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Four Teams Have Contacted Rich Paul About LeBron James, Lakers Trade

Originally posted on Hoops Wire | By Ashish Mathur | Last updated Jul 1, 2025 12:08 PM ET

Four teams have contacted Rich Paul about a LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers trade.

James has a no-trade clause in his contract. He picked up his 2025-26 player option with the Lakers.

“LeBron hasn’t had any discussions with the Lakers about wanting a trade,” Dave McMenamin of ESPN said. “Rich Paul said four teams contacted him in the last 24 hours wanting to talk trades, but there weren’t any substantive conversations with those teams.

“Right now, LeBron is focused on playing on a championship-caliber roster. Rich told me, ‘There are no guarantees in building one, but we know what it looks like and what it doesn’t look like.’”

“I spoke to Rich Paul…He wanted to make it clear that the Lakers weren’t blindsided by his statement or the decision to opt in. The Lakers were operating under an assumption that Lebron would be opting in. Klutch and Lebron James didn’t ask for an extension” –@mcten pic.twitter.com/oEsWNJwoib

— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) June 30, 2025

On day one of free agency, the Lakers lost Dorian Finney-Smith to the Houston Rockets and signed Jake LaRavia.

Los Angeles was linked to Brook Lopez and Clint Capela, but Lopez signed with the Los Angeles Clippers and Capela was traded from the Atlanta Hawks to the Rockets.

The Lakers lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of this year’s playoffs in five games. James averaged 25.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.8 blocks in the five-game series. He suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee in Game 5.

James is the oldest active player in the NBA. He averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 8.2 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.6 blocks for the Lakers last season in 70 games.

Paul issued the following statement to Shams Charania of ESPN after James picked up his 2025-26 player option:

“LeBron wants to compete for a championship. He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we’ve had for eight years with Jeanie [Buss] and Rob [Pelinka] and consider the Lakers as a critical part of his career.

“We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what’s best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career. He wants to make every season he has left count, and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and want what’s best for him.”

This article first appeared on Hoops Wire and was syndicated with permission.

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