NBA insider sees LA Lakers falling short yet again with LeBron James' future uncertain

Leading into this offseason, it was no secret that the LA Lakers were going to be in the market for a starting center. Following the departure of Anthony Davis, the team began starting Jaxson Hayes, who was coming off a 2023-24 season that saw him start just five games for LA.

Although the team acquired Deandre Ayton on a one-year deal, the loss of Dorian Finney-Smith and improvements across the Western Conference leave Tim Bontemps doubtful the Lakers can contend with the elite.

On Thursday's installment of First Take, the longtime Lakers insider weighed in on the situation:

"If the Lakers are going to be a team that makes a run in the Western Conference playoffs. They have a lot of work left to do. ... This team still has a lot of holes on the perimeter defensively. They have very little perimeter defensive talent. They're still lacking in shooting.

"They're a team that when you just stack them up player for player. Yes, they finished third in the Western Conference last year. I'd say overall they're either the same or a little worse. ... and that's with LeBron James' future and his motivation in Los Angeles still being very uncertain."

Looking at the latest surrounding LeBron James' future with the Lakers

LeBron James opted into the final year of his contract on Sunday, however, the future Hall of Famer has been the subject of trade rumors in recent days.

ESPN's Dave McMenamin spoke during ESPN's NBA Today Free Agency Special on Sunday about the situation, revealing that Rich Paul has been contacted by four teams in the wake of his comments about LeBron James wanting to compete for a championship.

“LeBron hasn’t had any discussions with the Lakers about wanting a trade. Rich Paul said four teams contacted him in the last 24 hours wanting to talk trades, but there weren’t any substantive conversations with those teams.”

“Right now, LeBron is focused on playing on a championship-caliber roster."

So far, there's been no word regarding which teams have reached out about a potential LeBron James trade.

With the four-time champ eager to win one more ring before riding off into the sunset, his future with the Lakers could all come down to how LA's offseason shakes out in the weeks to come.