Shams: LeBron James 'Unlikely' to Leave Lakers, Join Kyrie Irving's Mavs amid Rumors

After reporting on Monday that Kyrie Irving has reached out to LeBron James to see if the Los Angeles Lakers star would join him with the Dallas Mavericks, Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium dispelled the notion of their reunion actually happening.

During an appearance on Tuesday's episode of The Ryen Russillo Podcast, Charania illustrated why he believes James heading to Dallas is not in the cards this offseason.

"He's reached out to LeBron from what I'm told, he's made contact with him, they've had a back-and-forth now for a couple years. Now, do I think it's unlikely LeBron James goes to Dallas? I do," Charania said. "I think he's happy in L.A., I think he's happy being there, being a Laker and his son Bronny James going to USC next year. There's a lot of reasons why staying in L.A. makes the most sense for LeBron James."

Joining the Mavs would allow James to form a Big Three with star point guard Luka Dončić and Irving, who will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. However, Dallas doesn't have the assets necessary to convince the Lakers to trade James, who is set to make an estimated $46.9 million in 2023-24.

The 38-year-old is coming off a grueling season in which he played through a foot injury to help lead the Lakers on a run to the Western Conference Finals, where they were swept by the Denver Nuggets. After Los Angeles was eliminated, James said he would consider retirement as well as the possibility of undergoing foot surgery this offseason.

James has long expressed a desire to play alongside his son Bronny if the latter makes it to the NBA, so it's unlikely that LeBron would call it quits when they could be just a couple of years away from achieving that goal. All signs point to him continuing his career in Los Angeles.