LeBron James chooses to stay mum on cryptic tweet and Lakers' contract option, keeping fans in suspense

LeBron James recently caught the attention of NBA fans when he posted a cryptic tweet that simply showed an hourglass emoji. Since being posted on Jan. 31, the tweet has racked up a whopping 27 million impressions on X. The post has continued to fuel speculation among fans, many of whom have continued to debate the meaning behind the post.

Ahead of tonight's clash with the New York Knicks, who have continued to impress in the Eastern Conference, James is listed as day-to-day. After Lakers coach Darvin Ham indicated earlier in the week that James was on track to play Tuesday, the four-time champ participated in the team's shootaround.

While his status remains unclear for Saturday night's contest with the Knicks, he also fielded questions from media members after the shootaround. The Athletic's Jovan Buha questioned LeBron James on the mysterious hourglass tweet he had posted, hoping to gain clarity on the matter for fans.

In a surprising turn of events, James declined to comment on the tweet in question. Since then, his silence has only fueled more speculation about the meaning of his mysterious tweet. In a post on social media, Buha wrote:

"LeBron James declined to clarify what his hourglass emoji meant at shootaround today."

Exploring the potential meaning behind LeBron James' mysterious emoji, and looking at further comments made by the future Hall of Famer

One of the theories fans have regarding James' mysterious emoji is that time is running out for the LA Lakers to assemble a championship contending team around him. By posting the emoji in question, he has essentially put the Lakers front office on notice, if this theory is to be believed.

With this being the final guaranteed year of his current contract, James will have the option to opt out this offseason. Should the front office fail to surround him with what he believes is a contending team, he could choose to opt out and sign elsewhere.

Speaking to Jovan Buha after shootaround, LeBron James was asked point blank if he knows whether or not he plans to opt-in to the final year of his deal.

The other theory regarding the meaning behind James' mysterious tweet is that the four-time champ was indicating that Darvin Ham's time was running out as coach if he failed to turn things around with the team.

After winning the inagural NBA In-Season tournament, the Lakers have since struggled, falling to ninth place in the Western Conference. With their postseason hopes teetering on the brink of the play-in tournament, many have questioned whether or not Ham could be on the chopping block.

While it has continued to look as though Ham's job is safe for now, some members of the NBA community think that could change in the future.