LeBron James is now likely to take his full three-year max at $160 million after James Harden, Klay Thompson and Jonas Valanciunas all agreed to sign with other teams. The trio players were identified as targets James would be willing to take less money to help the Lakers acquire. James reportedly reached out to Thompson with a recruiting pitch at the start of free agency on Sunday.
“For the Lakers, ultimately, LeBron James probably takes that full max,” said Adrian Wojnarowski on Sports Center. “Because the kind of impact player they hoped they could get is not available to them.”
James begins training camp with Team USA in Las Vegas this weekend with the expectation his contract will be signed by then. James is a free agent after opting out of his $51.4 million player option for 24-25.
James appeared in 71 games last season, averaging 25.7 points, 7.3 rebounds and 8.3 assists and was an All-NBA Third Team selection for the third consecutive season.
James is represented by Rich Paul.