Next for LeBron James? The shorter-than-you-think list of potential destinations

LeBron James may be on the move, and how often have we been able to say that?

In 2010, when he made The Decision to take his talents to South Beach. In 2014, when we had an inkling he would leave the Miami Heat for a return to the Cleveland Cavaliers. And in 2018, when all signs pointed to him joining the Los Angeles Lakers.

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That’s right: LeBron’s future has not been this uncertain since 2010, so you could have your driver’s license right now and not remember when he joined the Heatles.

It’s been a minute.

An obligatory reminder: James will turn 42 years old in December. He is no longer the game’s best player, though he is still somehow one of its (let’s say …) 25 best, and this season he accepted a role, which made him the NBA’s best third option for a stretch.

He was not that in the playoffs, when the absences of Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves demanded he reassume the throne as a primary playmaker on offense, and that was too much for James to handle, at least in a Western Conference semifinal.

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On the dais for his media exit interview, after his team was swept by the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, James did not sound ready for retirement, though he did say he was uncertain about his future. That uncertainty probably has more to do with whether he will be a Laker next season and not whether he will be playing.

This begs a question: Will LeBron James accept a salary commensurate with the complementary role he would need to play for a team to be a serious title contender? We may not know the answer to that until he decides for which team he will play.

Still, we can imagine the shorter-than-you-think list of options available to him. Let’s run them down.

Los Angeles Lakers

If he re-signs in L.A., it will surely be for more money than the Lakers should be willing to pay for his services. What is James worth? When it comes to selling tickets, there is no cap on what he could command, and the Lakers will take that into consideration.

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When it comes to team-building, though, think of Derrick White, a clear-cut third option behind Boston Celtics superstars…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/next-for-lebron-james-the-shorter-than-you-think-list-of-potential-destinations-144617027.html

Author : Ben Rohrbach

Publish date : 2026-05-12 14:46:00

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