On April 30, Beijing time, after being eliminated by the Nuggets, the Lakers' season is over, although they were swept by the defending champion gentlemen, but anyone with a discerning eye can see that the gap between the two sides is not as big as the big score looks like the gap, the Lakers lost a total of 11 points in 5 games, if it weren't for the thick eyebrows injury in this game, and G2's questioning penalty, the Lakers may not be 4-1 even if they are eliminated.
After the game, everyone is most concerned about the question of Lao Zhan's stay and whether he will choose to retire, after all, he is 39 years old, although he can still play a dominant performance of 27.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 8.8 assists, 2.4 steals and 1 block per game in the playoffs, but losing at this age is a big blow to him, after all, he is the top existence on the historical president mountain, and after the game, James was asked whether he would leave the Lakers.
James said: "I won't answer this question, thank you", Lao Zhan has always been so smart, even if he leaves, he will choose to say it at the right time, the first few team changes were during the World Cup, a man who dared to grab traffic with the World Cup, this is Lao Zhan's ability At the same time, he also pays great attention to traffic and attention, after all, James is not only a relatively successful player, he is also a very successful businessman.
Although Lao Zhan did not reveal whether he will leave, but the Lakers are ready to keep him, according to Shams of the Athletic, team sources revealed that the relationship between the Lakers and Jeanie Buss is better than ever, and Lakers insiders said that no matter how James will eventually return, the Lakers are willing to accept it, including a 3-year super cap salary of 164 million for James.
And if James renews this contract, he will reach the age of 42, although at that time everyone is not sure that James will be able to maintain the current level, but James's attention and the benefits he brings, these are the reasons why the Lakers are willing to keep him, and the Lakers have also made second-hand preparations, the reason why James is reluctant to reveal whether he will leave in an interview is mainly because he wants to complete the father-son stage with Bronny, and this is also the reason why James persists.
According to Shams, in order to keep James, the Lakers are willing to help him realize his dream of father and son on the same stage, they will directly select Bronny, this year the Lakers have the first round No. 17 pick and the second round No. 55 pick, although Bronny is the son of old Jane, but his draft prospects are not good, because he has heart problems, and his performance at USC is not very good, so if the Lakers are willing to use the first round No. 17 pick to draft him, there is a good chance.
Although the elder did not answer the question of whether he will retire, Shams did the report, a person familiar with James's thoughts revealed that after James finished his 21st year of NBA season, he has a player option next season, but James is expected to play for another two years, James wants to spend the 2026 All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles, when he will be 41 years old.
If James can stay, it is undoubtedly the best choice for the Lakers, and if he stays thick eyebrows, there is a high probability that he will stay, after all, he likes to team up with James, but in this season's playoffs, thick eyebrows have expressed dissatisfaction with Ham's tactical arrangement, and whether the Lakers will change coaches in the offseason is also a matter of concern to everyone, according to Shams, because the record is not ideal, some team shareholders said that Ham is extremely unlikely to return next season, and the Lakers will evaluate and make a final decision in the next few days.
To be honest, many Lakers fans want Ham to leave, and the Lakers' roster is expected to change a lot, after all, they have a number of players with player option contracts, in addition to James, there are Russell, Wood, Reddish and Hayes, in addition to Prince and Dinwiddie are free agents, and Christie is a rookie whose contract expires. Among these people, I think Russell will most likely choose to leave the team on his own.
And Prince may get a contract extension from the Lakers, after all, he played well in the playoffs, and Christie is the target of the Lakers' key training, and it is estimated that the Lakers will renew him at a low price. The Lakers want to compete for a championship, and to be honest, they have a great roster of characters, even if they lose Russell, they still have Vanderbilt, Reaves and Hachimura, and if they can bring in the right star, then the Lakers have a chance to get back into contention.
There are many stars whose contracts will expire in the offseason, such as Harden, Paul George and DeRozan, etc., but they don't know whether Pelinka and Jeanie Bass are willing to spend money on reinforcements. Although the playoffs did not go far this season, the Lakers won the first season of the midseason championship after all, and they have gained a lot this season, which is very good, at least better than the Suns and Warriors who spent high salaries to form a big team.
Speaking of which, what do you want to say about the Lakers?