The four-time champion is heading into unrestricted free agency for the first time since 2018.
LeBron James just wrapped up his 23rd NBA season with the Los Angeles Lakers, and the question hovering over the franchise this offseason is a simple one.
Will the 41-year-old come back for one more run?
James averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, and 6.1 rebounds across 60 regular season games in 2025-26, and while those numbers are clearly a step back from his prime years, he was still the guy keeping the Lakers competitive down the stretch and into the playoffs.
ESPN insider Shams Charania went on The Rich Eisen Show this week and left no doubt that the Los Angeles Lakers want James back for what would be a record 24th season.
"All the indications I've gotten over the course of the year is that he's gonna play one more season," Charania said. "The where? The how much of it all? That's all obviously going to be a factor. Is it going to be Los Angeles? That's gotta probably be his preference. The Lakers have made clear they want him back."
What a Deal Could Look Like
James earned $52.6 million this season after exercising his player option, and he is now an unrestricted free agent for the first time since leaving Cleveland in 2018.
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported there was talk around the league that James should consider taking a veteran minimum salary to join a contender, but his camp shut that idea down fast.
A one-year deal in the $20 million to $30 million range feels like the most realistic path, and it would let the Lakers keep building around Luka Doncic without blowing up their cap sheet.
Doncic led the league in scoring this season at 33.5 points per game and is already owed $51 million for 2026-27, so there is only so much room left to pay James anything near what he earned this year.
Why the Lakers Should Be Careful
The Lakers went 53-29 this season and grabbed the fourth seed in the Western Conference, but their playoff run ended in a sweep by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round.
Doncic went down with a Grade 2 hamstring injury in early April and never came back, leaving James to carry the load almost entirely on his own.
That loss exposed real problems.
Austin Reaves is expected to decline his $14.9 million player option and chase a five-year max deal, and the team badly needs a center after being one of the worst rebounding squads in the league all year.
Committing a huge salary to James would eat into the cap space the Lakers need to address those weaknesses and put the right pieces around Doncic going forward.
Nobody is saying James does not deserve to get paid.
He has earned everything over the course of his career.
But the Lakers have to weigh that against the reality of building a roster that can actually compete for a title next season, and if his asking price climbs too high, the franchise may find itself stuck between loyalty and the moves it needs to make.
