The basketball world cannot afford to see LeBron James go out sad, and that’s exactly what will happen if he doesn’t work a trade away from the Los Angeles Lakers.
On Wednesday afternoon, Lakers head coach JJ Redick told reporters that James wasn’t with the team for personal reasons.
“LeBron is not with the team right now,” Redick said after practice. “He’s out for personal reasons, excused absence.”
James missed Sunday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers with a foot injury. It was the first game he had missed all season.
But now he’s away from the team for personal reasons, and with the Lakers just two games above .500, holding onto the eighth seed in the Western Conference, it could be time for a change.
Remember, despite drafting his son, Bronny James, in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft, James was frustrated with the Lakers this offseason because of their inability to add a third superstar to pair alongside himself and Anthony Davis. He signed an extension but really only committed to the Lakers for one more season.
James has played 22 years in the league. At the end of the month, he will turn 40 years old. There’s no denying that his days playing in the NBA are numbered.
There’s also no denying that he understands the inner workings of the NBA unlike any player before him. He’s oftentimes criticized for popularizing the superteam when he teamed up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat. He has to know this Lakers squad is not going anywhere, especially in a Western Conference loaded with young talent.
He’s been known to force a thing or two, and now it’s time for him to force his way out of Los Angeles and chase another championship before he calls it a career.
When the news dropped about his absence from practice, NBA rumor mills immediately started cranking out trade rumors. Where could his fourth team be?
The Golden State Warriors are a west coast destination that would allow him to stay close to his family based in Los Angeles. They’re currently the No. 5 seed in the West and could allow James to actually contend for a championship.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are another option, as James has already returned home and played the role of hero once already, delivering a championship in 2016. He’s much older now, but so are the Cavs, who have the best record in the NBA. This reunion might just make all the sense in the world.
Nobody knows for sure why James is away from the Lakers right now. But it would undoubtedly be in his best interest to move on from the Lakers. This is his seventh year donning the purple and gold and has just one championship to show for it with a bunch of early playoff exits, or worse, not making the postseason at all.
Still averaging 23 points, nine assists and eight rebounds per game, James has more to give to the game of basketball. He has accomplished everything there is to accomplish, including suiting up with his son. That’s pretty damn special.
It’s time to win that last championship ring and ride off into the sunset as the greatest ever.
