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LeBron James on the challenge of playing without Luka and Austin Reaves

LeBron James vowed after his time with the Miami Heat that he would never play for a discount again while in the NBA, a sentiment that the Los Angeles Lakers are likely to test this summer.

James is a free agent heading into his age-42 campaign and performed impeccably last season, earning an All-Star appearance on the strength of 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds across 60 games played. He then led the Lakers to a first-round playoff victory over the Houston Rockets without Luka Doncic and absent Austin Reaves for the first four games of the series, which ended after six contests.

Given James’ level of play all season/postseason long, combined with his long-held financial philosophy, Kurt Helin of NBC Sports reported on Wednesday, June 10 that James will request a max contract from the Lakers once the new league year hits on the final day of this month.

“LeBron James and [agent] Rich Paul are going to ask the Lakers for a max contract, per @basketballtalk,” Fullcourtpass posted to its X account.

Lakers Can’t Pay LeBron James, Rebuild Roster Around Luka Doncic in Same Offseason

GettyLeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Bobby Marks of ESPN explained in May why the Lakers can afford to pay James the max contract he’s now confirmed to be seeking, but also why that would hamper the other big moves L.A. is looking to make, or at least will consider making, this offseason.

“James’ impact during the regular season and playoffs still reflects a max player,” Marks wrote. “Can the Lakers afford to bring back James on a $50 million salary and still be in a position to bolster their roster? When factoring in a new contract for Austin Reaves, that answer is a resounding no.”

The Lakers could potentially pay James around $30 million and still have some maneuverability to build around Doncic, which appears to be the organizational mandate of the summer.

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GettyLeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers.

James is going to face an uphill battle to get the kind of money he wants from the Lakers given several factors beyond his age, the obvious need for a rim-protecting big man and more wing defense/shooting around Doncic, and Doncic’s desire for L.A. to bring back Reaves on a longterm deal.

James also has to face the fact that most teams outside of Los Angeles for which he might consider playing can’t afford to pay him anywhere near a max contract.

Insider Jake Fischer wrote Tuesday that the two top contenders for James’ services other than the Lakers are the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers.

“League sources maintain that Golden State remains legitimately interested in adding LeBron to their Stephen Curry/Jimmy Butler/Draymond Green core coached by Steve Kerr,” Fischer wrote. “The idea of a third stint for James as a Cleveland Cavalier is harder to envision not only because of the severe financial limitations that the Cavs would face in trying to bring him back to the Northern Ohio [area] but the sheer distance from what has been established since the summer of 2018 as James’ Southern California base.”