The Los Angeles Lakers aren’t going to buy out LeBron James.
For some reason, though, the concept keeps circulating.
There’ve been reports that the Mavs and Cavs would only pursue James if he’s bought out, and those at least make sense on the contract and salary side of things.
But why would the Lakers ever, ever buy LeBron out?
Yes, he’s 40, but this all-time great was just a second-team All-NBA selection.
The Lakers traded for Luka Doncic to win an NBA championship.
Giving up LeBron James for nothing is the last thing they’d do in that scenario.
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Whether or not a trade lines up remains to be seen, but at least in that setup, Los Angeles would get assets in return for their superstar.
A buyout is illogical. This isn’t the Damian Lillard situation, where he’s out for an entire season due to a torn Achilles.
This is a healthy King James back to continue defying the conventions of aging, ready to make one last run at a ring.
There’d have to be some totally unexpected turn in the entire narrative to even open the door to a buyout. Right now, it clearly makes no sense.
The Lakers can’t give LeBron up for nothing, and that’s all there is to it.
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