By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
LeBron James intends to use a player option in his contract and play for the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2025-26 season.
The option is worth well over 50 million dollars.
ESPN senior NBA insider Shams Charania delivered an update about the 40-year-old superstar during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday.
“I’m told LeBron James is likely to opt in..
He’s got a massive player option and that’s the plan..
He still has about a month to figure that out”@ShamsCharania #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/8mzUsMCU9r
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) May 27, 2025
Following the exit from the 2025 NBA Playoffs presented by Google, the four-time NBA champion was unsure about his future. “I don’t have an answer to that,” he mentioned during a postgame press conference, following a season-ending loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals.
Postponing retirement plans, the experience forward would enter a 23rd NBA campaign and eighth with the Lakers. Extending the collaboration with Slovenian sensation Luka Doncic to a first full season together would certainly boost a championship bid for the team guided by JJ Redick.
Refusing to slow down, the native of Akron averaged 24.5 points, 8.1 assists, 7.9 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and 0.6 blocks per contest over 75 appearances in his 2024-25 journey, between the Regular Season and the Playoffs.
After being drafted with the first overall pick in 2003 and starting his professional career with the Cleveland Cavaliers, James switched to the Miami Heat as an unrestricted free agent in 2010. As a two-time champion, he returned to the Cavs in 2014 and captured a third title in 2016. With the Lakers since 2018, he celebrated a fourth championship in 2020.