LeBron’s Agent Broke Down The Rationale For All Three Free Agency Decisions

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The NBA world went into the offseason bracing for what promised to be a blockbuster summer. LeBron James was set to hit free agency for the third time in his career, and history has shown that each of those previous decisions has caused a seismic shift in the NBA landscape with long and far-reaching implications.

There’d been so much hype and anticipation leading up to free agency this summer that it was almost anti-climactic when he and his team announced relatively quickly, and without much fanfare, that he would be joining the Lakers on a long-term deal.

It had a very different feel from years past, and that’s at least partially because LeBron is older and more reflective now, less prone to embrace the media extravaganzas that have accompanied his every move in the past.


It also apparently has to do with the rationale behind his decision-making. In a recent article by Lee Jenkins of Sports Illustrated, LeBron’s long-time agent Rich Paul explained exactly what was behind his thought process in each of his previous free agent decisions.

“In 2010, when he went to Miami, it was about championships,” Paul continues. “In 2014, when he went back to Cleveland, it was about delivering on a promise. In 2018, it was just about doing what he wants to do.”

James was leaning toward L.A. for days, and according to those outside his direct orbit, for months. But Paul rejects the commonly held explanations that James was driven either to expand his Hollywood empire or spark an overnight superteam.

It turns out it’s not terribly complicated after all, although the reasoning behind signing with L.A. is still somewhat curious. With their current roster, the Lakers are certainly not promised a trip to the Finals next season, so apparently we’re supposed to glean that LeBron simply wants to live in Los Angeles and play for the Lakers, even if they won’t immediately compete for a championship.

This is evidenced by the fact that he apparently isn’t putting too much pressure on the front office to assemble the aforementioned superteam that many of us assumed would come together this summer. LeBron has been relatively transparent about his reasons in the past, but it seems this current chapter will have to remain something of an enigma until we can one day look back and try to make sense of it.

(Sports Illustrated)

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