If LeBron James is interested in joining the Los Angeles Lakers, as many reports claim he is, the four-time NBA MVP may be angling to do so with soon-to-be free agent Kevin Durant.
According to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, James texted his longtime rival about joining him in Los Angeles, where the Cleveland Cavaliers legend already owns a home, and where his son, LeBron Jr., is rumored to be attending high school.
After his Golden State Warriors defeated James’s Cavs in the NBA Finals for the second consecutive year earlier this month, Durant opted out of his current contact and is now set to become a free agent on Friday. However, he recently told ESPN he is ‘planning on staying with the Warriors’ and simply wants to renegotiate a new contract.
James and Durant are arguably the NBA’s two biggest talents. They’ve met in the finals three times, with James’s Heat beating Durant’s Thunder in 2012 before Durant signed in Golden State, where he earned two rings with the Warriors by beating James’s Cavaliers
While James may have texted Durant, the Golden State Warriors star previously told ESPN he planned on re-signing with the reigning NBA champions after opting out of his current deal
They don’t have a lot experience playing with one another, but LeBron James and Kevin Durant have won a pair of Olympic Gold Medals together while both starring on team USA
James, meanwhile, faces a Friday deadline to opt out of the final year of his existing contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He could opt out and re-sign with Cleveland, although the strong current from national media is James appears ready to move again in his search for a title – something he did in 2010, when he first left Cleveland for Miami, and then again in 2014, when he left Miami to return to his native Ohio.
Smith correctly predicted in 2010 that James would be joining the Heat with fellow All-Stars Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade.
Whereas the entire league usually waits on LeBron James to make the first move, the 2018 NBA off-season is predicated on the ultimate destination of San Antonio Spurs star Kawhi Leonard
James has reportedly been searching for complementary teammates to join him in Los Angeles, and Thursday’s ESPN report that Oklahoma City Thunder forward Paul George will opt out of his current deal looked like a promising development toward that end.
However, the report explains that George is ‘seriously’ considering staying with former MVP Russell Westbrook with the Thunder.
With George possibly off the table, there is mounting pressure on Lakers president Magic Johnson and general manager Rob Pelinka to land San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard in a trade, according to ESPN.
However, there are obstacles to this scenario – namely, the two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year is not a free agent.
Leonard, who is reportedly unhappy in San Antonio, has a year left on his contract after missing most of last season with mysterious quadriceps and shoulder injuries. He was rumored to be healthy enough for a return ahead of the playoffs, but chose not to, even after a tense players-only meeting was held on the matter.
Leonard reportedly asked for a trade to his native Los Angeles (either the Lakers or Clippers), but the Spurs are understandably reluctant to deal Leonard within the Western Conference.
Lakers president Magic Johnson told reporters earlier in the week that he would step down if he failed to acquire a top free-agent talent in his first two summers on the job
Leonard (center in jeans and a blazer) missed most of last season with mysterious quadriceps and shoulder injuries. He was rumored to be healthy enough for a return ahead of the playoffs, but chose not to, even after a tense players-only meeting was held on the matter
Therein lies the dilemma: If Leonard is reluctant to agree to a future contract extension beyond next season, Eastern Conference teams will be less likely to make a competitive trade offer to San Antonio.
And as Smith told his audience on ESPN, the low-key Leonard might be more interested in playing away from James’s spotlight by suiting up for the Clippers rather than the Lakers.
There’s also a chance James could opt-in to the final year of his deal to accommodate a prearranged trade to a contender. Such a trade would help James’s new team navigate the NBA’s complicated salary cap while giving the Cavaliers some compensation for losing their franchise cornerstone.
According to Sporting News, there is even the possibility that James just signs with in Los Angeles outright in hopes that other signings and trades occur afterwards that would turn the down-and-out Lakers into a contender.
Free agents can officially begin negotiating with prospective teams on Friday, July 1. Any signings or trades must wait until July 6.
According to ESPN, the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers and the Cavaliers had all made offers for Leonard.
The Lakers could make a solid offer to the Spurs for Leonard, based around former No. 2 picks Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball. If the Spurs don’t agree to that trade, the team could still try to sign perennial All-Star Chris Paul, a friend of James.
After losing to the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals for the third time in the last four years, James could be on the move again in search for a fourth NBA Title. James faces a Friday deadline to opt out of the final year of his existing contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers
Paul George (left) seemed like a future teammate of LeBron James’s in Los Angeles, but now that he seems likely to stay in Oklahoma City, Philadelphia’s tandem of Joel Embiid (No. 21) and Ben Simmons (No. 25) could entice the four-time MVP to join the upstart 76ers
If the Lakers did somehow acquire Leonard – perhaps by offering prized youngsters Lonzo Ball (left), Brandon Ingram (right), and Kyle Kuzma – they could entice James to sign a maximum contract, worth upwards of $35 million per season when free agency begins in July
Then again, there is a chance that Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey could swing an opt-in-and-trade deal for James and simply re-sign Paul, pairing both veterans with James Harden, who was named the NBA’s MVP on Monday night.
According to ESPN, the Lakers are hunting for first-round picks in an attempt to bolster any trade offer to San Antonio.
Meanwhile the Philadelphia 76ers are also strong contenders, not only because solid contributors Dario Saric and Robert Covington could be sent to San Antonio with former top pick Markelle Fultz, but also because the team’s salary cap situation is amenable to signing James.
James’s friend Chris Paul could be his teammate in either Houston or Los Angeles next year
Plus, James would get to play with the NBA’s Rookie of the Year Ben Simmons, and All-Star center Joel Embiid.
However, the 76ers would still face the problem of re-signing Leonard, which is why their path to acquiring James seems so difficult.
Johnson told reporters earlier in the week that he would step down if he failed to acquire a top free-agent talent in his first two summers on the job.
As for the chance he could re-sign in Cleveland, that remains a possibility.
The problem is that he and the Cavaliers have been outgunned by the Golden State Warriors in three of the last four NBA Finals, and the two teams don’t appear to be getting any closer, competitively.
Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert has had a difficult relationship with James over the years, but he has expressed his desire to spend whatever it takes to keep the team in the NBA Title picture.
In a recent Business Insider podcast, Gilbert described to James as his ‘partner,’ acknowledging that the Akron native is more than just another player on his roster.
After winning a pair of titles in Miami, James returned to the Cavaliers in 2014 after an in-person meeting with team owner Dan Gilbert. Their relationship is notoriously rocky