LOS ANGELES — LeBron James has made his decision.
After eight years with the Lakers, James – the four-time MVP, 2020 NBA champion and future first-ballot Hall of Famer – is continuing his career, but it will not be with the Lakers, his agent Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul told the Southern California News Group on Tuesday morning.
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The Lakers wanted to bring back James, president of basketball operations and general manager Rob Pelinka said as such during his end-of-season press conference in May. Coach JJ Redick repeated Pelinka’s sentiment that the Lakers would be happy to return the trio of James, Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic for another season.
But the Lakers are no longer revolving around James. The 41-year-old star was not at the forefront of the team’s plans for the offseason. With $52 million in projected cap space to spend through free agency and trades, any decision on James was likely going to come later in the offseason when the Lakers had spent most of their cap space retaining some of their eight unrestricted free agents and exploring who else could join the Lakers for the second full season of Doncic.
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James’ tenure with the Lakers, no matter how one cuts it, was nothing short of special. James was an eight-time All-Star with the Lakers, leading the franchise into the COVID-19 bubble in Florida to win an improbable NBA championship in 2020 alongside Anthony Davis and former coach Frank Vogel. He broke numerous records. As a Laker, James played the most games in NBA history, scored the most points (passing another franchise icon, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and his record on Feb. 7, 2023) and surged into his 23rd season in the NBA leading the Lakers.
James spoke from the heart at center court at Crypto.com Arena after Kobe Bryant died, the leading voice of community for the franchise on a day that affected so many. Over the past decade, James and Lakers basketball were intertwined just as other stars had been throughout team history.
“LeBron James is one of the greatest athletes in history,” Lakers governor Jeanie Buss said in a statement Tuesday morning. “We will always be thankful for his eight years with the Lakers, including the title he led us to in 2020 under the toughest imaginable circumstances and the countless records he broke in purple and gold. We wish him all the best in the future, both on the court and off. He will always be a cherished part of the Lakers family.”
James reposted Buss’ comments through the Lakers social media accounts, and shared a message of his own on X.
“No, THANK YOU!” he wrote on X. “Truly a honor to wear the (purple and gold) while trying to continuing the greatness & legacies that came before me! Hope I made a few proud during my stint.”
Magic Johnson, who signed James back in 2018 when he served as president of basketball operations, thanked the four-time NBA Finals MVP and Paul on social media for taking the meeting that led to James signing an initial four-year, $153.3-million deal with the Lakers.
Doncic posted to Instagram, thanking James in a parting message after playing the last season and a half with him: “An honor to play with and learn from you.”
Most importantly for James, as he repeated multiple times across the last two seasons, he relished getting to play alongside his son, Bronny James with the Lakers, becoming the first father-son duo to share the court at the same time. Bronny James’ contract became fully guaranteed with the Lakers as of Monday evening.
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When asked at the season’s end about his eight years with the Lakers, the longest stretch he has had with any team in his NBA career, LeBron James shared what his top moments as a member of the franchise were.
“There’s a lot,” he said. “Obviously winning a championship in 2020, (that) would stand at the top. That was the reason why I came here, to restore that level of play and restore this franchise back to what it was known for, winning championships and playing at a high level. And to be out there with that group and go out there and win a championship, and us competing at a championship level was something that I envisioned and was able to accomplish that.”
Heading into the offseason, James said that when he made his decision on what was next, that the media would be first to know. That could have been retirement. But James, who has shocked the league since 2003 with his star power and skill, had one more stunning announcement in him – news that will lead to a record 24th season not in purple and gold.
James, who made $52.6 million with the Lakers last season before becoming an unrestricted free agent, will almost surely take a dramatic pay cut regardless of where his final years in the NBA will take place. James averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists for the Lakers last season, reclaiming the star mantle as he led his team into the second round of the NBA playoffs as Doncic dealt with a season-ending hamstring strain. Late during the season, James had become the the team’s third-leading scorer, a role that he easily admitted had never been previously asked of him during his career.
Rumors began to swirl on over the weekend that the Golden State Warriors were serious contenders for James – which only began to gain steam after Draymond Green rejected his $27.7 million player option – and that the Lakers’ Western Conference rivals would be making a serious play to pair James alongside Stephen Curry and Warriors coach Steve Kerr. Potential returns to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he began his career and won the 2016 NBA championship, or to the Miami Heat, the destination of his first free agency saga where he won titles in 2012 and 2013, are firmly possibilities.
When it comes to the Lakers offseason, James’ decision wasn’t the tone-setter for what was to come. Last week, when Austin Reaves and the Lakers came to an agreement on a four-year, $185-million max contract extension, the offseason officially turned up a notch. Despite Reaves holding a projected first-year salary of $41.3-million, he won’t officially sign with the Lakers until the team has exhausted its cap space (which includes Reaves’ $20.9-million cap hold, allowing for the Lakers to be flexible for who their next acquisitions will be).
James might be the highest-profile free agent leaving the Lakers this season, but he joins a crop of players that were prominent on the Lakers’ playoff roster. Marcus Smart, Luke Kennard and Rui Hachimura are all unrestricted free agents, and with James made up four of the five of the team’s starting lineup in Game 1 of the first round of the 2025-26 NBA playoffs.
Deandre Ayton opted into his $8.1 million team option on Monday, but the Lakers are also reportedly meeting with restricted free agents Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler and Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren on Tuesday evening to potentially bolster the team’s frontcourt through what would likely have to be sign-and-trade deals.
The earthquake-like news Tuesday makes three things for certain.
James is no longer a Laker and will not end his career in Los Angeles.
The franchise is squarely Doncic’s to lead heading into the years ahead.
And the Lakers now have an offseason of an ever-shifting identity ahead under Pelinka and new ownership.
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