“You get rid of LeBron, who’s gonna fill that building?” - Shaquille O’Neal questions if 8-time All-Star has enough star power to fill the arena, believes Lakers should keep LeBron James "till the wheels fall off"

The LA Lakers are on pins and needles, hoping for LeBron James to extend his stay in Hollywood after this season.

“King James” will reportedly play out the last year of his contract, leaving the door open for the four-time MVP to exit Lakerland next year.

Team owner Jeanie Buss has already publicly stated that she wants to keep the 18-time All-Star happy and will not trade him for any reason. That resolve may be put to the test if other teams offer a treasure trove of assets that she might find irresistible.

Shaquille O'Neal is leaning towards keeping the four-time champion until he can’t do it anymore instead of trading him. He said on "The Big Podcast with Shaq":

“If you got two ticket fillers, you get rid of the most valuable. 'Cause we still got one guy that can fill the arena up. You get rid of LeBron, who's gonna fill that building up? Does AD have enough star power to fill that building up? Or you keep him and ride him till the wheels fall off.”

Shaq’s reply came after he was asked if the Lakers could hit the reset button in the same way the Boston Celtics did in 2013.

That year, Boston traded Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to the Brooklyn Nets for future first-round picks. It was a deal that set the Celtics a few years back but handsomely paid off in the long run.

Two of the attached picks turned out to be the ones leading the Celtics in the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors.

Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum will make Boston one of the toughest teams in the league for years to come.

Shaquille O'Neal also implied that should the LA Lakers trade LeBron James, they’re all but conceding they’re not good enough to win a championship.

Anthony Davis was never even in the conference finals before he teamed up with James. Russell Westbrook has also not gone past the first round since Kevin Durant parted ways with him.

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Shaquille O'Neal doesn’t see LeBron James going to a non-title contending team

LeBron James is guaranteed to refuse a trade to a rebuilding team, according to Shaquille O'Neal.

A potentially big reason why LeBron James will not extend his stay with the LA Lakers will be to gauge his chances of winning a title. He’s only got a few years left in him, hence the need to maximize his championship window.

If James can’t win another NBA crown with the Lakers, it’s almost a guarantee that he’d agree to a trade to a rebuilding team.

Here’s what Shaquille O'Neal had to say about the biggest stumbling block to a trade involving significant draft assets:

“LeBron’s never gonna let you trade him to a terrible team. You don’t mess around and get one more like when they let the Big Fella go a long time ago.”

Almost two decades ago, the LA Lakers shipped Shaquille O’Neal to the Miami Heat to give the reins of the franchise to Kobe Bryant.

LA, after playing in the NBA Finals in four of the five years before Shaq’s trade, missed the postseason the following year.

Shaq asserted that Lakers owner Jeanie Buss, along with advisors Kurt and Linda Rambis, will have to make good decisions to keep the team relevant.

Basketball fans will be monitoring how the front office operates in the coming months.