The Lakers’ superstar isn’t out the door, but he is on the (odds) board.
LeBron James has a player option this offseason, meaning it’s up to him whether he chooses to pick up his option with the Lakers, opt out and re-sign with L.A. or opt out and enter free agency.
So where will “The King” take his talents next season?
Let’s check out the odds at FanDuel Sportsbook Ontario.*
Los Angeles Lakers: -320 (bet $10 to win $13.13 total)Cleveland Cavaliers: +1300 (bet $10 to win $140 total)Miami Heat: +1300 (bet $10 to win $140 total)New York Knicks: +1300 (bet $10 to win $140 total)Golden State Warriors: +1500 (bet $10 to win $160 total)Atlanta Hawks: +1900 (bet $10 to win $200 total)Chicago Bulls: +1900 (bet $10 to win $200 total)Philadelphia 76ers: +2000 (bet $10 to win $210 total)
How should LeBron James finish his NBA career?
James is no stranger to movement.
He spent the first seven years of his career in Cleveland before famously taking his talents to South Beach and joining the Heat for four seasons, before returning to Cleveland for four more years.
James then joined the Lakers in 2018, and has since spent the past six years in Tinseltown.
While the Lakers are heavy favorites to retain James, they are also favored to select his son Bronny in the 2024 NBA Draft.
At FanDuel Sportsbook, L.A. is the current favorite to draft LeBron’s namesake at +185.
Why LeBron James will remain a Laker next season and beyond
On a recent episode of “The Herd,” Colin Cowherd addressed the idea of James leaving L.A. — and suggested it would be nonsensical, even after the Lakers fell to the Nuggets in the playoffs again this season.
“LeBron, in terms of basketball, was out-of-this-world good this year. … Many nights, he’s the best player on the floor in the games he plays. He and [Anthony Davis] play well together, and he and A.D. get along really, really well. … There’s no reason to move him for business. There’s no reason to move him for basketball.”
Former NBA player Tim Hardaway Sr. told Craig Carton on Tuesday’s edition of “The Carton Show” that he is also confident James will return to the Lakers — and feels even more confident about ruling out a return to Miami because of an unspecified incident between James and famed Heat president Pat Riley.
