It’s hard to get a read of what’s going on between the Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James at the moment. He has opted in to his contract for the 2025-26 season, but from how things stand now, the Lakers not extending him could pave the way for a trade.
The uncertainty surrounding James’ future with the Lakers could push them to trade him to a team like the Golden State Warriors, but even that would come with a few questions.
How the Lakers Trading LeBron James to the Warriors Would Be a Problem
On ESPN’s NBA Today, Bobby Marks acknowledged that it would make sense for the Warriors to acquire LeBron from the Lakers, but also explained the problem on the Lakers’ behalf if they agreed to a trade like that.
“Certainly, when you look at teams like Golden State that would, of course, probably make the most sense when you’re trying to swap Jimmy Butler out for LeBron James. That trade actually works when you look at it from a perspective. The question would be, would the Lakers want an extra year of Jimmy Butler? Remember that’s the team that’s prioritizing cap space post LeBron James,” Marks said.
The Lakers have signaled that they are preparing themselves for a post-LeBron era with Luka Dončić leading their future. However, if that means they plan to trade James and want to preserve cap space, they may have to work out some cap gymnastics to make that happen.
As good as James still is, and as strong as his market would be, the Lakers would have to find another team if they wanted to trade James while maintaining their cap flexibility for 2026. The Warriors would make sense as a James destination, but they would have to find a third team that would want Butler.
Butler proved last year how good he still is, so finding a third team wouldn’t necessarily be hard. However, he has shown that he will distance himself immediately if he doesn’t like a situation, which may turn off any suitors.
The Lakers also have to consider what they could get in equal value for James while considering whether they can have the open cap room next offseason.
It’s definitely a bit of a sticky situation to the point that the Lakers might be best off just letting this year play out and letting James walk. That’s what the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat did, and even if they wouldn’t prefer James walk for nothing, he’s still good enough that the best option would be to keep him.
