LeBron James isn't getting traded, but it's time for Lakers to think about how his time in L.A. will end

Sooner or later, LeBron James will no longer be a member of the Lakers

LeBron James has never been traded, but on Thursday, he was subject to some of the loudest rumors of his 21-year NBA career. For the time being, there's very little reason to believe those rumors are going anywhere. The reporting did not come from one of the seasoned NBA news breakers you'd expect, and it has not been corroborated by any follow-up reporting. Rich Paul, James' longtime agent, shot down the rumors on Friday by telling ESPN's Brian Windhorst "LeBron won't be traded, and we aren't asking to be." For now, it seems safe to assume that the greatest player of his generation will remain a Los Angeles Laker one week from today when the 2024 trade deadline passes.

And yet... the rumors gained ground among fans and on social media in a way that no previous James rumblings ever really have. James himself hasn't exactly helped matters on that front. Tweeting an hourglass after an embarrassing loss to the Hawks that dropped the Lakers below .500 doesn't exactly scream "I'm happy where I am."

James has a player option after the season. The Lakers, as presently constructed, don't look close to championship contention. They're currently out two first-round picks thanks to previous trades, and while they'll have three to trade over the summer, it's hard to believe they'll be able to compete for a third star in a bidding war against teams like the Knicks, Nets and Thunder. They may not have a first-round pick this season to use on Bronny James, which might be a necessity in securing his father's signature on a new contract. Their coach has had a colossally disappointing sophomore campaign in which he's given the starting five that led him to the Western Conference finals last season a grand total of 32 minutes of playing time.