The Los Angeles Lakers have emerged as the favorite to bring back LeBron James this summer, and one of his former championship teammates might be trailing him to L.A.
Marc J. Spears of ESPN reported on the Wednesday, June 17 edition of “NBA Today” that James is leaning toward returning to the Lakers for his age-42 campaign and may bring five-time All-Star forward Kevin Love along with him.
“That’s what I’m hearing. I’m hearing that he’s likely coming back,” Spears said. “I am curious under this new Lakers regime, you know, what the [salary] number is.”
“And also I’m hearing that one of his old teammates from Cleveland, Kevin Love, could likely be joining the Lakers, too,” Spears added. “Unrestricted free agent, rejoining his old buddy. And so I could see those two guys being reunited there.”
Kevin Love Can Serve as Backup Big in Secondary Lakers’ Lineups
GettyKevin Love of the Utah Jazz.
James and Love are currently together in London, along with several other members of the 2015-16 world champion Cavaliers, on what appears to be a golf vacation of sorts as well as a 10-year celebration of their title run. Joining the two in England are Channing Frye, Tristan Thompson and JR Smith.
Host Jorge Sedano joked that the jaunt to Europe may be a recruiting trip of sorts, though Love’s value at this point in his career is as a backup big who can offer minimal and situational help to secondary lineups during the dog days of the regular season.
In other words, he’s not liable to require much recruitment to move to sunny Southern California and join a group of players led by James, Luka Doncic and potentially Austin Reaves that has owned home-court advantage in the first round of the NBA playoffs in each of the past two postseasons.
Love, who will play next year at 38, averaged 16.6 minutes per game across 37 appearances (five starts) for the Utah Jazz in 2025-26. He put up 6.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting better than 37 percent from behind the 3-point line last year.
Lakers Have Expensive Priorities Outside of Signing LeBron James
GettyLuka Doncic and Austin Reaves of the Los Angeles Lakers.
It is likely the Lakers can land Love on a veteran’s league minimum. However, as Spears mentioned, the number that James might command is of considerable interest, and potential concern, with regards to the rest of the goals L.A. hopes to accomplish this offseason.
Reaves is about to opt out of the final year of his contract and enter unrestricted free agency. The majority of recent reports indicate that Reaves, who is close friends with Doncic, prefers to return to Los Angeles but wants something close to the maximum $241 million across five seasons that the Lakers can offer him as he heads into his age-28 campaign.
L.A. is also going to pursue a rim-protecting, rim-running big man to pair with Doncic so as to maximize the skill set of one of the best three-to-five players in the league, who is also just now entering the peak of his prime.
Finally, forward Rui Hachimura is about to become a free agent, and his size, shooting and defensive versatility have been important assets for the Lakers in recent years. However, that coveted skill set should render Hachimura a target for contending teams like the San Antonio Spurs that could use an influx of size on the front line, which may drive up his price.
Lakers Linked to 5-Time All-Star Alongside LeBron James’ Return