The Lakers' LeBron James situation is still moving slowly.
Shams Charania said on NBA Today that Los Angeles made an early check-in call with James' camp after the NBA Finals, when teams were allowed to begin negotiating with their own free agents. Since then, he said, there has not been much communication between the sides.
There is no offer yet, either.
"There was a check-in call made, to my understanding, early in free agency once teams were able to start negotiating with their own free agents after the end of the NBA Finals," Charania said.
He added that since that call, there "hasn't been much communication" between the Lakers and James' side, and "certainly not an offer yet." The Lakers are trying to figure out what they can do with roughly $50 million of space and where that leaves LeBron.
That makes this less of a breakup signal and more of a sequencing issue for now.
Los Angeles already handled one major piece by agreeing to a four-year, $185 million extension with Austin Reaves. The rest of the roster still needs answers, especially at center, with Deandre Ayton potentially entering free agency if he declines his player option.
Marcus Smart can also decline his player option, while Rui Hachimura and Luke Kennard are headed toward free agency. Until the Lakers know what those paths look like, the LeBron negotiation may stay in its holding pattern.
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