LeBron James Ex-Heat Teammate Fuels Lakers Free Agency Rumors

Mario Chalmers, LeBron James

Getty Miami Heat teammates LeBron James and Mario Chalmers won back-to-back titles together in 2012 and 2013 in South Beach.

It’s been seven years since Mario Chalmers and LeBron James called each other teammates. They spent four wildly successful seasons together as members of the Miami Heat, including back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013. One of them thinks it might be time for a happy reunion.

Chalmers has been tracking all the Los Angeles Lakers rumors from his front-row seat on social media. On Tuesday, the 35-year-old free agent guard let everyone know that he was ready to make a comeback and join James in Hollywood. Chalmers responded to a Sportando article saying the Lakers were looking to add a “difference-maker” by replying: “Let me get a shot at this.” It followed an earlier tweet from Chalmers where he questioned if age matters. The two-time champion just wants a workout and feels like he has plenty of tread left on his tires.

This isn’t the first time Chalmers has made headlines for wanting to return to the NBA. He had been playing professionally in the Greek Basket League in 2019 and 2020, then entered the G-League draft in January 2021. Chalmers went undrafted in the three-round process. Undeterred by that experience, the Alaska native has stayed in shape by participating in the Big3, a professional 3-on-3 basketball league founded by rapper Ice Cube.

Chalmers posted a workout picture from Miami on June 4 and sent a strong message that he wasn’t ready to call it a career: “The moment I stop having fun wit it is the moment I’ll b done wit it but until then let’s enjoy this work.” Maybe the Heat should sign him for the nostalgia factor.

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Michael Beasley Signs with Portland Trail Blazers

One of Chalmers’ former teammates in Miami has decided to attempt a comeback of his own. Michael Beasley has agreed to a deal with the Portland Trail Blazers to play for their Las Vegas Summer League team this summer, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania. Beasley last played for the Lakers in 2018-19 when he averaged 7.0 points and 2.3 rebounds in 10.7 minutes per game. He saw action in only 26 games that year before being traded to the Clippers and eventually waived.

The Heat selected the 6-foot-9 big man with the second overall pick in 2008. However, Beasley was the victim of multiple fines for violating team policy throughout his first two seasons in Miami and quickly fell out of favor. He was ultimately traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2019 to free up salary-cap space to pay James following “The Decision.”


Team USA Wins Behind Bam Adebayo

Current Heat star Bam Adebayo put on a passing clinic on Tuesday night for Team USA during a 108-80 bounce-back win over Argentina. The Americans started pre-Olympic exhibition play by losing two straight games, but leaned hard on Adebayo to improve their record to 1-2.

The 6-foot-9 big man from Kentucky scored 12 points while grabbing five rebounds and dishing out five assists in 18 minutes. The way he worked the pick-and-roll to perfection with Trail Blazers All-Star Damian Lillard had many on Twitter speculating about the future. Lillard could demand a trade out of Portland and Miami would be a really attractive option. Stay tuned.

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