While the Lakers have failed to reach the mountaintop in the last four years, their struggles have not done much damage to LeBron James’ bank account. Recently opting out of his $51.4 million player option for next season, the veteran signed an even more lucrative two-year $101.3 million deal to stay in LA for the foreseeable future. Although Rob Pelinka successfully secured the superstar, LBJ’s massive extension has limited his options to make moves that get the Lakers back to title contention. And this roadblock has led ex-ESPN employee Cris Carter to accuse King James of milking the Lakers system for personal gains, even throwing legend Kobe Bryant under the bus to prove his point.
Discussing LeBron’s latest contract extension on the Fully Loaded podcast, the NFL legend revealed his thoughts about the four-time champ’s move, “It’s a one and one. He’s doing the same thing that Kobe did, he’s milking the system. He’s taking the max money, he’s not gonna play for less. It’s the most ridiculous thing.” Yes, James did make a nearly $3 million sacrifice on the deal as his contract was initially expected to be valued at $104 million. And that even saved the Lakers from major financial crisis, putting them $45,000 under the second apron of luxury tax. But is that enough?
Like Carter mentioned, Kobe did something similar during his heyday which might have been the reason why he suffered six years of playoff failure before retirement. While he was enroute winning his fifth Championship in 2010, the Black Mamba inked a three-year $90 million deal to extend his tenure. Surely, the deal made sense at the time, considering Kobe had already led the Lakers to four titles by then and was just inches away from winning another. But his contract limited the team for the next three seasons, not making it past the second round due to lack of talent. When the time came for Kobe to renew his contract, many expected him to take a significant pay cut as he was now on the older side and the Lakers needed some cap space to contend for a title again.
However, the five-time champ again signed a massive two-year $48.5 million extension, which would also be the final contract of his career. Sure enough, he was criticized for the move and even accused of being selfish, which he defended by saying, “Did I take a discount? Yeah. Did I take as big a discount as some fans would want me to? No. Was it a big enough discount to help us be a contender? Yeah.” Ironically, he was the highest player in the league for the last six years of his career, which many believe were also the least successful years of his career as well. Just like Kobe, Carter and maybe many more like him fear that LeBron might be on the same path, earning a lot of money without getting much success on the court.
Why are the Lakers allowing this to happen?
Well, seeing from a financial perspective, there is nothing wrong in athletes securing as much money as they can, that too when they are in the later stages of their careers like LeBron is now. But why are the Lakers ready to pay their aging superstars millions while jeopardizing their own future? As per Cris Carter, “Coz that’s what they (Lakers) do. That’s why they selected his son. That’s why they selected JJ. Coz that’s what they do. They say we take care of out stars even to our detriment.” For as long as we can remember, the Lakers have been home to some of the biggest superstars in league history. And they have never given any of them the cold shoulder or left them in the dust during the end of their careers.
USA Today via Reuters
Be it Kareem, Magic, or Kobe, the Buss family stayed loyal to all of them and let those superstars hang their boots wearing purple and gold. By the looks of it, they want LeBron to do the same. Going by the rumors, drafting his son Bronny James with their number 55 pick, and hiring his podcast partner JJ Redick as the head coach was all moves made by Pelinka to make sure that LBJ doesn’t skip town. Moreover, having a superstar like LeBron on the team is going to fill the arena with fans regardless of their win-loss tally. Although the Lakers have not won a title in the last few years, moments like LBJ breaking Kareem’s scoring record have frequently skyrocketed their ticket prices and kept them in business.
However, like two sides of a coin, the Lakers might be giving up their future in the process. While most teams have significantly improved this summer, Pelinka has made no additions to the roster yet. And it does not look like the Lakers will be able to hang another banner to the rafters with their current squad. Do you believe LeBron should have taken an even bigger pay cut to give Pelinka more wiggle room this summer?
