Throughout the 2025-26 season, there were many rumors about whether LeBron James would stay with the Los Angeles Lakers or leave and even whether the franchise wanted him back. Of course, the Lakers were ultimately informed hours before the NBA's official start of free agency on June 30 that he was leaving, and he ended up signing with the Philadelphia 76ers in late July.
There doesn't seem to be a lot of hard feelings among Lakers fans when it comes to James' departure. One could wonder if the organization could've handled things better to get the future Hall of Famer to stick around on the same type of veteran minimum contract he signed with Philly, but perhaps he simply felt the circumstances in L.A. necessitated him moving on.
In an exclusive interview with Heavy Sports, Lakers legend Shaquille O'Neal called those circumstances "the business of basketball.
"No, it's what we call the business of basketball," O'Neal told Heavy on Lakers. "When you get older, and you're still playing at a high level, you're still trying to demand high money; sometimes as a franchise you have to say, 'Do I want to pay this guy this much money for the next two years, or do I wanna go get younger?' I knew when they brought in Luka Doncic, they were looking to start over."
O'Neal has been there and done that. During the 2003-04 season, he demanded a huge contract extension, but that year, he showed definite signs of decline, and after L.A. lost in the NBA Finals to the Detroit Pistons, he asked for a trade and was sent to the Miami Heat. Kobe Bryant instantly became the team's unquestioned centerpiece, and after a few rough years of rebuilding, it resumed its dynasty and won two more championships for a total of five with Bryant.
#Lakers #bryant #contract
There doesn't seem to be a lot of hard feelings among Lakers fans when it comes to James' departure. One could wonder if the organization could've handled things better to get the future Hall of Famer to stick around on the same type of veteran minimum contract he signed with Philly, but perhaps he simply felt the circumstances in L.A. necessitated him moving on.
In an exclusive interview with Heavy Sports, Lakers legend Shaquille O'Neal called those circumstances "the business of basketball.
"No, it's what we call the business of basketball," O'Neal told Heavy on Lakers. "When you get older, and you're still playing at a high level, you're still trying to demand high money; sometimes as a franchise you have to say, 'Do I want to pay this guy this much money for the next two years, or do I wanna go get younger?' I knew when they brought in Luka Doncic, they were looking to start over."
O'Neal has been there and done that. During the 2003-04 season, he demanded a huge contract extension, but that year, he showed definite signs of decline, and after L.A. lost in the NBA Finals to the Detroit Pistons, he asked for a trade and was sent to the Miami Heat. Kobe Bryant instantly became the team's unquestioned centerpiece, and after a few rough years of rebuilding, it resumed its dynasty and won two more championships for a total of five with Bryant.
#Lakers #bryant #contract
3 months ago
