The Los Angeles Lakers' 2025-26 offseason is yet to begin, and already the rumor mill around LeBron James has started. It seems a necessary part of the superstar experience that any year your team fails to win a title, the star player could suddenly be on the move. In an age of player mobility, this isn't entirely misguided, though perhaps a bit overdone.
In LeBron's case, the suggestion of the star leaving the Lakers doesn't make sense. Yes, the franchise did turn the page to Luka Doncic as the face of their franchise. However, this is exactly what James has wanted to happen since first signing with the Lakers.
Winning the title after the surprise trade to bring the Dallas superstar to Los Angeles was always going to be an uphill battle. Now, with an established superstar ready to take the wheel and James' personal life cemented in California, there simply isn't a reason for James to depart the Lakers. With the team having the needed cap space to make improvements, James simply needs to sit back and trust a Lakers front office that just did the impossible of landing Luka Dončić.
LeBron James Has Zero Reason to Consider Moving on from the Lakers
If James were going to move on from the Lakers, it would have made far more sense either of the past two offseasons. It was clear the team remained stuck in neutral without a clear way out. Thanks to the negligence of the Dallas front office, all of this has changed. The Lakers are simply a center and bench pieces away from being a true title contender. We watched the ceiling. Luka had taken Dallas to the NBA Finals a season ago with Kyrie Irving and a collection of reliable bench pieces.
This is all the Lakers need to take that elusive step forward and return to the NBA Finals for the first time since the bubble season. Aside from the obvious basketball reasons, the Lakers just heavily invested in Bronny James Jr. to bring the depth piece in, allowing James the chance to play with his son. Why would James leave such an ideal situation? Not only are you playing with your family, where your personal life appears to have the most roots, but you're also afforded the chance to play with a top-five player that gives you title aspirations.
Any suggestions that LeBron James is leaving the Lakers are simply based on pure speculation. Every time James has left a franchise in the past, it was due to finding a clear and unbreakable ceiling. This isn't the case with the Lakers, just scratching the surface of where Luka can take them. James leaving the Lakers is a fun story, one without any hint of realism.