LeBron James is staying in LA. The 37-year-old superstar has signed a massive contract extension with the Lakers that has made him the highest-paid player in NBA history.
James reportedly signed his new deal, which has a player option in the second year that could see him remain with the Lakers until the 2024-25 season, after assurances that the Lakers would make moves that would improve their roster.
The Lakers have been heavily linked with James’ former running mate Kyrie Irving, but the Brooklyn Nets are apparently interested in getting a win-now player in any Irving deal, as well as future assets.
Meanwhile, the New York Knicks are reportedly back in the hunt for Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell, who has also been made available for a trade.
Read on below as SBOTOP shares the biggest news stories from around the NBA.
LeBron James signs historic contract extension with Lakers
LeBron James has signed a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers that has made him the highest-paid player in NBA history.
The 37-year-old James was in the final year of his 2-year, $85.6 million contract, but his new deal could see him stay in LA until the 2024-25 season if he opts into his player option worth $50.4 million.
With his new deal, James has now earned over $532 million in guaranteed money during his illustrious NBA career, overtaking Kevin Durant as the league leader in all-time earnings.
But according to NBA insider Marc Stein, there are apparently some strings attached to James’ new contract, with the Lakers promising to improve the roster around James.
“L.A. has nonetheless pledged to James that it will indeed continue to aggressively pursue upgrades. League sources say James, in fact, has been assured that the Lakers are willing to trade both of their available future first-round picks in 2027 and 2029 if a trade that costs them both picks can realistically position the Lakers to return to contender status,” Stein wrote.
The Lakers are coming off a disappointing 33-49 season in 2021-22 as they missed the playoffs for the first time in three years. James averaged 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 6.2 assists, but he only played in 56 games due to injuries.
Nets want ‘win-now player’ in Kyrie Irving trade
One of the stars the Lakers have been most strongly linked with has been Brooklyn Nets point guard Kyrie Irving. Like close friend Kevin Durant, Irving reportedly wants out of Brooklyn and is being discussed in trade talks.
But the Lakers face a significant problem in landing Irving as Brooklyn have set a hefty price on their disgruntled point guard.
Aside from future assets in the form of draft picks and young players, the Nets are reportedly also looking for a legitimate star who can help them win right away included in a potential Irving deal.
“The Nets’ current stance, sources say, is that they are unwilling to send out Irving in a trade if the deal solely brings back future assets. They apparently want win-now talent in return to part with Irving, despite all of the turmoil that has engulfed the Nets for months,” per Stein.
A popular trade construction has involved Irving heading to LA for Russell Westbrook, as well as one or two of the Lakers’ available first-round draft picks.
But while Westbrook is a former NBA MVP and multiple-time All-Star, he showed considerable signs of decline last season, which raises doubts as to whether the Nets still consider him as a ‘win-now player’. If they don’t, then the Lakers’ NBA 2022 odds of landing Irving appear to be significantly unlikely.
Knicks, Jazz have ‘re-engaged’ in Donovan Mitchell trade talks
The New York Knicks have ‘re-engaged’ in trade talks with the Utah Jazz for All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, The Athletic reports, although no deal is imminent.
The Athletic also reported that the Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards have joined the Mitchell trade sweepstakes.
The Knicks had pulled out of trade talks after the Jazz asked for a huge haul of six future first-round draft picks plus Quentin Grimes, Immanuel Quickley, Obi Toppin and Miles McBride for Mitchell.
The Jazz made major NBA 2022 news when they traded centre Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a massive move, and they are hoping to get a similarly great deal for Mitchell, who is significantly younger and arguably better than Gobert.
The Knicks have stockpiled a lot of draft assets after their offseason trades, as well as some promising young players, but it remains to be seen whether they will meet the Jazz’s hefty asking price for Mitchell.
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