The Los Angeles Lakers are viewed as the favorite to sign LeBron James this summer, but they will likely need to add at least one other star player to make that happen. The most challenging obstacle could be finding a way to acquire Kawhi Leonard.
According to a report from ESPN, James is “hesitant” to be the first superstar player the Lakers acquire this offseason, whether that’s via trade or free agency. That has sent L.A.’s front office into a race to find a way to work out a trade with the San Antonio Spurs for Leonard before Friday’s deadline for LeBron and other players to decide whether they will opt out of their contracts for next season.
While there have been rumblings that the Spurs have no interest in trading Leonard to the Lakers or any other Western Conference team, ESPN reports that they have not ruled it out. If Leonard is adamant about leaving San Antonio and can successfully convince every other team that he will only sign a long-term extension with the Lakers, the Spurs won’t have much leverage in trade talks.
ESPN also reports that the Lakers have been looking to somehow acquire a future first-round pick in trade talks in recent days in hopes of sweetening the pot. They’d likely be happy to deal some of their young players like Brandon Ingram and Kyle Kuzma if they were certain they could land two of the three with LeBron, Leonard, and Paul George, but that does not appear to be a guarantee at this time.
Even if LeBron wants to sign with the Lakers, the team they have now is not enough to contend with the Golden State Warriors. LeBron still wants to add championships to his legacy, so it makes sense that he’s waiting on at least one other star to join the fold in L.A. George could be that guy if he makes a decision before LeBron, but Lakers fans can’t be feeling great about some of the comments he has made recently.
