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LeBron James is preparing for year 21 in the NBA and his sixth season with the Los Angeles Lakers. The four-time NBA champion and all-time scoring leader had some doubts about returning to the team this season but eventually decided to continue to play for at least a couple more years.
James is on an expiring contract with the Lakers, as the two-year deal he signed with the franchise has a player option next summer. Thus, his salary will be $47.6 million for the 2023-24 season and the player option is worth $51.4 million for the 2024-25 season.
With that in mind, it is not guaranteed that LeBron James will stay with the 17-time NBA champions past the end of the 2023-24 season. So, in this article, we examine five reasons that could lead to his departure from the squad.
#5 - His contract with the Lakers expires
Like we said, LeBron James has two years remaining on his current deal with the Lakers, with only the first one guaranteed.
Thus, he could decide to pick up his player option next summer and hit free agency in the 2025 NBA offseason. That way, his stint with the franchise would come to an end and he would be able to pick another team to play before his retirement.
#4 - Retirement
After the end of the 2022-23 season, LeBron James told the media that he would consider retiring from basketball and not returning to the Lakers for another season.
After 20 years and at the age of 39, that would make perfect sense. Moving forward, the franchise should be prepared that James would decide to retire either next summer or when his current deal expires at the end of the 2024-25 season.
#3 - Lakers fail to contend for a title
James has been playing for the Lakers for five years now and has managed to reach the NBA Finals only once, in 2020, when he won the championship. Aside from that, he had only one more deep playoff run with the 17-time NBA champions but got eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 Western Conference Finals.
That being said, failure to contend for his fifth title this year could lead to his departure from the Lakers and a move to another contender.
#2 - Return to Cleveland to retire as a Cav
LeBron James has spent 11 of his 20 years in the league with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He has played there in two stints (2003-2010, 2014-2018) and has led the franchise to multiple NBA Finals appearances (2007, 2015-2018) and its sole championship in 2016.
An Ohio native, it would make sense for the four-time champion to retire with the Cavs, but for this to happen, he would need to decline his player option in 2024 and sign with Cleveland as a free agent.
#1 - Play with his son, Bronny
LeBron James has already revealed his intention to play with his son Bronny James, once the latter moves to the NBA. This is expected to happen next summer, when Bronny will be eligible for the 2024 draft.
If LeBron keeps his promise, then he should decline his player option, become a free agent and sign with the team that will pick his son in the draft. Otherwise, the Lakers should be the ones to select Bronny, so that way, they will keep James for the final year of his deal.
