• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

New York Sports Today

New York Sports News Continuously updated

Lakers Superstar ‘Eyes’ New Rivals In Quirky Offseason Saga

July 21, 2025 by Last Word On Pro Basketball

The Los Angeles Lakers are Luka Doncic‘s team now, there’s no doubt about that. Yet, while their young franchise cornerstone has given them new life, the way that they’ve prioritized him over LeBron James appears to have rubbed the latter the wrong way. On top of that, as James creeps ever closer to retirement, many have considered it possible that he plays out the 2025-26 season with the team he started with: the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Unfortunately for James, if that was the case, the Cavs aren’t exactly jumping at a reunion. In fact, while there’s obviously interest in the 21-time All-Star, the logistics make it difficult to foresee him playing for anyone except the Lakers. Barring a buyout, that is. With that in mind, James’s decision to opt into his contract for the 2025-26 season is precisely why he’s in between a rock and a hard place.

Lakers’ LeBron James ‘Eyes’ Mavs In Quirky Offseason Saga

Though there’s an obvious connection between James and Cleveland, there’s at least one other franchise that really caught his attention: the Dallas Mavericks.

“While he opted in to the final year of his contract and does not appear to be an imminent trade candidate,” writes The Athletic’s John Hollinger, “that doesn’t necessarily mean returning to the Los Angeles Lakers on a one-year deal was at the top of his wish list. In particular, the whispers about him having eyes for Dallas — a place where he could have teamed up with former teammates Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving and young phenom Cooper Flagg — before opting into his deal were hard to ignore.”

James “wasn’t willing to leave $52 million on the table to take a nontaxpayer MLE or something similar from the Mavericks or another team,” Hollinger adds. “A buyout seems similarly unlikely…”

Hypothetical Trade Scenario

Last week, The Athletic’s Dan Woike and Joe Vardon reported that Mavs have interest in James, but not if it requires them “gutting their roster.” It’s unclear what or how many players they would trade for James if the opportunity presented itself. However, there are multiple frameworks that would work in a potential transaction.

Apr 9, 2025; Dallas, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) shoots past Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively II (2) and Dallas Mavericks guard Max Christie (00) during the second half at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

One such option is a three-team deal that includes the Brooklyn Nets, who have $19.9 million in cap space.

If Dallas were to trade Daniel Gafford (or PJ Washington) to the Nets, they could send a combination of Klay Thompson, Dwight Powell, Brandon Williams and Gafford (or Washington) to the Lakers. The Mavericks would be trading three projected rotation players (Gafford, Washington, Thompson) for one in this scenario. However, it can be argued that James is as valuable as at least two of those players combined, if not all three.

Win-Now Mode?

Ultimately, a contract buyout agreement is the most feasible way for him to get out of Los Angeles. If so, he may choose the Cavs over the Mavs given his connection to not only the franchise but Ohio itself. Unless Dallas doesn’t care about adding the four-time NBA champion while they’re in win-now mode, that should be a motivating factor for them to get him themselves.

© Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The post Lakers Superstar ‘Eyes’ New Rivals In Quirky Offseason Saga appeared first on Last Word On Basketball.

Filed Under: Nets

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • The clock is ticking on Jaxson Dart’s all-consuming Giants ascension
  • Mets’ bats spur late rally past Angels for second straight win
  • Mets Willing To Trade From Infield Depth
  • Why the Yankees should be all over this reliable veteran starter
  • Yankees linked to new trade target having a bounce-back season

Categories

Archives

Our Partners

All Sports

  • 247 Sports
  • Bleacher Report
  • Elite Sports NY
  • Empire Sports Media
  • Empire Writes Back
  • MSG Networks
  • New York Daily News
  • New York Times
  • New York Post
  • Newsday
  • OurSports Central
  • SNY - SportsNet New York
  • The Sports Daily
  • The Sports Fan Journal
  • The Spun
  • USA Today
  • WFAN Sports Radio
  • YES Network

Baseball

  • MLB.com - Yankees
  • MLB.com - Mets
  • Amazin Avenue
  • Last Word On Baseball - Mets
  • Last Word On Baseball - Yankees
  • MLB Trade Rumors - Yankees
  • MLB Trade Rumors - Mets
  • Rising Apple
  • Yanks Go Yard

Basketball

  • NBA.com - Knicks
  • NBA.com - Nets
  • Amico Hoops - Knicks
  • Amico Hoops - Nets
  • Daily Knicks
  • Hoops Hype - Knicks
  • Hoops Hype - Nets
  • Hoops Rumors - Knicks
  • Hoops Rumors - Nets
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball - New York Knicks
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball - Brooklyn Nets
  • Nets Daily
  • Nets Wire
  • Nothing But Nets
  • Posting And Toasting
  • Pro Basketball Talk - Knicks
  • Pro Basketball Talk - Nets
  • Real GM - Knicks
  • Real GM - Nets

Football

  • New York Giants
  • New York Jets
  • Big Blue Interactive
  • Big Blue View
  • Gang Green Nation
  • Giants Gab
  • Giants Wire
  • Gmen HQ
  • Jets Fix
  • Jets Gab
  • Jet Nation
  • Jets Wire
  • Last Word On Pro Football - New York Giants
  • Last Word On Pro Football - New York Jets
  • NFL Trade Rumors - Giants
  • NFL Trade Rumors - Jets
  • Our Turf Football - Giants
  • Our Turf Football - Jets
  • Pro Football Focus - Giants
  • Pro Football Focus - Jets
  • Pro Football Rumors - Giants
  • Pro Football Rumors - Jets
  • Pro Football Talk - Giants
  • Pro Football Talk - Jets
  • The Gang Green
  • The Jet Press
  • Total Giants
  • Total Jets
  • Turn On The Jets
  • Ultimate NYG

Hockey

  • All About The Jersey
  • Blue Line Station
  • Blue Shirt Banter
  • Elite Prospects - Devils
  • Elite Prospects - Islanders
  • Elite Prospects - Rangers
  • Eyes On Isles
  • Last Word On Hockey - Devils
  • Last Word On Hockey - Islanders
  • Last Word On Hockey - Rangers
  • Lighthouse Hockey
  • Pro Hockey Rumors - Devils
  • Pro Hockey Rumors - Islanders
  • Pro Hockey Rumors - Rangers
  • Pro Hockey Talk - Devils
  • Pro Hockey Talk - Islanders
  • Pro Hockey Talk - Rangers
  • Pucks And Pitchforks
  • The Hockey Writers - Devils
  • The Hockey Writers - Islanders
  • The Hockey Writers - Rangers

Soccer

  • Last Word on Soccer - NYC FC
  • Last Word on Soccer - Red Bulls
  • Last Word on Soccer - Sky Blue FC
  • MLS Multiplex - NYC FC
  • MLS Multiplex - Red Bulls
  • Once A Metro

Colleges

  • Against All Enemies
  • Big East Coast Bias
  • Busting Brackets
  • College Football News
  • College Sports Madness
  • Forgotten 5
  • Inside The Loud House
  • Orange Fizz
  • Rumble In The Garden
  • Saturday Blitz
  • The Daily Orange
  • The UConn Blog
  • Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician
  • Zags Blog

Footer

Copyright © 2025 · Magazine Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in