It feels like it was simply theotherday that we were talking about how LeBron James finalizing his newest extension with the Lakers in 2020 brought him a bit closer to playing with Bronny James in the near future.
Fast forward a coupleof years and it nearly was simply theotherday that we were talking about James potentially requiring his way out of LA if they weren’t competitive.
We can put those reports to bed, . LeBron James will be a Los Angeles Laker for the foreseeable future — at least, till his boy makes it to the NBA.
James signed a two-year, $97.1 million extension with the Lakers on Wednesday, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
BREAKING: Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has concurred on a two-year, $97.1 million agreement extension – consistingof a gamer alternative for the 2024-2025 season, @KlutchSports CEO Rich Paul informs ESPN. James hadactually been gettingin last year of offer worth $44.5M.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 17, 2022
The offer comes with a 15% trade kicker and can possibly increase up to $111 million if the income cap spikes in the 2024-25 season.
Nobody actually anticipated James to indication this extension at this point. Lakers fans (and the group, clearly) are elated that he’s remaining. And it makes a load of sense why he would when you truly boil it down.
Let’s dive into it.
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Let’s keep it a dollar — LeBron James had $97.1 million factors to indication that offer and that’s precisely why he did it.
It was the cash, y’all. No, James doesn’t always requirement cash. He’s currently a billionaire, according to Forbes, and is nearly specific to keep printing cash off the court.
But, listen. He simply made half a billion dollars on the basketball court. I can’t envision him passing that up. He’s rather actually the wealthiest NBA gamer ever, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks.
James is now the greatest paid gamer in league history with $532M on court revenues.
Kevin Durant at $508M formerly held that mark. https://t.co/xrW4ES2XUQ
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) August 17, 2022
Look, I understand. I get it. LeBron James is excellent. He still plays basketball like he’s in his prime.
But this guy is going to be 38 years old in December. His playing days are closer to being over than simply beginning. He doesn’t have this lotsof huge offers left in him. When you get this sort of cash, you take it. Especially at his age.
The NBA has an “over-38” guideline that doesn’t permit gamers over 38 years old to indication 5 year offers from worry they might retire priorto the offer is infact up. It was formerly the “over-36” guideline, however James and Chris Paul battled to bump the age up.
Regardless, there’s no long-lasting security out there for him anylonger. This was the finest offer he was getting.
Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
This is the huge one. The Lakers haveactually been reluctant to make any moves to enhance their group since they didn’t have a dedication from James.
They’ve had offers on the table where, if they relocation their draft selects from 2027 and 2029, they’d be able to im