New Lakers Rumors on LeBron James' 'Ire' With Team Taking Him for 'Granted,' JJ Redick Relationship

As Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James contemplates his future, new rumors have surfaced about simmering tensions between him and the franchise.

ESPN's Dave McMenamin highlighted an instance after the Lakers' 127-113 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on March 31, which had avenged a 30-point loss to the Cavs on Jan. 28 and capped a 16-2 stretch for James and company.

In the locker room, head coach JJ Redick spotlighted some of the accomplishments from that game, which included James' 1,229th career win to pass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most in NBA history. Star guard Luka Doncic also topped 15,000 career points, and swingman Rui Hachimura reached 5,000 points. Still, Lakers president and general manager Rob Pelinka opted to give the game ball to Redick, who had earned his 100th coaching win.

James reportedly didn't appreciate Pelinka's decision to spotlight Redick over any of the players' accomplishments.

"James, who played the past eight seasons in Los Angeles and helped deliver the franchise its 17th championship in 2020, saw Pelinka's priority in that moment as yet another example of the Lakers taking him for granted, sources said," McMenamin wrote. "Adding to James' ire, sources said, was the fact that the past dozen or so wins in that stretch came with James willingly taking a supporting offensive role behind Doncic and Austin Reaves."

In his 23rd NBA season, James produced at his usual level and proved he's still one of the top players in the league at 41 years old. Still, McMenamin went on to add that James' ill feelings toward the Lakers have been brewing for a while, and the moment with Pelinka sent him over the edge.

"And so -- without even stopping to change clothes -- James marched off into the L.A. night, simmering from another perceived indignation delivered by the organization that, as one source close to him told ESPN, tried to 'push him out the door,' after acquiring Doncic last season," McMenamin stated.

That said, McMenamin reported LeBron has a "great" relationship with Redick, according to sources, "with one telling ESPN that Redick's hiring is 'one thing the Lakers got right.'"

James is set to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason and is known to be considering retirement, so there's a chance he may have played his final game in a Lakers uniform.