All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving wants to reunite with superstar small forward LeBron James on the Dallas Mavericks. The easiest path for that to happen is for James to get bought out by the Los Angeles Lakers, but multiple hurdles make that unrealistic, per NBA insider Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
“James agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million extension with the Lakers in 2022 that will not kick in until this summer,” Buha wrote. “Any player who is bought out could technically be picked up on waivers, but that team would have to be able to fit the player’s entire salary (in this case, James’ $46.9 million) on its cap sheet, not the amount he agrees to in a buyout.
“It would also require James to take a steep discount — the Lakers would have little to no incentive to have dead money on their cap sheet — and then sign in Dallas for far less than he would’ve been making. James has a player option of $50.7 million for the 2024-25 season, which he would forfeit. In this scenario, Irving would also have to take a significant discount.”
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Asking James to give up tens of millions of dollars seems impractical, per Buha. LeBron is 38 years old and universally recognized as one of the greatest players of all time. He has nothing left to prove in the NBA, so giving up money doesn’t seem like something The King would do just to play with Irving and All-NBA forward Luka Doncic on the Mavericks.
The Lakers lost to the Denver Nuggets in the 2023 Western Conference Finals in four games. James has a torn tendon in his right foot and he may need surgery this offseason.
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Meanwhile, the Mavericks didn’t even qualify for the play-in tournament this season despite having Irving and Doncic. Irving becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
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