Harsh LeBron James truth is becoming impossible for Lakers fans to ignore

On Wednesday's edition of ESPN's Get Up, Tim MacMahon talked about the changed relationship between the Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James:

"In Los Angeles right now with the Lakers, LeBron James is a guest in his own home... This is Luka Dončić's house, but they've got to remodel it. They've got to rebuild it. They can't do that with LeBron on the roster."

MacMahon echoed the belief around the league that Cleveland is the "most likely destination" for LeBron next season as a free agent. It'd be a feel-good reunion story that may be too much for the 41-year-old to pass up, even though it'd mean taking a pay cut, as in going from making $52.6 million to something like the veteran's minimum.

Everything changed for the Lakers and LeBron last year when Luka arrived. Los Angeles shifted its priority overnight (literally) to the superstar guard. Last offseason, the team's brass consulted with Dončić about their future plans — not James.

The Lakers didn't approach LeBron about an extension, and there was speculation that he'd request a trade over the summer after he opted into his player option. That never happened, and it would've been hard to make a trade work with his salary, anyway.

In a few months, he'll be able to choose the direction he wants to go in, but it won't be for the kind of money he's used to.

This could be LeBron's final stretch with the Lakers

Los Angeles will be one of the teams in the league with the most cap space in the offseason, so LeBron would be able to make more if he stayed with the Lakers than if he went to the Cavaliers. At this point in his career, though, that might not be enough to sway him.

If there is some kind of tension between him and LA, as ESPN's Baxter Holmes previously reported that LeBron's relationship with Jeanie Buss is "strained," that could be another motivator for him to leave.

There are plenty of people like MacMahon who think that LeBron is on his way out because of the changing dynamics. They're no longer focused on doing whatever it takes to convince James to hang around, but setting up the future to hopefully win a title with Luka.

Whether he chooses to be part of that next season is up to him, assuming Pelinka's sentiment stays the same, but there's no denying that LeBron is no longer the center of the Lakers' universe. He's not even behind Luka, either, as that spot belongs to Austin Reaves.

While it certainly wouldn't be the end-all, be-all if LeBron leaves LA this summer, it still would hurt to see him end his career elsewhere, a possibility that is only growing more real.