Some circles within the LA Lakers organization initially feared LeBron James might leave after the team traded Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic without his knowledge, but those concerns quickly faded.
The Luka Doncic–Anthony Davis trade was one of the most shocking deals in NBA history. It happened quietly, behind the scenes, with no leaks or rumors until ESPN's Shams Charania broke the nearly unimaginable news.
LeBron James
LeBron James
LeBron James
MIN: 34.88
PTS: 25 (56.81%)
REB: 8.21
As: 8.53
ST: 0.9
BL: 0.6
TO: 3.9
GM: 58
Also, the Los Angeles Lakers did not consult their franchise cornerstone, LeBron James, before making the move. Within some parts of the organization, there was even concern that he might request a trade despite having a no-trade clause in his contract.
However, LeBron never intended to waive his clause, even after the LA Lakers' blockbuster trade in early February, which sent his close friend and longtime teammate, Anthony Davis, to Dallas.
"I don't know how much of a worry it was at like the top level of the organization, in terms of the Jeanie-Rob level, but I know in talking to lower level people there in the immediate aftermath of the trade and the situation, there was a sense," Jovan Buha of The Athletic said on his podcast.
"There's no way LeBron knew [about the trade]. And doing a trade of this magnitude and not giving him the heads up... He's always been 'the guy' since he entered the league," Buha went on to say. "It's not that teams have run every decision by him, but something this big -- trading AD and essentially reshaping the franchise -- you'd expect him to get heads up.
"Given his contract situation and Klutch [Sports] potentially losing influence with AD's departure, some thought it could potentially lead to him asking out or at least exploring that option. Obviously, that did not happen."
Credit AP - Scanpix
Buha added that while there was initial fear among some inside the organization, that concern quickly faded.
"I know from talking to some people around the situation there was an initial fear," Buha also mentioned. "But really, within the first 24 hours, that got stuffed out, and it was clear that LeBron was going to stay. ... There certainly was some concern from people around the organization, but it was quickly disproven."
James, who signed a two-year, $101.3 million contract last summer, has a player option for the 2025-26 season. He's earning $48.7 million this year and is set to make $52.6 million next season.
At 40 years old, LeBron continues to defy expectations, averaging 25.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 8.5 assists over 58 games this season. The LA Lakers, meanwhile, hold the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference with a 43-25 record.
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