Today, ESPN famous reporter Ramona Shelburne talked about James' future in the Lakers on the show.
Shelburne said: "There is indeed a saying in the league that James wants to play for another 2-3 years, but unless he admits it himself, unless he says 'I don't want to let his body suffer from this level of consumption', then these rumors are meaningless. You should know that this guy was still a top 15 player in the league last season, and he still maintained this state at the age of 40. I will never think the new season will be his last season."
Then Shelburne said: "But the attitude of the Lakers' management is very evident. They neither discussed 1+1 or 2+1 contracts with him, nor provided any contract renewal plans beyond this season. They just let him decide whether to implement player options. This laissez-faire practice is essentially a disguised declaration: his future in the Lakers is no longer under his control.
James exercised a $52.6 million player option on Sunday local time and chose to return to the Lakers to participate in the 2025-26 season.
James' long-time agent Ritchie Paul revealed in an interview with ESPN reporter Shams that his clients are "closely watching" the Lakers' offseason action to assess whether the team is heading towards the championship.
It is reported that James and the Lakers have not discussed the topics related to the transaction, but his whereabouts after the 2025-26 season are still unclear. The 40-year-old veteran also admitted that he had considered retirement.
James has spent seven seasons with the Lakers, during which he averaged 26.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game, with three shooting percentages of 51.3%, 36.0% and 72.9% respectively.