00:00All right, breaking news.
00:02Sham Sharani has reported that LeBron James has informed the Lakers
00:05that he's ready to move on from the franchise and play elsewhere.
00:09But could he be headed up to no-cow to join the Golden State Warriors?
00:14California Post Sports Lakers reporter Corby Price is on from the West Coast
00:19to talk all things King James and his legacy as a Laker.
00:24Corby, appreciate you hopping on with this, my man.
00:26And before we even talk about the possibility of LeBron heading up north
00:32to join Steph Curry and those guys,
00:35do you feel like it was the right decision for both LeBron and the Lakers
00:40that he decided to move on instead of staying in L.A.?
00:44Well, first of all, I appreciate you having me on the show.
00:48But, yeah, it's time.
00:49I mean, that was kind of – not kind of.
00:51That was the messaging from LeBron's side, LeBron's camp side,
00:55just in terms of this decision to leave the Lakers.
00:57Again, we don't have certainty or confirmation about where he's going,
01:01but this was an opportunity from the Lakers side for them to fully move into
01:06the Luka Doncic era.
01:07This past season and a half, it has been a Luka Doncic and LeBron James show,
01:11and we saw, you know, LeBron take a backseat in certain points
01:15since the Lakers acquired Luka back in February 2025.
01:20But for both sides to truly get what they want moving forward,
01:24it did feel like it was time for both sides to just move on and go their separate ways
01:29after eight seasons, which is the longest consecutive tenure of LeBron James' career
01:34with a single franchise.
01:35It did feel like it was time for both sides to get a fresh start.
01:40Eight seasons, an NBA championship, but when you talk about Lakers greats
01:46like Kobe Bryant or Magic Johnson, they never had to play the backseat to anybody.
01:52So what would you say is LeBron's legacy as a Laker after eight seasons in Los Angeles?
02:00I mean, LeBron James is one of the biggest reasons why the Lakers are –
02:04you know, they were restored to relevancy.
02:07You know, people, you know, sometimes overlook where the Lakers were at
02:10that 2018 offseason, which LeBron James signed with them, you know,
02:14coming off multiple seasons, not being in the playoffs, you know,
02:17the end of Kobe Bryant's career post-Achilles.
02:20They were kind of dwindling at that point.
02:22And then, obviously, Kobe Bryant retires the two seasons.
02:25You know, you're building around these young players, but they just aren't ready yet.
02:28LeBron joins the franchise, and within two seasons or in his second season,
02:32they win an NBA title.
02:33He's helped them, you know, restore them to relevancy,
02:36making the playoffs several times since he joined the franchise.
02:39So for LeBron and for the Lakers, that's what his legacy is going to be.
02:43Yes, there are going to be a lot of – you know, there was a lot of drama,
02:46you know, back and forth.
02:47It's not – you know, not everyone was happy the entire time, of course,
02:50which is why – part of the reason why this separation is happening.
02:53But at the end of the day, LeBron James, amongst many things in his career legacy,
02:57his legacy as a Laker is he's the one of the biggest reason,
03:01if not the biggest reason, that the franchise was restored to relevancy.
03:06All right, we're hearing reports that he could head up to Golden State
03:10to try and join some super team with Draymond Green, Steph Curry,
03:15maybe Anthony Davis goes up there as well.
03:17There's no confirmation on those reports just yet.
03:21I'm thinking maybe the Clippers could be in play here.
03:25Where do you think LeBron James ends up?
03:29Where does it make sense for him at this point in his career?
03:33I mean, it feels like things are trending towards him just moving and move up north
03:38to join the Golden State Warriors because we've also –
03:42you know, LeBron's been asked about this isn't just a basketball decision.
03:45This is a family decision.
03:46This is a decision where, you know, it was incorporating his wife, Savannah,
03:50his daughter, Zuri, you know, staying close to, you know,
03:53it's something that went under the radar.
03:55But, you know, Bronny James, his contract became fully guaranteed
03:58by staying on the roster beyond yesterday.
04:00So, and his middle son, Bryce, or his younger son, middle child, Bryce, at Arizona.
04:06So, his family is West Coast-based right now.
04:09So, it would make a lot of sense from a family standpoint.
04:11So, yes, you're no longer in Southern California.
04:14But, you can move up to Northern California.
04:16You can play alongside Steph Curry.
04:18You know, we've got a glimpse of that during the 2024 Paris Olympics.
04:22Obviously, they've played alongside each other in the All-Star Games.
04:24So, we've got a glimpse of it before.
04:26You know, play alongside Steph Curry.
04:28Play alongside Draymond Green, you know, up in Northern California.
04:32So, that's what it's trending towards.
04:34But, as of right now, again, no confirmation is aware
04:36because you can even throw in a team like the Cavaliers for a third stint
04:40or even, you know, there are other teams out there interested in pursuing LeBron.
04:44But, the one certainty we do have is that LeBron James will not be a Laker
04:48for the first time in almost, you know, almost a decade,
04:51which is still kind of shocking to say that he will not be rocking the purple and gold
04:54after all this time.
04:56Well, do you think there's a chance the Clippers could be in play then?
05:00Instead of having to move, you know, you've got the new arena, you're still in L.A.,
05:06and you can kind of be sticking it to the Lakers if there's any bad blood there.
05:11You think the Clippers try and make a run at them?
05:14They'll make a run.
05:16You can't rule anything out.
05:17However, at the same time, I know I'm on a New York show,
05:21and I guess it did happen.
05:23We saw, you know, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and James Harden all team up in Brooklyn.
05:28But, would LeBron James want to team up after being with the Lakers for eight years?
05:31Would he want to go to the franchise that, quite frankly,
05:34is viewed as the little brother in Los Angeles?
05:37And that's just how the Clippers are viewed out here.
05:40So, yeah, like, that's the tough part for LeBron.
05:46But, again, his options are, you know, they're still open.
05:49And this is still, again, free agency starts in about, what, six hours officially.
05:53So, he informs the Lakers now that he's not returning.
05:56But the options are still open in terms of where he could end up or wind up going.
06:01You're saying never say never, but he would probably never be a Clipper.
06:06Translation on that one.
06:08But let's go back to this whole Golden State thing because there's also reports
06:12they may try and make a run at Anthony Davis.
06:15And if you get LeBron and Anthony Davis to join Draymond Green and a Steph Curry,
06:21that's a pretty accomplished foursome and probably one of the most accomplished foursomes
06:26in NBA history.
06:27But that's also a bunch of unks on one squad as well.
06:31So, what would that Golden State team be in the West?
06:36Could they be a threat in the West?
06:39They could absolutely be, you know, they could be a team in the West.
06:42Yes, it could be the unction between, you know, having LeBron, Steph, Draymond,
06:49you know, Anthony Davis, which it's not guaranteed or it's not a requirement for
06:54Anthony Davis to be a part of the Warriors or they don't have to trade for him
07:00for LeBron to be interested or just to go there.
07:01But, you know, we've seen these unctions.
07:04We've seen these teams of these collections of older stars not, you know,
07:09not always work out, but if any team does work out, I mean, you have LeBron and
07:12Steph Lee in the way, it does feel like, and Anthony Davis, it does feel like
07:15that's the team that could, that could, you know, buck that trend after all this
07:19time of seeing these older teams of older stars come together.
07:23It's a lot of icy hot and heating pads as well.
07:28All right.
07:29Lastly, just to close this thing out, like what now for the Lake show?
07:33What now?
07:33Where do the Lakers go after LeBron James leaving the franchise after eight years?
07:39I mean, for LeBron, I mean, for the, excuse me, for the Lakers, now it's about
07:42finding, you know, you have to, they have so many roster spots open now and
07:46they, they have a, an abundance of cap space.
07:48So for now it's about filling out the rest of the roster and filling out the
07:51rest of the roster and a vision that fits around Luka Doncic.
07:54That was the priority going to this off season.
07:56They started with getting, with getting Austin Reeves resign.
08:01Now it's about figuring everything else out around them.
08:04And that starts also with getting a bona fide big man.
08:09Well, there's reports that Knicks big man, Mitchell Robinson may not re-sign with the
08:17Knicks.
08:17Do you feel like he could be in play for the Lakers to bring in?
08:22Absolutely.
08:22He's absolutely in play for the Lakers.
08:24And he's also, he's also someone that they're interested in pursuing, you know, once free
08:29agency does officially start.
08:30I mean, you talk about Mitchell Robinson, you know, I know Robert Williams was also on
08:35their radar, but he's re-signed with Portland on a three-year deal.
08:38You have Mitchell Robinson, you have Walker Kessler.
08:40I know Jalen Duren, you know, the Pistons aren't looking to trade him, whether it's a
08:44straight up trade or a signing trade, excuse me, a signing trade, but that's still an option.
08:50And they're looking for a high caliber big man.
08:52Again, DeAndre Aiden, he opted into his player option for next season, but that's not stopping
08:57the Lakers from pursuing other top tier options, whether it's top tier starters or top tier
09:02backups.
09:03Mitchell Robinson is definitely part of that equation for the Lakers.
09:06All right, Kobe, I know you got a lot going on right now with this news just breaking.
09:10So we appreciate your time with this, my man.
09:13No, I appreciate you having me on.
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