LeBron and Lakers rumored to be full of rumors, trading rumors became headlines, but the action is still far away

LeBron James made a stir when he walked into Thomas McKee Center to watch his son Brownie play in the Lakers Summer League (and Brownie did quite well). LeBron made a sensation in Las Vegas before stepping onto that field, with people discussing how his relationship with the Lakers and whether it is possible to trade in the NBA summer league. This is a topic, but it usually goes away soon. Because everyone has already understood the dynamics, but there is no clear ending. This is the current situation.

• The Lakers are now looking forward to the future combination of LeBron James and Luca Doncic, but believe they can compete for the playoffs with these two players this season. LeBron James understands the Lakers’ focus, but it’s not difficult to understand that he may be upset about it.

James understands that the Lakers take advantage of the opportunity to turn to young superstars. But from James' perspective, nuances are sometimes lost in the transformation process. Doncic never asked to be a member of the Lakers. James made the choice in 2018, when the team had failed to make the playoffs for five consecutive seasons, the worst record since the team moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles. Two years later, James helped the team win the 17th championship.

[LeBron's agent Richie] According to sources, Paul also had to formally notify the Lakers that James intends to exercise the option for the last year of the contract after the team did not have any substantial discussions about extending his contract term, which is the same as when James had twice before his time with the Lakers.

• LeBron had to make a deal request to achieve this (he had no trade clauses), but he has not done so. In addition, Paul "has not discussed with the Lakers the possibility of wanting a deal in the future," said ESPN's Dave McComick during the Lakers' game broadcast. Because he has no trading terms, LeBron will have leverage and complete control in any trading process.

• McCollum added that four teams did contact Paul to at least explore the possibility of trading LeBron.

• The challenge when finding a trading opportunity is that LeBron wants to compete for the championship and is in a city of his choice and a team of his choice. He can stay in the West, but he still needs to beat Shay Kyrgyz-Alexander and Oklahoma City, Kevin Durant and Houston, Nikola Jokic and an improved Denver roster, Anthony Edwards and Minnesota, and the roster can continue. He could try and force an Eastern Conference deal, but a deal with New York or Cleveland or any other team would drain the depth of these teams, making these teams a big increase in age, and the window period was very short (for example, the Cavaliers’ Darius Garland for LeBron’s deal increased their age by 15 years, and whether it was really improved was controversial). The fuse of all this was Paul's statement to ESPN's Shams Charania when LeBron exercised his player options this season.

"LeBron wants to compete for the championship. He knows that the Lakers are laying the foundation for the future. He understands that, but he values the real-life opportunity to win everything. We are very grateful for the eight-year partnership with Gina [Bass] and Rob [Pellinka] and see the Lakers as a crucial part of his career."

"We understand the difficulty of winning games when preparing for the future at this stage. We do want to evaluate what is the best for LeBron at this current and career stage. He hopes to make every season meaningful for him for the rest of his season, and the Lakers understand that, support him, and hope he can get the best."

Ultimately, the most favorable thing for him this season may be to stay with the Lakers. This is a team that can win 50 games, and after a full training camp running-in, now with center DeAndre Ayton, the Lakers will become strong (if they can do a good job of defense).