NBA Hoops

On LeBron James’ birthday, what’s the trade destination to present if the Lakers don’t move to improve?

On LeBron James' birthday, what's the trade destination to present if the Lakers don't move to improve?


LeBron James is many things, but subtle isn’t one of them. “I’m a winner, and I want to win,” James said after his Los Angeles Lakers fell to 14-21 on Wednesday. “And I want to win and give myself a chance to win and still compete for championships.” Right now, that isn’t happening with the Lakers. Despite his offseason promise to be a “caretaker” of LeBron’s legacy, Lakers president Rob Pelinka has not yet traded the team’s two available first-round picks to surround James with talent. When a reporter asked James if the recent injury suffered by Anthony Davis would make the team less likely to do so, he told that reporter to ask Pelinka.

You don’t have to read between the lines to see that James is unhappy with the direction of his team. He’s perfectly justified in that frustration. James signed a contract extension with the Lakers over the summer. What was or wasn’t promised in those negotiations is not clear, but it seems unlikely that James would commit to any team that wasn’t willing to make a similar commitment to him. If there’s any part of him that feels Pelinka was being dishonest about his plans for the team during those discussions, well, it wouldn’t be the first time. Pelinka claimed to be aligned with James and Davis about not making a move at the 2022 trade deadline. ESPN’s Dave McMenamin quickly reported that wasn’t true. An anonymous agent infamously told Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times in 2019 that “no one trusts” Pelinka. James might be learning why.

There’s no telling where this ends. James is still under contract for next season. So is Davis. The Lakers still have time to make an in-season trade. They could use their cap space this summer to buy their way back into contention. They could replace Pelinka with a James-approved executive. None of these options appear particularly likely at this point. James turns 38 today. He doesn’t have many prime years left. Still, the Lakers are the first of James’ teams to appear less interested in their time with LeBron than the era that will come after he’s gone.

The extension James signed prevents him from being traded until this offseason. While James himself has given no indication that he would like to be moved, we have to acknowledge his interests no longer appear to be aligned with the team’s, and that both parties would probably be better off going their separate ways. 

That’s still easier said than…

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