LeBron James’ personal gesture to Luka Doncic’s $165M decision silences wild rumors

Luka Doncic signed a three-year, $165 million extension with the LA Lakers on Saturday, with some fans noticing LeBron James‘ absence from the press conference. Despite the rumors surrounding James this offseason, he reportedly made a personal gesture to Doncic after the extension was made official.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, James congratulated Doncic on his new contract via FaceTime. “The King” was one of several Lakers players absent from the press conference, along with his son Bronny James, Dalton Knecht and Austin Reaves.

Doncic received plenty of support, including coach JJ Redick and teammates Maxi Kleber, Gabe Vincent, Deandre Ayton, Jarred Vanderbilt, Jaxson Hayes, Rui Hachimura, Marcus Smart and Adou Thiero. They also flew to Las Vegas that same day to watch a Backstreet Boys concert inside the Sphere.

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Marc Stein added that Austin Reaves was unable to attend because of his obligations with Rigorer. Reaves is currently in Asia for a promotional tour, while LeBron James has been back in Los Angeles and doing independent workouts. He recently went viral because he was training at the old LA Clippers facility.

While most of James' social media activity is carefully constructed, he's expected to play with the LA Lakers next season and continue his partnership with Luka Doncic. But one thing is for sure: the Lakers are now Doncic's team, especially after the new three-year contract.

James opted into his $52 million contract, but there have been rumors linking him to a potential trade to teams such as the Dallas Mavericks and Cleveland Cavaliers. Rich Paul even came out and said that at least four teams are interested in his client, but they prefer staying in Los Angeles.

Rob Pelinka comments on LeBron James' future with the Lakers

Saturday's press conference was all about Luka Doncic and his new extension, but there was still a LeBron James inquiry that general manager Rob Pelinka had to answer. Pelinka confirmed that he's been communicating with Rich Paul regarding James and would love to see "The King" retire as a Laker.

"In terms of LeBron's career, I think the No. 1 thing we have to do there is respect his and his family's decision in terms of how long he's going to play," Pelinka said. "I think that's first and foremost. We want to respect his ability to come up with his timetable, and that's really important. If he had the chance to retire as a Laker, that would be great."

James is set to play in his 23rd NBA season and will be turning 41 years old in late December.

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About the author

Juan Paolo David

Juan Paolo is a journalist for Sportskeeda who covers the NBA and WNBA. He's been writing about basketball since 2015 and has been with Sportskeeda since 2021.

Juan's allegiance lies with the Golden State Warriors and his journey with the Warriors began with their memorable victory over the Lakers in 2000, and he experienced the successes of the 'We Believe' era and the rise of Steph Curry. 

What Juan loves most about basketball is its ability to evoke a range of emotions, from adrenaline-fueled excitement to the highs of victory and the lows of defeat. To ensure complete accuracy in articles, he conducts thorough research before writing his articles.

The Warriors' victories in the 2022 and 2017 championships hold a special place in Juan's memories, as well as iconic moments like Baron Davis' dunk over Andrei Kirilenko and Goran Dragic's performance in the 2010 Western Conference semifinals.

Off the court, Juan enjoys watching football, TV and movies, caring for his numerous cats, and cooking whenever time permits.

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