One NBA analyst believes the Dallas Mavericks have no shot of getting LeBron James this summer.
Stephen A. Smith of ESPN said on his podcast that the Mavericks have nothing to offer the Los Angeles Lakers for James, who is being recruited to Dallas by Kyrie Irving. Smith thinks the only way the Mavericks could get LeBron is by trading Luka Doncic and everyone knows that will not happen.
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Lakers aren’t interested in what the Mavericks could offer them for James. LeBron, 38, could ask for a buyout from Los Angeles and sign a cheap deal with Dallas.
However, Buha — who covers the Lakers — doesn’t see that happening.
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“The other avenue to get James to Dallas would be through a buyout, but multiple hurdles make that unrealistic as well,” Buha wrote. “James agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million extension with the Lakers in 2022 that will not kick in until this summer. 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 made nearly $400 million in basketball salary through his NBA career. He’s made hundreds of millions through endorsements, partnerships, his production company and various business endeavors. But asking him to give up tens of millions of dollars still seems impractical.”
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If James doesn’t retire from the NBA this offseason, he will be back with the Lakers next season. His first son, Bronny, is playing college basketball at USC and his wife and two other kids adore living in Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, Irving is expected to re-sign with the Mavericks this summer.
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