LeBron James exercises his option of $ 52.6 million with the Lakers

LeBron James will exercise his 52.6 million dollars player for the 2025-26 season, according to his agent Rich Paul.

The star of Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James, will exercise Your 52.6 million dollars player option For the 2025-26 season, according to Sunday Rich Paul, Executive Director of Klutch Sports, to AM850.

James, Maximum historical scorer of the NBAwants to compete for a championship next season and possibly beyond, and will closely follow the movements of the Lakers and if the team is positioning this preseason to present a template with the possibility of winning the title.

“LeBron wants to compete for a championship,” Paul told AM850. “He knows that the Lakers are building the future. He understands it, but he values ​​a real opportunity to win everything. We greatly appreciate the collaboration we have had for eight years with Jeanie (Buss) and Rob (Pelinka) and we consider the Lakers a fundamental part of their career.

“We understand the difficulty of winning now while we prepare for the future. We want to evaluate what is the best for LeBron at this stage of his life and his career.” He wants to make the most of every season he has left, and the Lakers understand him, support him and want the best for him.

James, 40 years, He is entering his 23rd. Season in the NBA, a record, and is not still sure if you have a campaign left or if you want to play several more years.

James, who has a non -transfer clause in his contract, is 50 games to break the record of Robert Parish of more regular season games. Next season will break the tie with Vince Carter for the largest number of seasons played in the history of the NBA.

It remains to be seen if James will reach his 24th or more season. James went to dinner in New York last week with his wife, Savannah; The pivot of the Miami Heat, Kevin Love, and his wife, Kate; And other confidants, and one of the guests published a fragment of the night on Instagram where you can listen to James to say: “(Savannah) wants me to retire next year, or something like that.”

As Paul explained, it remains to be seen how much of his future as a player he will remain with the Lakers, despite what James has said in the past. In February 2024, after the Warriors asked for James before the Lakers, through Paul, communicated his disinterest in Golden State, James expressed his desire to continue playing for the Lakers.

“I am a Laker, and I am happy and I have been very happy to be Laker for the last six years, and I hope it will continue,” James said.

A few months later, Los Angeles selected James’s eldest son, Bronny Jameswith the number 55 selection of the Draft to form the historic Pupla-son, and then signed with James a two-year contract extension for 104 million dollars in July 2024.

James is four times NBA champion, four times MVP of the finals and four times MVP of the League, and has been part of 21 All-Star and 21 All-NBA teams, including being the first 40-year-old player to be part of an All-NBA team. He joined the Lakers in 2018 and has led the franchise to the NBA title of 2020 and the finals of the West Conference of 2023 during its stage in Los Angeles.

He averaged 24.4 points, 8.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds per game last season, ending his 20 -year record streak averaging at least 25 points per game. He was one of the three players to average 25 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists from December 30 to the end of the season, along with Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic. James returned to the court this week after suffering a sprain of medial collateral ligament (MCL) in the left knee in the fifth match of the elimination of the Lakers in the first round against the Minnesota Timberwolves. James averaged 25.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.0 robberies and 1.8 caps in 40.8 minutes per game against the Timberwolves.

After the defeat against Minnesota, he talked openly about the disappointment of not having the opportunity to compete for a fifth title.

“Every season in which I did not reach the finals or did not win the championship has been a disappointment,” James said. “So it would be the same for me. It would be the same preseason of disappointment and dissatisfaction, have the opportunity to play more time and give me the opportunity to compete for the Larry O’Brien trophy. Nothing changes to me.” They asked James about the obvious need of the Lakers to sign a pivot, after coach JJ Redick put aside the head pivot Jaxson Hayes and finished the series against Minnesota with a low profile alignment, and refrained from deepening the subject. Referred to the words of Anthony Davis a AM850: “I think we need another pivot”, on January 23, and its subsequent transfer to the Dallas Mavericks On February 1, as a reason to keep their opinions.

“No comments,” James replied. “I never say that. Because my partner, AD, said what I needed and left the following week. So I have no comments.”

The Lakers are looking for a pivot through free agency or a transfer and wait for the decision of the Alero Dorian Finney-Smith player on Sunday.

Dave McMenamin of AM850 contributed to this report.