For a while, it has been believed across the NBA that if LeBron James doesn’t retire this offseason, he will play for either the Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers or possibly even the Golden State Warriors next season. In recent weeks, it seems as if the chances of him remaining with the Lakers have increased, especially after they won 16 of 18 games until Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves sustained muscle strains two weeks ago.
But according to a new report in The Athletic by Dan Woike and Sam Amick, there could be a new team in play for James’ services. Believe it or not, that team is the Los Angeles Clippers.
“Per league sources, a move across town to the LA Clippers, where James has a very close relationship and championship history with coach Tyronn Lue, could also become part of the conversation,” Woike and Amick wrote. “That route, unlikely though it is believed to be, would give James and his family a second option when it comes to staying put in Los Angeles. The belief among league sources is that if James were to choose another team, he would do so only with the idea that he would elevate it to serious championship contention.”
The Clippers have been a festering disappointment over the last several years, despite the presence of Kawhi Leonard, who is always considered one of the game’s best players when healthy. They got younger this season by essentially swapping 36-year-old James Harden for two-time All-Star point guard Darius Garland, who is 26 years of age.
They also could end up with a lottery draft pick this June after trading center Ivica Zubac to the Indiana Pacers at midseason. In that deal, the Clippers received the Pacers’ 2026 first-round pick, and if it falls between No. 5 and No. 9, they will keep it.
They’re expected to have the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, which will be worth roughly $15 million, this summer, but that will likely be the maximum they can offer James. They also have plenty of uncertainty about their roster, starting with Leonard, who has one year left on his contract and will turn 35 years of age in June. As everyone knows, he’s a perpetual injury risk and cannot be trusted to be available for the vast majority of his team’s games.
The Clippers lost in the play-in tournament on Wednesday to the Golden State Warriors, ending their hopes of making the playoffs. They haven’t won a single playoff series since 2021, and in the seven seasons since Leonard joined them, they have reached the Western Conference finals once. The franchise has never appeared in the NBA Finals.
The Lakers, on the other hand, are projected to have roughly $50 million of salary cap space this summer and could be one or two role players or complementary players away from fielding a championship-caliber squad next season.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Report: LeBron James could join the Clippers this summer
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
