Shams: James will prioritize realistic championship opportunities and wants to end his career in his own way

According to famous reporter Shams Charania, Lakers forward James will execute his contract's player option worth $52.6 million in the 2025-26 season to compete in his 23rd season of his career.

Today, Shams talked about James' decision again when he participated in the podcast "Pat McAfee Show".

Shams said: "The similarity between James and Giannis (Antetokounmpo) is that both are evaluating the future, watching the team work, and they both want to win the championship. But I think the difference is that LeBron is 40 years old and will turn 41 in December. He knows whether one season or two seasons left, his time in the NBA is coming to an end. As Ritchie Paul said to me yesterday, they regard the 'realistic way of winning the championship' as the top goal. You can see what the behind-the-scenes mean is that LeBron has a year or two left, and he wants to end his career in his own way.

"Obviously, he wants to end his career in his own way in the matter of competing for the championship, hoping to have a realistic chance to win the championship. I think it's right to see in those comments by Richie Paul that they understand that the Lakers are preparing for a younger future and prioritizing Doncic. As far as I know, LeBron understands the current stage of the Lakers, Doncic is the team's footsteps for the next 5-10 years, he understands that the Lakers are prioritizing those, I don't think he is asking them to change the direction of the team, asking them to let him re-establish the team's footsteps, or giving him a contract extension, I think many people can see what is going on, he hopes to end his career at the highest level, whether in Los Angeles or going elsewhere - that obviously depends on how the Lakers sign in the free market will be.

"What kind of offseason can the Lakers do to make LeBron feel like, 'You know? My best chance to compete for the championship is here.' I think that's going to be a tough conversation they're going to have next week, next week or sometime in July."

Game 24h