Getty Lakers star LeBron James
Los Angeles Lakers small forward LeBron James is eligible to sign a two-year, $97 million extension this offseason. If he doesn’t, the four-time MVP would enter unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2023.
HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto and Yossi Gozlan recently spoke about the Lakers’ future on a podcast and Gozlan predicted that LeBron wouldn’t sign an extension.
“LeBron is eligible starting on August 4th for two years, $97 million, which would kick in after next season and keep him under contract through 2025. I would guess the Lakers will put that offer on the table as soon as it’s available. The Lakers’ offseason will mostly be complete by then, so he should have an idea by then if he wants to commit for another two years. My guess is he does not extend with the Lakers for a couple of reasons,” Gozlan said.
“One, he can sign it up until June 30, 2023. Two, he might want to keep the pressure on the Lakers organization after the season they just had. Three, he’s LeBron James. As long as he’s playing at this level next year, a max contract will be available to him.”
LeBron is set to make $44,474,988 next season. According to Gozlan, extending the four-time champion comes with its own caveats for the Lakers.
Gozlan Expands on LeBron, Lakers
Gozlan talked about how the Lakers’ cap space for 2023 would decrease if they signed LeBron to an extension this offseason.
“Extending LeBron comes with its own caveats for the Lakers. Right now, the Lakers are projected to generate over $60 million in cap space for 2023 with only Anthony Davis and Talen Horton-Tucker under contract,” Gozlan said. “Extending LeBron to that maximum amount would eliminate that, but I think we can also agree that there’s a stronger likelihood the Lakers won’t have cap space because there’s a good chance they’ll take on long-term money in a Westbrook deal.”
LeBron is coming off a spectacular individual season. He averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 6.2 assists while shooting 52.4% from the field, 35.9% from beyond the arc and 75.6% from the free-throw line. However, the Lakers won only 33 games and missed the playoffs.
The King was asked about his future with the Lakers during his exit interview with the media on April 11. In February, LeBron called the Lakers “a franchise I see myself being with” in the future, but the future Hall of Famer played coy when questioned about his extension.
LeBron on Extension: ‘We’ll See’
According to Sam Amick of The Athletic, LeBron is considering playing out his present contract. The Akron Hammer signed a four-year, $153.5 million deal with the Lakers in the summer of 2018 and agreed to a two-year, $85.7 million extension with Los Angeles in December 2020.
The Lakers won the 2020 championship over the Miami Heat in six games, but they have struggled the past two seasons.
“Technically because of the collective bargaining agreement it cannot even be discussed until later on in the year,” LeBron said about his summer extension. “So, we get to that point, we’ll see.”
LeBron is represented by Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, who also represents Lakers big man Anthony Davis.