LeBron James’ time with the Los Angeles Lakers might be coming to an end soon. Even if LeBron isn’t traded before Feb. 5 (there’s no indication that he will be, and he holds a full no-trade clause), James becomes an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
He’s also 41 years old. Retirement is an obvious option, but then again, it just doesn’t feel like this is LeBron’s final season.
The Lakers are no longer the best fit for James. The LeBron-Luka Doncic-Austin Reaves trio is redundant, and the Lakers know it. James is the odd man out, given his age, which is an “inherent problem” for Los Angeles, as noted by ESPN’s Brian Windhorst on January 2.
“James … is 15 years older than Doncic,” Windhorst wrote. “The superstars' timelines do not match, and as this season has shown, playing together does not make the Lakers a championship contender in their current form. With James and Doncic collectively making $98 million (about 64% of the salary cap), it's not a sustainable way forward.”
To return to the Lakers next season, LeBron would have to do so at a “significantly reduced salary,” Windhorst pointed out. And while Bron isn’t going to demand another $104 million contract akin to the one he signed in July 2024, he’s certainly not going to be interested in a cheap deal, either.
It’s a poor financial fit, and it’s a poor basketball fit. This is why many people assume LeBron will play elsewhere next season. Interestingly, a return to the Cleveland Cavaliers could make a ton of sense for LeBron.
LeBron James finishing his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers makes sense for multiple reasons
Could LeBron really return to the Cavs? 👀@tomhaberstroh and @YourManDevine discuss if there’s any shot at a reunion in Cleveland.
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) July 3, 2025
(via The Big Number) pic.twitter.com/yZZb5nMsz5
A LeBron-Cleveland reunion has been on people’s minds for months. Before the current season, Yahoo’s Tom Haberstroh and Dan Devine speculated that Bron could get traded to the Cavs for a package featuring Darius Garland and Jarrett Allen.
And while a 41-year-old James wouldn’t exactly help Cleveland’s defensive issues, a return to his roots makes all the sense in the world for everyone involved.
The Cavs could benefit from some roster clarity. Eliminating their duality at both the guard and center positions would achieve that. Building around Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley is the obvious path forward for Cleveland.
Could they get younger assets for Garland and Allen, rather than acquire LeBron? Sure. But keep in mind that LeBron would turn into massive cap space once he retires — a nice tool for the Cavs to have as they keep building a sustainable contender around Mitchell and Mobley.
The Cavs don’t have to trade for LeBron (time is running out to do so this season, anyway). They can simply sign him after the season, so long as they trade away two of their top-five richest contracts that aren’t Mitchell and Mobley. That would be Garland ($42.2 million cap hit in 2026-27), Allen ($28 million), and De’Andre Hunter ($24.9 million).
If Cleveland can send Garland and one of either Allen or Hunter to a cap-space-endowed team like the Brooklyn Nets or Utah Jazz in exchange for draft capital and far less salary in return, the Cavs can establish a pathway to sign James.
In the Eastern Conference, a core of Mitchell, Mobley, and James (even at his age) is enough to contend. Compared to his Lakers fit, LeBron would be a much better fit alongside Mitchell, who can actually be a threat off-ball on many possessions with his athleticism and catch-and-shoot ability.
The Lakers, meanwhile, would have cap space of their own in the offseason to help craft a winner around Doncic and Reaves. Los Angeles wouldn’t be wildly less marketable (they still have Luka), and the Cavs would be a national attraction again, something the NBA would be happy about.