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It appears the Los Angeles Lakers aren’t buying that Father Time is going to catch up to LeBron James anytime soon. According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the two sides have agreed to a two-year maximum extension worth $85 million.
This ties LeBron to the Lakers through the 2022-23 season. Barring any changes in structure to the NBA season, this would mean that the superstar would turn 38 during the final year of his contract.
While LeBron is getting up there in age, this move makes sense for both sides. The Lakers didn’t sign him to a very long extension and it’s reasonable to believe he’ll still be an effective player when he’s 38. Plus, Los Angeles needs to ensure that Anthony Davis sticks around for at least a few years. Keeping LeBron around will help make that happen.
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LeBron Could Play With Son When Contract Ends
The decision for LeBron to have his contract expire in 2023 is very interesting for a number of reasons. As Charania pointed out, it’s possible LeBron’s son Bronny could enter the NBA.
It’s not a foregone conclusion that the league will change the rules that keep high school players from entering the NBA but it makes sense for LeBron to keep his options open because he wants to play with his son. If his body holds up until 2023, he’ll have his first shot at playing with Bronny. If the NBA doesn’t change their rules, LeBron will have to wait another year while his son plays in college.
In that event, it’s possible LeBron sticks around in Los Angeles for another year and then hits free agency again. It’s very hard to imagine he’ll still be a superstar at 39 but he could just look to come off the bench for whatever team Bronny gets drafted by, which it’s still too early to suggest that the young baller will even get a shot in the NBA.
Anthony Davis Should Sign Soon
As of December 1, NBA teams were able to start their training camp and the preseason starts on December 11. However, the Lakers still haven’t locked down one of their best players. Anthony Davis remains unsigned despite the fact that everybody knows he’s going to return to the team. He’s one of the best players to hit free agency in recent years but there hasn’t been a single rumor connecting him to another team.
There’s been speculation as to why Davis hasn’t signed a deal. The Lakers will obviously pay him the max amount of money possible but it appears he’s still undecided on how many years he wants the deal to be. There were rumors that he was waiting to see what Giannis Antetokounmpo might do so that he could help Los Angeles have added flexibility should the “Greek Freak” become a free agent. The fact that Giannis hasn’t signed a deal with the Milwaukee Bucks yet could lead to Davis taking a short deal that would allow him to go back into free agency next offseason. Regardless, he should be signing a deal soon as we’re only mere weeks away from the start of the regular season.
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