LeBron James will be an unrestricted free agent after this upcoming season, after the Lakers superstar picked up the player option for this upcoming year, but he doesn’t anticipate his contract status impacting the way he plays this season.
“It will have no impact,” James said to ESPN. “I’m super excited about the challenges and the excitement of our team. We added some new guys. We got another year under our belt with our coaching staff from last year. Got a full year with Luka [Doncic] and another year with the guys that I’ve been with. So super excited about that.
“And I’m not worried about contracts at this point in my career. That doesn’t bother me at all. Super humbled to even have it, have a contract still and be able to play the game that I love still at this part of my career and take full advantage of it.”
This year marks the first time in his eight seasons with the Lakers that he will be playing on an expiring contract.
Questions about James’ future in the NBA have popped up with the superstar turning 41 this December, but he indicated that any decision won’t be predicated on his son Bryce James, who will be a freshman at the University of Arizona.
“I’m not waiting on Bryce,” he said. “He has his own timeline. I got my timeline, and I don’t know if they quite match up.”
James suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his left knee earlier this year and he is still ramping up as he prepares for the 2025-26 season.
And the 40-year-old NBAer hinted that he may be limited in how much he takes part in the preseason and training camp.
“Obviously, I want to be out there as much as I can … but we know where I’m at, and the coaching staff knows where I’m at as far as me getting to a place where we’re all good as far as getting on the court,” James said.
“It’s Year 23 from me. I got a lot of miles on my game. I’ve trained throughout the course of the offseason, but just my presence is going to be important as well. Making sure that even if I’m not on the floor, I’m always in tune to what we’re doing so I know what’s going on at all times. So, just looking forward to that.”
