Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is eligible to sign a two-year, $97.1 million extension later this summer, but he's “considering playing out this contract,” according to Sam Amick of The Athletic.

James is currently set to make over $44 million in 2022-23 before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2023. He previously signed a two-year extension after the Lakers won the NBA title in 2020.

Given what just happened in 2021-22, though, it shouldn't surprise anybody that LeBron might not commit past next season. The last two seasons were massive disappointments, with 2021-22 representing a total failure, even though James claims it wasn't one.

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The season brought rumblings of LeBron's unhappiness with the Lakers, leading to speculation that he could be planning an exit strategy. NBA All-Star Weekend comments about his desire to play with his son Bronny and possibly playing in Cleveland again only turned up the speculation, though there was an attempt at damage control soon after.

At Monday's exit interviews, LeBron deflected talk about an extension by saying it can't be discussed right now due to the collective bargaining agreement. Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said he's operating under the assumption that James will stick around for the long haul, but he also wouldn't get into much detail.

Perhaps LeBron wants to see what the Lakers do this offseason before making a firm decision. They need to hire a new coach (he supposedly would like Mark Jackson) and need to figure out a way to get Russell Westbrook off the team. Then there must be key role players added around the LeBron-Anthony Davis duo.

If James likes what he sees, maybe he winds up signing that extension. Or maybe he does actually just play this out and approaches things on a year-by-year basis like he used to do.