A recent report by NBA insider Shams Charania of The Athletic has dismissed the rumors that claimed LeBron James was eyeing a move back to the Cleveland Cavaliers from the Los Angeles Lakers.
Speaking to former NFL player and current WWE announcer Pat McAfee on his show, Sham said he had talked to Rich Paul, James’ agent, who dismissed the claim.
“I heard directly from Rich Paul that LeBron James isn’t leaving the Lakers.. this team just doesn’t look it has the young legs that they need to have and they have been very active in the trade market,” said Charania.
James is a loyal player
A move out of Los Angeles is unlikely, as James has said he wanted to retire at the Lakers while promoting his “Space Jam” movie on the “SmartLess” podcast earlier in July.
“I truly hope that I can finish my career with the Lakers,” said James. “However many years that is, if it’s four, five, six, whatever, seven. I hope I can continue to play the game.
“I love being in L.A. My family loves being in L.A. Being with a historical franchise like the Lakers is something like, it’s like me being in ‘Space Jam’ now. I never thought it’d be possible.
“You think about Kareem, and Magic, and Wilt, and Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, Kobe, Shaq and all of them. The whole list goes on.”
James changed his jersey from that of the Cavaliers to the Lakers in 2018. The 36-year-old signed an $85 million, two-year extension deal with the team in December last year that will keep him there until at least 2023.
"I heard directly from Rich Paul that LeBron James isn't leaving the Lakers.. this team just doesn't look it has the young legs that they need to have & they have been very active in the trade market" ~@ShamsCharania#PatMcAfeeShowLIVE #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/BZEAMM6Zkb
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 22, 2021
James is Lakers only hope without Anthony Davis
The Lakers have had a rather disappointing 2021-22 season. Loss after loss let them slide events further down the rankings, and without star player Anthony Davis, who recently suffered an injury in his knee and will be out for at least four weeks, the Lakers are forced to overwork James.
“You just adapt,” assistant coach David Fizdale told reporters on Sunday. “You don’t get into the whining and moaning and moaning. It’s like that. This is our world right now.”
The team’s next best option is to make use of Trevor Aiza, who was finally cleared to play and make his 2021-22 debut, as efficient as possible. Fizdale insisted that he would be of great help to the team in their bid to reclaim the throne.
I wonder if Lebron James would consider demanding a trade back to Cleveland?! I mean the Cavs do have nice squad! Don’t mind me tho and Carry on…
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) December 22, 2021
“One was just getting him back on the court,” Fizdale said after the game against the Dallas Mavericks. “Just sweating, hitting, cutting, all of the good stuff. For him to see the ball go in was huge. He’s gonna add a ton of versatility to our team as he gets stronger and gets his conditioning up.
“But I thought he added a nice little element. It was nice to be able to say with 2:30 to go, ‘Trev, get in there for defense!’ That’s gonna be a nice knife in the shed for Coach to be able to go to Trev for late-game situations and be able to switch stuff and put him on different people and have a scoring ability.”