Getty Image / Harry How
After the Denver Nuggets finished their sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, LeBron James revealed that he was considering retiring this offseason.
It was a revelation that caught much of the basketball world by surprise and had many wondering what he would actually end up doing next season.
Would LeBron actually retire after the sweep despite his stated goal of playing alongside his son, Bronny?
Could he retire for just a year and then come back next season once Bronny become draft eligible?
There were also some who believed that LeBron had something else in mind when he revealed he was considering retirement.
There was one theory that he was using a potential retirement as leverage to try and get the Lakers to build a contender for next season after they made it to the Western Conference Finals this year.
Another theory was that he might have just said it to try and draw attention away from the fact he had just been swept.
Today, those last two theories started to look a whole lot more likely.
According to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin, LeBron will be retiring next season to finish out his contract with the Lakers.
New story: A look at three directions the Lakers can take in rebuilding their team this offseason https://t.co/HLq3Dh6vfl
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) May 26, 2023
“Beyond James’ retirement decision — which could be a nonissue, with a source close to James telling ESPN on Thursday that he believes the Lakers star will indeed be back for season No. 21 and fulfill his contract — the biggest question facing the Lakers this offseason is figuring out what to do at point guard.”
LeBron retiring when the Lakers were finally able to give him a team he could compete with again always seemed like a bit of a long shot, but now any fans that were worried can breathe a sigh of relief.
Whether or not the possibility of a LeBron retirement leads the Lakers to make any big moves, it at least looks like this won’t drag on like some retirement talks we’ve seen in the NFL recently.