The future of LeBron James with the Los Angeles Lakers is completely up in the air as his contract runs out at the end of the season and he is set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer.
If James wants to continue his playing career, it is very possible that he does so somewhere other than the Lakers and many believe a return to the Cleveland Cavaliers is the most likely scenario.
It makes sense as LeBron is the greatest player in Cavaliers history, spending 11 seasons with the franchise and bringing them their lone NBA Championship back in 2016. A return there would also allow him to join a group of players led by All-Star Donovan Mitchell, point guard James Harden and big man Evan Mobley that isn’t far from championship contention.
Of course, the players themselves hear these rumors as well and Mitchell was asked about the possibility of teaming with LeBron on the Cavaliers in an appearance on Sirius XM NBA Radio. While Mitchell made it clear that his focus is on this season and trying to win now, he admitted that it would be special to be a teammate of James:
“As a Bron fan, to be able to be a teammate, that would obviously be special, but that’s not something in my control. I control what we got here. There’s always going to be reports, that’s natural, it’s gonna be a thing. At the end of the day, to your point, my main focus right now is trying to get this championship. And whatever happens, it happens. Like, that’s not up to me, that’s not up to anybody else in the locker room. So I’m big on believing what I can control. But yeah, it’s LeBron James, right?”
As Mitchell said, growing up as a LeBron fan, it would obviously be great to become his teammate and his addition could possibly get the Cavaliers over the hump as a title contender. A return home for James would be a fitting end to his career so it is understandable why many are looking at this as a real possibility.
Whether or not he even plays next season is unknown as LeBron could always choose to retire after this year. But if he does suit up for a 24th NBA season, and it isn’t with the Lakers, it feels more and more likely that a return to the franchise where he began his career is in the cards.
Lakers would welcome LeBron James back next season
Just because LeBron James is a free agent this offseason doesn’t mean the Lakers want him to leave. On the contrary, the franchise would reportedly welcome James back if he wants to continue playing next year.
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