The Los Angeles Lakers needed a bit of an assist from LeBron James on his new contract. After nearly all of their free agents opted in and their roster was at a full 15 players, L.A. was expected to be over the second apron had James taken the full max contract that he was supposed to take after the team struck out on all major free agents.
Being over the second apron would have severely limited the types of moves the Lakers could make to improve down the line. They would not have been able to aggregate player salaries in a trade, use a taxpayer mid-level exception and their 2032 first-round draft pick would have been dropped to the end of the round.
Because of all of this, James opted to take a small pay cut — right around $1.2 million in his first year — to keep the Lakers under the second apron and allow for some minor flexibility to make deals. He likened the choice to take a pay cut to the sacrifices required to make a long-term relationship work, via Dan Woike of The L.A. Times:
“Like when you’re in a relationship — like I’ve been married for a while now. I’ve been with my wife since high school — there’s certain things that sometimes you have to do,” James said Sunday. “…You have to understand in a relationship, in order for a relationship to work … both sides have to work.
“Me being able to be in a situation where I can protect the franchise under the second apron, understanding this new thing is very hard on a lot of teams as far as them trying to get better and whatever the case may be. I’m, I’ve been in a relationship with the Lakers going on seven years. I’m absolutely OK with [taking a pay cut].”
It’s almost hard to believe that James is entering his seventh season with the Lakers. After this season, he’ll match the longest individual tenure with a team in his career, which was his first seven seasons in the NBA as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
And at this stage of his career, taking a small pay cut to help the Lakers retain some flexibility for future moves is a good gesture of the relationship the two sides have built over the last seven years.
LeBron James excited to work with Lakers coaching staff
LeBron James spoke highly of JJ Redick and his top two assistants Scott Brooks and Nate McMillan when discussing his excitement for the upcoming season. He is ready to work with three highly intelligent coaches that all bring great skill sets to the Lakers’ bench.
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