Why the Lakers Could and Should Make a Play for LeBron James

After writing this post, I’m sure people are going to call me an idiot. But the more I’ve thought about it, the more feasible this is to me. If there is any indication that the LeBron James is planning on leaving the Cavaliers, the Lakers should make a strong play for him.

First thing you’re probably asking is how in the world would the Lakers make a play for LeBron when they are over the salary cap? The Lakers are over the salary cap and therefore could only sign LeBron via a sign and trade scenario. However, the fact that so many teams around the league have dumped cap space for the opportunity to sign LeBron actually makes a possible sign and trade with the Lakers more feasible.

For the Cavs, losing LeBron is a big nightmare. However, losing LeBron for absolutely nothing would set that franchise back for at least a decade. With a ton of teams having enough money to sign LeBron outright, the scenario of losing LeBron for nothing is very real. Once LeBron decides he’s leaving, the Cavs incentive is to push him to a team that can offer them the most via a sign and trade deal. The problem is that most of the teams mentioned as possible destinations for LeBron (New York, New Jersey, Miami, Chicago, etc.) either don’t have anything that the Cavs would want in return for LeBron, or do have something, but dealing that piece would make it so LeBron was no longer interested in signing there. The Lakers are the one team out there who could offer the Cavs enough to keep them a viable team while still remaining a championship contender that LeBron wants to go to. The Lakers have both Gasol and Bynum. Trading for one of them might be the best scenario for the Cavs if LeBron decided he was ready to move on.

So why are we talking about sign and trade scenarios when LeBron could easily sign with several teams without any input from the Cavs? Well it comes down to one thing: Money. When a player leaves his team to sign with another team he is limited in percentage raises he can make per year and number of years he can sign for. If LeBron goes and signs with another team he can only sign for 5 years with 8 percent raises each year. However, if LeBron completes a sign and trade scenario with Cavs, he can sign a deal for up to six years with 10.5 percent raises each year. If LeBron played out his entire contract, the difference could be nearly $30 million in guaranteed money. There will be some that will argue that LeBron might not be interested in signing a full max deal, which would mitigate some of the concerns of loss in guaranteed money. However, with the lockout pending and maximum salaries likely to decline, now is the time to secure as much guaranteed money as you can. I’m sure LeBron and his representatives are well aware of this.

So why would the Lakers make this move when they are already a championship team? Kobe is not going to be playing basketball at a high level for much longer. As big of a Kobe fan as I am, it’s just the reality of father time. He will be 32 years old this summer and will be heading into his 15 season in the league next season. When his contract ends he will be 35 and have played 17 seasons with possibly having more career playoff minutes than anyone in the history of basketball. I can’t think of a guard in the history of the NBA that has been able to play at a high level with that kind of wear and tear on his body that late into his career. I would love for Kobe to prove me wrong, but it’s not very likely.

The Lakers will be looking for their next superstar. Pau Gasol is a sensational player, but he is not a superstar on or off the court. He’s not a player that will fill Staples Center on his own. Andrew Bynum is a player that I think will become an even better player than Gasol, however, I still don’t think he’s a player that exudes the star power necessary for the Lakers to continue to sell the most expensive tickets in the entire league. L.A. is a town of stars and fans pay big money to see star power. Signing LeBron would ensure that the Lakers would continue to have one of the league’s biggest stars through the first half of this decade.

If LeBron wants to be a global icon and a winner there is no better place for him to come play than the Los Angeles Lakers. They are the league’s marquee franchise, play in the entertainment capital of the world and are probably the most well run franchise in basketball today. As well, producing global icons is what the Lakers and the city of Los Angeles do for a living.

Beyond that, a team with Gasol (or Bynum), Bryant and LeBron would be a lock for the NBA Finals for the next few seasons, while Bryant and LeBron would be the most talked about combo in the history of the league. When Kobe retires, LeBron would be the face of the Lakers and Los Angeles and experience the same success that previous Lakers greats have had over the last 50 years.

Further, if anyone has the guts to attempt such a bold move it’s the Lakers Jerry Buss. He encouraged Jerry West to go all in the last time there was a marquee free agent of this magnitude on the market. I wouldn’t put an attempt at swinging for possibly the biggest free agent pick of all-time past him again.

I understand that this scenario is still very unlikely. However, I wanted to put it all down in print so people don't think it's just an impossible scenario that only a fool would come up with. After writing this, I do know one thing: We should prepare ourselves for a crazy summer.