This page will be continuously be updated with the latest news, rumors and buzz surrounding LeBron James‘ future until a decision for his 2026-27 season has been announced.
- Last updated: June 6, 2026. Updates are compiled in their sections.
Don’t Rule Lakers Out
- ESPN’s Brian Windhorst was asked about where he thought James was going to go and said he’s “probably at 51%” that James remains a Laker.
Cavaliers Continue To Be Linked
- James and the Cavaliers have “mutual interest” in a re-union, according to Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson (who has reported on this both on his site and via his appearance on the Big Play Cleveland Show).
- Robinson mentions that the Bucks and Cavs previously had trade discussions around a deal that sent Evan Mobley to Milwaukee for Giannis Antetokounmpo. Cleveland is expected to re-visit though trade discussions this offseason.
- It’s worth noting that the last time James returned home to Cleveland, it also brought a mega trade with Cleveland sending No. 1 pick Andrew Wiggins away for Kevin Love.
- James is not willing to take a pay cut to return the Cavaliers, per ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
- James ‘liked’ an instagram post that urged him to “come home” and play for the Cavaliers again. USA Today’s LeBron Wire wrote a whole article about it so we’ll pass it along even though it could simply be James intentionally stirring up buzz.
- ESPN Cleveland passed along a story about how a local bakery owner claimed Charles Oakley told him that LBJ is “95% coming back” to Cleveland after meeting with Maverick Carter.
- While this seems like it could have happened, it also could easily be a PR stunt to dilute the news of LBJ going to Cleveland and allow ESPN not to cite previous reports, thus controlling which “reporter” gets to officially break the news (Windhorst is still employed by ESPN).
- Kendrick Perkins isn’t exactly a source when it comes to front office plans, being he’s a television personality. Yet, he’s one of many former player/analysts that is keeping the chatter about James returning to Cleveland alive. Perkins floated a swap of James and Jarrett Allen.
- James spoke about the door “not being closed” on returning to Cleveland a few years back. He also stated then that his last year will be played alongside his son, Bronny James.
- “Wherever Bronny is at, that’s where I’ll be,” James said in 2022. Those words have become actions since the Lakers drafted the younger James. Any move to Cleveland seems like it will also involved two roster spots.
Kendrick Perkins Says LeBron Is Being Calculated
While James podcasted that he wasn’t sure what his future holds, we’ve all seen this movie before and Kendrick Perkins insinuated that a decision has already been made.
- “We took the bait. He threw his fishing pole out there, let the bait just hang, and he caught some big fish. He caught the attention that he wanted while his ass is sitting at home,” Perkins said (h/t Awful Announcing). “I’ve been knowing Bron all my life, he moves like the president. He already has a plan in place. He knows what he’s doing. He knows what his next move is, he knows what the counter is going to be.”
- “He knows where he wants to go, where he wants to be, if he wants to be on the Lakers. He already knows that. This right here was just throwing the bait out to get some more national media attention real quick to get people talking about it, and here we are talking about it again,” Perkins added.
Wizards Getting Attention
- While we believe that a source did tell Brandon ‘Scoop B’ Robinson that the Wizards are quietly positioning themselves as a contender in the race, it’s hard to believe the integrity of the source.
- At best, it’s wishful thinking; at worst, it allows being a “contender” for LeBron James‘ services to boosts the reputation value of the Wizards, something that the franchise has been looking do for quite some time.
- It’s worth noting that Robinson also reports that Trae Young has been pushing for Anthony Davis to stay with the Wizards. It’s worth noting because Anthony Davis is currently under contract with Washington after being traded to the District last February.
LeBron James Likely To Play In 2026-27 Season
The “general sentiment” from conversations at the Chicago combine is that LeBron James is likely to play during the 2026-27 season (via ESPN).
Where he will play hasn’t been publicly announced.
According to Brian Windhorst of ESPN, James wants the Lakers to court him in free agency as a measure of “respect”. Whether or not the Lakers are going to do that is up remains to be seen.
Reports: LeBron Believes Lakers Are Pushing Him Out?
The Lakers and James haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, who adds that James believes the team has taken him for granted and is trying to “push him out the door” with Luka Doncic being their top star in town.
But James, who played the past eight seasons in Los Angeles and helped deliver the franchise its 17th championship in 2020, saw Pelinka’s priority in that moment as yet another example of the Lakers taking him for granted, sources said.
Adding to James’ ire, sources said, was the fact that the past dozen or so wins in that stretch came with James willingly taking a supporting offensive role behind Doncic and Austin Reaves.
LeBron’s Relationship With JJ Redick Remains Strong
- James has a “great” relationship with Redick, sources close to him say — with one telling ESPN that Redick’s hiring is “one thing the Lakers got right.”
Heat Chatter?
- Rich Paul (LBJ’s agent) was asked about LeBron James returning to the Heat alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo on a recent podcast. “I say nothing,” Paul said before diving into a story about how Pat Riley taking LeBron’s cookies had nothing to do with him leaving Miami.
How About The Suns?
- The Suns are rumored to be a Giannis suitor and while a LeBron James joining Phoenix is a long-shot, Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic lays out several reasons why James would make sense for the team. Among them is how James and star Devin Booker have familiarity playing alongside one another from their gold medal run in the 2024 Olympics.
Contract Value Issues With Lakers?
The Lakers continue to push out the narrative that they will welcome back LeBron James.
“We probably haven’t seen a player that has honored the game to the extent that he’s honored the game,” Rob Pelinka said at the end of the season press conference. “He’s given so much to his teammates, to this organization. And the thing we want to do more than anything else is honor him back.
“… The first order of business there is allowing him to spend the time he needs to decide what his next steps are. Does he want to play another year in the NBA? And that’ll be [decided through] family time, I think time with his inner circle. And we just want to honor that for him.”
However, it’s been reported that salary will be a factor for the Lakers if they bring back LeBron James.
One Eastern executive believes that the price tag for James is justified as long as it’s not a long-term deal (per ESPN).
“I’d pay LeBron whatever he wants as long as it’s a one-year deal, no player option. Give him the no-trade clause,” an East executive said. “Everything [new Lakers owner Mark] Walter has done so far has been about good business.
“LeBron sells tickets. He keeps the [local] TV partner happy. Re-signing LeBron is good business.”
- For what it’s worth, Bobby Marks believes that if LBJ left the Lakers, he would likely sign at the $15 million non-tax midlevel or veterans minimum with another team.
- Jake Fischer hears that “it’s not in the cards” for LeBron will not accept a veterans minimum deal.
Another Rival Executive Believes Lakers Should Part With LeBron James
- “The first thing they have to do is move off LeBron,” an Eastern Conference front office executive said to Dave McMenamin of ESPN recently. “Let him walk and use the space to retool around Luka. Keeping Reaves is critical. [Doncic] plays best with another ball handler/creator like with Kyrie [Irving] and [Jalen] Brunson.”
Teams Are Calling LeBron James
- Every NBA contending team out of the playoffs has made a call to LeBron James, per Shams Charania.
Non-Salary Factors Impacting LeBron James’ Returning To Lakers?
Salary may not be the only factor for the Lakers with regard to bringing James back.
- With Luka Doncic as the new face of the franchise, being the Robin to Luka’s Batman is something any co-star will have to accept; with new ownership in place, any Robin will have to understand that he doesn’t have the political power to pull the same strings behind the scenes.
- Not to mention Bronny James‘ place on the team and that non-elite stars don’t typically get to dictate extra roster spots — unless your a franchise like the Washington Wizards aiming to please players at all costs.
What’s Best For The Lakers?
Like Michael Jordan on the Wizards, the narratives and information coming out likely won’t directly align with who the player is at the given moment. Like Jordan’s final seasons, James is remains an extremely productive player while not portraying the MVP-level superstar talents he once had.
- James’ 20.8 PER this past season was career-low for him aside from his rookie season. That figure is still great. For reference, it’s better than any of Julius Randle‘s three All-Star seasons. It was better than Tyrese Maxey‘s initial All-Star appearance in 2024 (19.8) and surpasses the career PERs of several “stars” currently in their primes, including Jalen Brunson (19.26), Donovan Mitchell (20.29) and Jaylen Brown (17.32).
Many NBA franchises would be happy to have 41-year-old LeBron James as their top star. If we’re talking strictly about the player on the court, the majority would take him as their No. 2 — even with salary that puts him among the highest paid in the league for one more year.
