Team Note: James & Lakers tension stems from the team s hope to keep the salary space clear next summer

July 13th According to Lakers reporter Dan Woike, tensions between James and the Lakers may be due to the team's desire to keep the cap space clear from tomorrow summer, allowing them to find Luca's partner in the free agent market or through trades. By then, the Lakers will be able to use their first-round draft picks in 2026, 2031 and 2033 for a single trade.

The Lakers' commitment to this plan coincides with James' super ability to play at the NBA's best-ranked team level later in his career. Last season, James played 70 games, averaging 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game. The relationship between the league's historical scoring champion and the team that is about to pay him a salary of $52.6 million is in jeopardy. James's career is still highly productive, far exceeding any reasonable expectations.

Next year James will become an unrestricted free agent. Competitor scouts and executives have come up with a variety of plans to hope that James will play for other teams in the upcoming season, either through trades or even a buyout. Due to salary cap restrictions, teams are working hard to build a lineup, and this summer, the trend of buying out is getting worse.

In the summer league today, James sat next to Saint Jean and talked to him, Kneckett and others. He left the stadium with half a quarter left.