LeBron James and the Death of the NBA Superstar: How Billionaire Owners Regained Control
LeBron James started the trend where superstar players in their prime could decide where they wanted to play.
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LeBron James had to leave the Lakers (Image via FirstSportz)
As a free agent, LeBron James will decide where he would like to continue his illustrious career. With quite a few suitors lining up outside his door, the superstar has control over his destiny.
Currently, the Golden State Warriors, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Philadelphia 76ers, and to some extent, the Miami Heat are in the race to sign the 41-year-old.
It is rumored that once James and his agent, Rich Paul, go over everything, they will come to a conclusion. To do that, the four-time league champion is communicating with players from respective teams.
Some are publicly courting him, while others are doing their bit behind the scenes. It all seems as if teams are waiting to know if one of the greatest players in the history of the game would spend the last part of his career with them.
This sounds as if James has supreme control over his destiny. It could also give others the idea that players do have the power to dictate their future. However, it has been anything but that. Even though a couple of weeks have passed, it has not slipped anyone’s mind that the King could have returned to the Los Angeles Lakers.
It was the best scenario for him after all. His family is based there, his businesses are based there, and even his son plays for the team. On top of that, had LeBron James retired wearing the purple and gold, there was no way he was not going to be regarded as Lakers’ royalty.
Then, why is it that he decided to leave with probably a year or two left in his career? Is it just because he saw that he was no longer their priority? Or was it the franchise’s way of quietly egging him to leave before they had to push him out?
Lakers used the NBA’s version of ‘A Billionaire’s Guide to Getting Out of a Sticky Deal’ on LeBron James
The narrative out there is that LeBron James left the Los Angeles Lakers of his own volition. However, he came to that conclusion despite initially holding an 80% chance of returning.
What happened from the end of their season to the start of the 2026-27 campaign is no secret. It was reported that the franchise was supposed to let their veteran superstar know about their plans for the roster.
The father of three did not get a call. In fact, President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka did call, but he was busy watching Wimbledon, where phone calls are not allowed. Even if he did not speak to the GM, James knew by then that the Lakers were not going to offer him a new deal before they attacked free agency. However, the silence from Los Angeles was louder than anything that could be said in words.
That meant that the superstar forward would be forced to accept whatever the team threw in his direction after they had signed whoever they felt was going to help them in the future. If anything, that was a sign of disrespect.
LeBron James knew by then that the writing was on the wall. However, it seems those moments were just a continuation of what they had been doing over the past year and a half.
Before the 2025-26 season, the Lakers did not want to offer the oldest player in the game another extension. That is why he chose to pick up his $52 million player option.
Then, the infamous ESPN article detailing franchise Governor Jeanie Buss‘ displeasure with James came to light. Even though she denied harboring those feelings, it was the clearest indication that she did not want the superstar around her team.
On top of that, it was a clear slight at his attitude, something that the media picked up right away and continued to slander him. That happens to be the trick teams are using nowadays.
It is akin to The Billionaire’s Guide to Getting Out of a Sticky Deal, where they manufacture a narrative that would make it sensible for the player to leave the team, either on their own or forcefully.
LeBron James is not the first on whom a billionaire team owner has used this trick
The Los Angeles Lakers may or may not have used this tactic on LeBron James, but they are not the first to do so. Teams have deployed these tactics to get rid of, or justify getting rid of, players in the past.
The purple and gold franchise moved on from the veteran superstar after landing Luka Doncic in a trade that left the sports world in disbelief. When fans launched a tirade against the Dallas Mavericks for letting go of a generational talent, they, indirectly, released some ‘concerns’ they had about the Slovenian’s conditioning and motivation.
They were flamed for this slander. But when mainstream media started to talk about it, their job was done. No one has forgiven the Mavs’ new owners for letting go of Doncic, but the narratives and the discussions about the guard stayed because his fitness was indeed working in their favor.
Most recently, the Boston Celtics have been accused of doing the same. Before trading away Jaylen Brown, all the conversations about him being too vocal and how the guard’s outspoken nature was hurting his team came through.
Some media personnel took it to the next level, with veterans such as Colin Cowherd claiming via unnamed sources that Brown’s supposed intellect was a ‘disease.’ Again, there was pushback from current players and fans.
Whether those claims were right or wrong, at the end of it, the Celtics managed to make it seem as if they moved on from their 2024 Finals MVP due to justifiable reasons. There are other examples of this tactic working.
The Memphis Grizzlies got rid of Ja Morant, the Charlotte Hornets let go of LaMelo Ball, and the list goes on. The only difference is that the more prominent a player is, the more people talked about potential methods to slander them. Otherwise, most of the propaganda usually convinced fans that the player was not right for the team.
When one goes back to the way the Portland Trail Blazers sent Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks instead of his preferred destination in the Miami Heat, it is evident that a team will do what they believe is right for them.
If that means that they have to belittle or portray their best players as bad apples in the basket to justify their decisions, so be it. Again, James may have left due to other reasons, but the evidence suggests that billionaire team owners are proving that they can do whatever they want.
Superstar power is dead
Some might argue that Luka Doncic may have taken it casually with his fitness, which is why the Mavericks felt it was better to move on. It is also possible that Jaylen Brown was drawing more attention to things other than basketball, which was affecting the Celtics’ image.
There is also no doubt that LeBron James’ skills were overlapping with not just one, but two younger players with the rise of Austin Reaves. However, when one analyzes how teams got rid of their players, questions about player power do come up.
The four-time league MVP was the one who famously made it ok for players to move teams as per their will. Some might argue that in this offseason, he is wielding that power again.
But he is one of the greatest players of all-time, which is why this free agency ‘drama’ might be excused. Other players simply do not have similar leverage, no matter how good they have been.
Therefore, it is safe to say that superstars no longer have the power they once enjoyed. Sure, they can push teams to sign impactful players, or even make changes that will suit their style of play. But if a team owner believes that they are better off without a player, they are doing whatever suits them. More importantly, that is irrespective of what the athlete believes.
These owners also know that as long as these players want to continue earning the big bucks in the NBA, it is wise for them to keep their lips sealed. Therefore, no one will ever know the true story of how teams have quietly returned to be the powerful force in the NBA.
Some might argue that the second Apron has forced them to do so. But billionaires do not create such substantial wealth based on one-year decisions. They think long and hard about how one move could alter their fortunes.
They hire people who think along those same lines. Therefore, if they knew that a player was not worth the effort, why hand them max contracts, only to pay out the luxury tax over it too?
Therefore, this is just a way for them to cover up their mistakes. Or, as those who are accustomed to how the stock market works, hedge against a risky asset and invest in other prospects. All of this is an indication that NBA superstars do not have the power they once had.
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Joseph Varghese
(5399 Articles Published)