LeBron James is with the Philadelphia 76ers now, but things could have been different. A recent report suggested what could have potentially made him stay with the Los Angeles Lakers.
LeBron James spent eight seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, having joined as a free agent in 2018. The King brought a championship to LA in 2020, cementing himself as a Laker great.
However, once the franchise traded for Luka Doncic, it was obvious the team would be built around the young superstar. And this offseason, James set off for a different challenge with the Philadelphia 76ers.
It seemed like a foregone conclusion that LeBron would not return to the Lakers, but reports are now emerging suggesting that it could have all worked out differently.
LeBron James could have stayed with Los Angeles Lakers if he knew about ownership change
Mark Walter, who had just bought the Lakers for $10 billion in 2025, sold them earlier this week in a surprising move. Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner bought the team for $12.5 billion.
Doncic has already spoken about looking forward to working with the new ownership. And it seems had James known it was coming, it could have affected his decision too.
“Maybe… Communication could have been better (with Bob Iger and Josh Kushner, compared to Mark Walter). Just a different relationship,” a source close to James told Dave McMenamin.
The report goes on to say, “But the basketball piece was the most important, so maybe not from that standpoint.”
It seemed that LeBron’s time in LA was up based just on the fit. Doncic requires different things, and at his age, James also likely wants to have a bigger impact. Some Lakers fans would have loved to see him stay, though.
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