LeBron James officially signs new Lakers contract, takes less than the max

Although there were some whispers in recent months that he could leave the Los Angeles Lakers in free agency this summer, LeBron James agreed to a two-year contract earlier this week in order to stay put.

He had been open to taking less than the maximum allowed under NBA rules to allow the Lakers to sign a difference-making free agent. But that didn’t happen, as men such as Klay Thompson and DeMar DeRozan opted to go to other teams that they feel will give them a better chance of winning right now.

On Saturday night, James reportedly signed his new contract, and he took a little bit less than the maximum in order to keep the Lakers under the second apron of the new salary cap.

Via ESPN:

“For the first time in more than a decade, LeBron James will play on a contract below the max level he was eligible to sign, sources told ESPN’s Bobby Marks, helping the Los Angeles Lakers avoid salary cap restrictions that could affect their team building in the future,” wrote Dave McMenamin.

“The Lakers announced Saturday that James signed a two-year extension for $101.35 million that would take him through 23 seasons in the league and edge Vince Carter’s record 22-year career. The deal is approximately $2.7 million below the $104 million max, sources told Marks.

“The contract includes a player option for the second season, which grants James, 39, a default no-trade clause by playing two consecutive seasons on one-year guarantees with his veteran status.”

“… James’ salary allowed the Lakers to avoid the second apron by $45,000, sources told Marks, which would allow L.A. to avoid having its 2032 first-round pick be frozen from being included in a trade next summer as a penalty for carrying a total roster salary well above the salary cap.”

Los Angeles still hasn’t signed any free agents away from any other teams this summer. Their only moves so far have been to re-sign guard Max Christie and get 2024 draft picks Bronny James and Dalton Knecht under contract.