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One of the biggest potential storylines surrounding the Los Angeles Lakers next season is the future of LeBron James. The 40-year-old is about to enter a record 23rd season in the NBA, and James recently opted in to his contract for next season, bypassing potential free agency and contract extension with the Lakers. That decision has reverberated through the NBA world, and ESPN, presumably wanting to get LeBron James’ thoughts, offered to have him on their broadcast for an interview during NBA Summer League.
But the ESPN broadcast team revealed that LeBron James turned down their interview request on the broadcast, telling them, “I ain’t got nothing to talk about.”
While his quote might garner plenty of reaction across social media and the NBA world, it’s important to remember that it likely means nothing at all. James presumably doesn’t want to be bothered and inundated with never-ending questions about his future. He was in attendance for the Lakers’ summer league game against the New Orleans Pelicans amid Bronny James playing.
The chatter surrounding the situation between James and the Lakers stemmed from comments made by James’ agent Rich Paul about the potential direction of the Lakers franchise and how it pertains to James’ future. The Lakers are thought to be focusing on the future amid the acquisition of Luka Doncic, while James, in the twilight of his career, is presumably focused on maximizing his chances at another championship before he retires.
There’s no question that James is still playing at an elite level, showing no signs of major drop off in his on-court play. He appeared in 70 games for the Lakers last year at a little over 34 minutes per game. He averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 8.2 assists and 1.0 steals with splits of 51.3 percent shooting from the field, 37.6 percent shooting from the three-point line and 78.2 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
James dealt with recurring injuries last year, but they didn’t seem to prevent him from continuing to perform at an All-Star level. He was selected to his 21st All-Star appearance, but opted not to play in favor of getting rest for the second half of the season and playoff push.
