When LeBron James and/or Rich Paul sit down at a table with Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka in a month or so, Pelinka will have to sell James on an unlikable idea: a massive pay cut.
The only way that Pelinka and the Lakers can actually retool a winning roster around Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves (who is expected to sign a new max deal) is if LeBron decides to sign for a far lower figure than he deserves. Doesn't sound too enticing for the King, does it?
It certainly doesn't, and longtime NBA insider Marc Stein pointed to this situation in his latest Stein Line newsletter.
"Re-signing (LeBron) at a much lower number is believed to appeal to the Lakers," Stein wrote, "but selling one of the game's all-time greats on the sort of steep discount he's never taken is thorny. To put it mildly.
Maybe the Lakers have more leverage than it appears in LeBron talks
If you're a Lakers fan growing more fearful of a LeBrexit by the hour, fear not! His pay cut (and all the problems it presents) isn't the only part of this story. There are a few variables at play that favor the Lakers.
Number one: Los Angeles. Yes, I'm talking about the city itself. LeBron loves living in LA, and his family has built a life there. He's never been with one franchise for more consecutive seasons than his past eight seasons with the Lakers. He's comfortable in LA. His son plays for the Lakers. This all matters to a 41-year-old family man. There's some leverage there for the Lakers (maybe not a ton, but they'll take any they can get).
Number two: JJ Redick. LeBron's good friend still coaches the Lakers, in case you momentarily forgot. And it's not just an off-the-court synergy, either -- LeBron and Redick work well together in their professional setting. The Lakers just won a playoff series with LeBron leading the charge and Redick out-coaching the Houston Rockets' Ime Udoka. The LeBron-Redick duo is a winning one -- that's been proven. LeBron probably can't imagine being happier playing for a different NBA head coach right now.
And number three: All of LeBron's other potential suitors are just as cash-strapped as the Lakers. What a miracle this is for Pelinka, who's already facing an impossible offseason. As Stein pointed out in his Substack, the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers are both going to be highly interested in LeBron this summer, but neither team has much cap flexibility.
Lakers lack real competition in sweepstakes for LeBron James
Stein also mentioned the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Clippers, while noting that the Knicks might very well opt to avoid the LeBron business altogether, seeing as they're already East favorites with their current roster (why break that up?).
So, unless you really think the Clippers are a credible threat to the Lakers for LeBron (I don't), there aren't a ton of viable alternative suitors out there for James. Pelinka might be in luck.
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