I’m not all that worried about the James optics. They are designed to be focused on Luka. While I hear you that some better communication may, or may not, have smoothed this over I think the reality is LeBron was always going to have a tough time passing the torch to anyone at all. Why? I think back to Kobe, playing on essentially one leg for his last season shooting the ball nearly 17 times/game, missing most of those and repeating every night. Comes a time you don’t care about the team you’re leaving behind but more about you proving everyone wrong. That’s how the greats are wired. We sit back in a comfy chair with this or that opinion and it’s not coming from a place anywhere near what fuels them. It’s why Kobe didn’t pass the ball to younger, more able-bodies teammates, why LeBron picked up his option (also no other team could pay him that) and why, increasingly, in this game the Lakers hold more cards.

Agreed on summer league thoughts, wishing we could reconnect pre-trade Dalton but that feels unlikely now and may be in both parties best interest to move on. Swider looks solid every summer, can’t handle NBA defense. I’d waive Shake for Bazely but we’ll see.

you got your wish man, no Dalton snd Swider playing starter minutes did well.

While I agree with most everything you said, there were a couple of Laker missteps I wish they did not make. First they should have announced LeBron picking up his options. They should have put out something like the Lakers are thrilled to have LeBron coming back. Not doing that was kind of bush. And it would not have killed them to at least have a conversation about his contract. They would not have had to offer anything but it’s something they should have done for someone of LeBron’s stature. You know it pissed him off enough to miss Bronny’s summer league game. I just think the Lakers could have handled it a little better.

FIVE REASONS TO TRADE LEBRON JAMES NOW!1. Avoid losing LeBron to free agency with no return.2. Acquire additional roster depth and diversity.3. Accelerate transition from LeBron to Luka.4. Improve chances of winning 2026 championship.5. Position team to replace LeBron next… pic.twitter.com/3DdQifRIbc— LakerTom (@LakerTom) July 12, 2025

I think there’s an aspect to all this BS that folks are ignoring. The Lakers will, under no circumstances, trade LeBron unless he requests it. This is due both to their obvious desire to have him retire a Laker and his no trade clause. He’s not going to go a gutted Mavs team to play with AD and half a roster. He’s not going knows how that’s going to end. No Kyrie for most/all of the year doesn’t add to allure, either.

It doesn’t really. I guess it depends on how pissed off he is. He does have an affinity for high profile vets. He would have taken less for Klay last year. He’s good friends with Steph and Draymond. That could be appealing I guess. Still if he were honest he would see it as more of a lateral move.

FROM THE ABOVE ARTICLE:

The Los Angeles Lakers have had an underwhelming offseason so far. The Lakers have made very little effort to show they are willing to contend for a title this upcoming season.

More news: LeBron James Hasn’t Reached Out to Deandre Ayton, But Luka Doncic Has

Many expected the Lakers to be big players in free agency and the trade market, but that has not been the case. Instead, the conversation this offseason has been centered around their superstar forward, LeBron James, and not for the reason many think.

The conversation surrounding James is not about his potential retirement but whether he will remain with the Lakers for the foreseeable future. That is the question on everyone’s mind.

James has a no-trade clause in his contract, so it’s really in his hands if he wants to remain in LA or not, despite the Lakers reported desire to move on from him.

Nonetheless, those wheels may be in motion, at least according to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst. In their latest column, they reported how all signs point to the Lakers wanting to move on from James by the spring of 2026.

“The Lakers had already made their statement in not offering James a contract beyond this season. It was abundantly clear that the 21-time All-Star’s time as the face of the Lakers had, for the first time, a planned end date, even if James’ record-setting NBA career did not yet. Whether the 2025-26 season is to be James’ final season in the NBA is up to him. But if he wanted the kind of Hollywood ending that only the Lakers can give legends of the game, the release date was set. Spring, 2026. Luka Doncic in, LeBron James out.”

James recently exercised his $52.6 million option prior to the start of the free agency period. All signs point to James playing in the 23rd season of his NBA career; however, whether it will be with the Lakers is unclear.

There’s been plenty of speculation about where James could end up next, but if a trade were to go down, it’s unlikely to happen during the upcoming season. If anything does materialize, a move this summer feels like the more realistic window.

It is clear the Lakers are looking forward, and why shouldn’t they? James is about to be 41 in December, and they have a 26-year-old superstar in Luka Doncic who could carry them to multiple championships for at least the next decade.

They’ll wait as long as it takes for him to formally request a trade. End of story, end of discussion.

Dude. It got old the minute the presser dropped.

FROM ABOVE ARTICLE:

This was even made clear to Luka himself earlier this offseason as the Lakers superstar guard met with Rob Pelinka and JJ Redick at a Hollywood restaurant where the team’s plans were laid out to him, via Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst of ESPN:

The purpose of the meeting was as clear as their choice of door: Doncic is the face of the franchise now and the Lakers wanted him — and everyone else — to know it.

Over a bottle of Opus One, Pelinka and Redick explained not only their strategy in building the team around Doncic’s skill set, sources told ESPN, but also the complexities of the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement and how they planned to navigate it.

And Doncic and his representatives were apparently receptive to what the Lakers brass laid out with his manager Lara Beth Seager noting the strong working relationship that has been formed over the past few months:

That message has been received warmly. “The Lakers leadership team has been incredibly welcoming and supportive of Luka since we arrived in L.A.,” Seager told ESPN. “We’ve spent a lot of time talking and getting to know each other over the last few months, and we’ve formed a strong working relationship. Championships are won when you work together. We all share that same goal.”

For the past few years, it has been the Lakers working with LeBron James closely to do whatever was needed for this franchise to win at a high level. But the acquisition of Luka has caused the Lakers to switch gears, and rightfully so. The team still wants to compete right now, but they also have a map for how they want to build in the future and that involves Doncic at the forefront as the face of this franchise, something he is clearly embracing as well.

Luka Doncic excited about teaming with Deandre Ayton on Lakers

The Lakers’ biggest offseason acquisition was center Deandre Ayton, who projects as an ideal pick-and-roll partner with Luka Doncic. And Ayton’s skillset, along with his previous success in Phoenix, are the main reasons why Doncic is excited about teaming with him on the Lakers.

The easiest LeBron trade fits are the ones that can feasibly do a one-for-one money-wise.The Warriors can match money with Jimmy. The Knicks can match with KAT. So if this ever does get real, those are the two immediate candidates. It's just much harder when it's four-for-one. https://t.co/W8MDT3BTLH— Sam Quinn (@SamQuinnCBS) July 11, 2025

I'd also ask… what has this front office done to earn the patience it's asking for here?I'm asking that for fans, yes, but I'm also asking that from Luka's perspective. He's been here six months. What have they done so far to prove this is where he should spend his prime? https://t.co/9yBxJrpCe8— Sam Quinn (@SamQuinnCBS) July 11, 2025

Let’s be real, if LeBron James wanted to leave, he’d make it clear and request a trade. What he’s doing now is putting pressure on the frontoffice to make a move and improve the roster. He’s not here to waste time. He wants to win now & he wants to do it with Bronny by his side.— Ryan Rueda (@iDude14) July 11, 2025

The Lakers informed Luka Doncic about the sale to Mark Walter beforehand (via @AmicoHoops) They did NOT tell LeBron 👀Something, nothing, or everything?? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/dPkxcyfTnV— Lakers Lead (@LakersLead) July 11, 2025

…….ok…..I’m going to say one more thing on this then I’m out in all th “Golly Gee Willickers Whatever Will LeBron DO?!?!” crap.. They are getting what they want. Both sides. LBJ wants to get paid, play with his kid and win a ring in exactly that order. Heck, playing with Bronny might even come first. Roch Paul’s corporate BS aside, and the level of attention that has gotten is pathetic to me, means nothing.

Next summer, just 10 months and change from now, there will be questions about what kind of deal it would take to keep James a Laker. By then a lot will have changed. We’ll have seen a full camp and season of what Luka and LeBron can do. If any of our other forthcoming free agents (Reaves and Rui, mainly) take a step forward in their games or show they should remain a part of the core to stay and/or get a raise.

FROM THE ABOVE ARTICLE:

James understood the Lakers taking advantage of an opportunity to pivot to the younger superstar. But from James’ perspective, sources said, nuance was sometimes lost during the transition. Doncic had never asked to be a Laker. James, for his part, had chosen L.A., coming in 2018 when the team had missed the playoffs five consecutive seasons, the worst run for the franchise since it moved from Minneapolis. Two years later, James had helped deliver a 17th championship.

Paul also had to formally inform the Lakers that James intended to pick up the final year of his contract after the team did not engage in any substantial discussions about extending him by a year or two, sources said, as they had twice previously during James’ Lakers’ tenure. It was then that he let the organization know about the coming statement.

The Lakers had already made their statement in not offering James a contract beyond this season. It was abundantly clear that the 21-time All-Star’s time as the face of the Lakers had, for the first time, a planned end date, even if James’ record-setting NBA career did not yet.

Whether the 2025-26 season is to be James’ final season in the NBA is up to him. But if he wanted the kind of Hollywood ending that only the Lakers can give legends of the game, the release date was set.

Spring, 2026.

Luka Doncic in, LeBron James out.

…

Think camp would determine this, not sure if Jake is a better defender than Hachimura. Don’t see us trading 2/3 players for Wiggins

All signs point to the Lakers wanting to move on from LeBron James by the spring of 2026, per @ramonashelburne & @WindhorstESPN “The Lakers had already made their statement in not offering James a contract beyond this season. It was abundantly clear that the 21-time All-Star's… pic.twitter.com/IRxU8lxlwv— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 11, 2025

Who says its LeBron’s last year?

I don’t think offense is going to be our problem this season…but that defense is gonna be a thorn in our side all year long as currently constructed. I’d take the huge upgrade in perimeter defense with Jones and sacrifice some scoring by losing Reeves.

Looking at the meager options actually available to us out there, I’m almost ready to punt on this season. The problem is whether Luka is gonna want to sit still for that process or decides to opt-out and bolt next summer. After watching the playoffs, we ain’t close to catching OKC (nobody is, really) and other teams have probably leapfrogged us this summer. Again, that 3 seed was only about 2 games from being in the play-in. Don’t let the smooth taste fool ya…lol

I don’t remember the Tweet that started LeBron Tweet-Gate a couple years back because I don’t do Twitter but this feels like that level of absurdity now. LeBron and Rich Paul must be incredible fishermen, they can bait a line with a dried turd and a rubber band, throw it in the ocean and fish for days…

Solid game, Lakers missed a ton of free throws, Cooper has some skills but seemed to struggle with even this level of “defense” but he stayed the course. Didn’t love that last play, sloppy execution and timing led to a well contested three.

He would have been instantly inducted into the Basketball Hall Of Fame if he made that shot. The amount of unfair, unrealistic expectations placed on LBJjr is absolutely ridiculous.

If I was Cooper Flagg, I’d attach myself to the hip of Klay Thompson and learn how to be a pro from one of the best. Hopefully he’ll be able to humble himself and take his advice (if Klay is willing to be a mentor to him).