Although he is 40 years old, LeBron James has a player option that he could activate in order to continue his journey with the Lakers next year.

However, he could decline it in order to sign a less expensive contract and thus allow the arrival of a choice recruit.

As it stands, it’s impossible to say with certainty that he’ll still be playing on the NBA courts next season.

At 40 years old and after 22 years in the league, LeBron James could legitimately retire this summer.

However, given the level he’s been playing at the moment, which recently earned him the high praise of JJ Redick , the possibility of him extending his career remains just as plausible.

Moreover, his contractual situation allows him to do so, since he has a player option worth $52.6 million. A substantial sum that seems difficult to spit on, even for a billionaire like him.

However, as a renowned insider already suggested a few weeks ago, the King could seek to reduce it in order to further expand his supporting cast.

The Rookie LeBron Could Cut His Lakers Salary For

In the latest episode of his podcast, Jovan Buha of The Athletic also spoke about the possibility of seeing LeBron lower his salary demands next summer. A scenario that seems feasible to him only on one condition:

Jovan Buha: If it were to happen, it would be in the event that a certain player would come to meet a need of the Lakers and would make sense within the team.

The question remains as to what target might seem tempting enough to convince James to make such a costly decision. Buha is said to have some ideas on this subject:

Jovan Buha: For example, LeBron could sacrifice part of his salary if Naz Reid agreed to come to the Lakers in exchange for the non-taxpayer midlevel exception.

Or if the Lakers were to try to complete a sign-and-trade for him, like they were planning to do with Klay (Thompson).

Also holding a $15M player option, Naz Reid would be tempted to decline it in order to obtain a bigger contract during the offseason.

There is no shortage of teams likely to offer him one , which could complicate matters for the Lakers.

This issue could in any case be nipped in the bud by LBJ, whom Buha has a hard time seeing sitting on the nice amount that is currently within his reach:

Jovan Buha: If I had to give my prediction right now, I would say I don’t think LeBron will take a pay cut. (…)

You have to remember that this guy wants to try to buy a team once he retires. I don’t think he’s going to look favorably on letting that much money slip away, to be honest.