Ellis, Dean Wade, Nance & Bryant
• This would have to be a sign and trade for Jarrett Allen - do we even want Allen?
• Salary: 28m
• Possible and more likely than GSW but does he have a better chance of winning here or there?

Knicks

• Good team that might go big fish chasing after Giannis
• Brunson, OG, Bridges, KAT, Hart, McBride,
• They're at 205m without resigning Robinson
• This would most likely be a sign & trade for Bridges or Hart
• Salary: 21-33m
• Possible but I think very unlikely as they'll go after Giannis

Clippers

• Stay in LA scenario if we aren't interested - ok team
• Leonard, Garland, DJJ, Lopez
• They're at 135m without resigning Mathurin, who should ask for 25m, so call it 160m
• They could bring back their guys and offer Lebron the full MLE
• Salary: 15m
• Least likely, more of a last chance resort if we don't offer him anything

If you take the average of those 4 teams, it's a salary around 20-24m. Which I think is fair value for Lebron at 42 years old.

 

The suns could offer Allen and O’Neal and keep Booker,Green and Brooks.If he asks for something like this I’m confident the Lakers will accommodate because Luka is watching.

 

I don't see the Suns as a realistic spot he wants to play at. He'd go to Cleveland, to Warriors for Steph & Dray, to New York - Knicks only since Brooklyn suck or stay in LA. We can probably get rid of Knicks. But who's going to give him the best shot at winning and pretty much the most money? Us... and he's worth it both economically and on the floor.

 

I’m just making the case that this isn’t a take it or leave it situation