Nobody loves being in the spotlight more than LeBron James, and as the NBA offseason slows down, he’s right back in the news as Jake Fischer reports that the Warriors have called the Lakers multiple times, stating that this will be the case as long as James’ future in La is uncertain.
James is in the final year of his deal, earning $52.6 million as he’s set to hit unrestricted free agency next summer. He hasn’t requested a trade, but he hasn’t exactly been Mr. Laker this offseason either, and seems more than a little put off by the franchise leaning all the way into the Luka Doncic era.
There have been plenty of whispers that LeBron may want to end his career elsewhere and chase another ring or two, which seems unlikely with the Lakers. But if James really wanted that, he should have opted out of his deal for this year. By choosing the opposite path, a team would need to trade for James, matching his salary in the process.
That deal would have to be approved by the Lakers and James, plus be legal under the strict CBA constraints. There aren’t many teams that would make sense in this hypothetical scenario, but the Nuggets would fit the mold as a team with an immediate contention window and plenty of salaries to match.
The Nuggets should say no to LeBron
But this would be a crazy pivot for the Nuggets to make and one that would be extremely shortsighted. We just saw how critical depth is in the playoffs, as the Nuggets ran out of gas two years in a row at the most critical juncture.
While the idea of pairing James with Nikola Jokic is tantalizing, Denver would have to gut the roster and sacrifice all of their newly acquired depth to create an aging, top-heavy team with a one or two-year window.
The 40-year-old James is still a great player, but the decline has begun. The Nuggets need youth, energy, and versatility. At this point in his career, LeBron is prone to managing his effort as much as anyone in the league. The Nuggets would have to send out at least three or four contracts just to make the math work, and the Lakers would want some sweetener as well.
The Nuggets would be going right back to having a short bench and risking being undone by a single injury. On top of that, there’s no guarantee that James would re-sign to stay in Denver. So, they could punt on the potentially dynastic roster they’ve built this summer to chase a one-year window that may not even be better than it is now. No, thank you. Stay far away.