Windhorst Says 'Never Say Never' About LeBron James-Lakers Trade But 'Highly Unlikely'
ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst suggested Monday that he does not anticipate the Los Angeles Lakers trading LeBron James this offseason despite comments made by his agent and business partner, Rich Paul, on Sunday.
Speaking Monday on the Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective podcast (beginning at the 9:50 mark), Windhorst said: "While I would never say never in the NBA, I think it is highly unlikely that LeBron would be traded."
On Sunday, Paul announced that James had exercised the $52.6 million player option in his contract for the 2025-26 NBA season, but he also provided the following statement to ESPN's Shams Charania:
"LeBron wants to compete for a championship. He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we've had for eight years with [governor] Jeanie [Buss] and [general manager] Rob [Pelinka] and consider the Lakers as a critical part of his career.
"We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what's best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career. He wants to make every season he has left count, and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and want what's best for him."
Paul also told Charania that James "will be closely monitoring" the moves the Lakers make this season and whether he believes they will help L.A. contend for a championship.
That would seem to indicate that a trade request is at least on the table, although the fact that James opted in rather than testing free agency could be a sign that his preferred outcome is to remain in Los Angeles.
James, 40, is preparing to enter his eighth season with the Lakers. If he does, it will mark the most consecutive seasons he has spent with a single team in his career.
He is also in line to set a new NBA record with his 23rd career season played, and he is 50 games away from surpassing Robert Parish for the most games played in NBA history.
Even so, the 21-time All-Star, four-time NBA MVP, four-time NBA champion and four-time NBA Finals MVP is still among the best players in the league.
Last season, he averaged 24.4 points, 8.2 assists, 7.8 rebounds, 2.1 three-pointers made and 1.0 steal per game, while shooting 51.3 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from beyond the arc.
With James leading the way, the Lakers were the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference with a 50-32 record, but they fell to the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the playoffs.
It was abundantly clear during that series that the Lakers needed to add a legitimate starting center to the mix, and that figures to be the main focus this offseason.
If the Lakers are able to do that, it could potentially be enough to appease James since L.A. already has two quality running mates in place for him in the form of Luka Dončić and Austin Reaves.
The Lakers shockingly acquired Dončić in a trade with the Dallas Mavericks in February, and if James sticks around, next season will mark the first full campaign of LeBron and Luka together as a dynamic duo.
Given that James is one of the greatest players of all time, trading him would likely land the Lakers a massive haul that could help them in the future, but since winning a championship is always the main goal in L.A., it is most likely that the Lakers will do everything they can to convince LeBron to stay and pursue another title next season.
