ESPN: James signed 7 contracts in the past 11 years, the strongest player in history

ESPN reporter Ramona Shelburne and Brian Windhorst jointly reported that James' execution option stays with the Lakers, rather than renewing the contract with the Lakers. The outside world speculates that James and the Lakers are at a critical moment to break up. The theme of the article is that the Lakers build a team around Doncic, and James will almost certainly leave or retire after 2026.

From 2014 to 2018, James signed 4 different contracts with the Lakers, each contract achieved different goals, maximizing his contract amount and choosing to maximize. In 2014, James signed a two-year contract of 42.1 million, of which the second year was the player option, which is James' second time with the Cavaliers. In 2015, James refused to execute the option and signed a two-year contract of 47 million with the Cavaliers, and the second year was still the player option. In 2016, James once again refused to execute the option and signed a three-year contract with the Cavaliers for 100 million yuan, of which the third year was the player option. In 2018, James refused the option and joined the Lakers with a four-year contract of 153.5 million. After joining the Lakers, James signed three more contracts: in 2020, James and the Lakers renewed their contract in advance for 85.7 million yuan in two years. In 2022, James and the Lakers renewed their contract with 97.1 million in two years. In 2024, James refused the option and completed a two-year, 104 million contract renewal with the Lakers, including player options for the 2025-26 season.

James once hoped to retire from the Lakers, he moved his family to Beverly Hills, and his children also came to Los Angeles to go to school, and his business took root here. Apart from returning home regularly every year and going out for vacation, James stays in Los Angeles most of his time. Then suddenly Doncic came to the Lakers and the boss was replaced. James has never experienced such a situation. James once completely controlled his own destiny and had unprecedented power. Now that he is about to retire, he has reached a turning point in his career that he has never foreseen.