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Lakers won’t give D’Angelo Russell a max contract and LeBron isn’t retiring

OK, we won’t bury the lede when it comes to the Lakers. LeBron James probably isn’t retiring. Dave McMenamin reports that a source close to James expects him to suit up for the 2023-24 season, fulfilling the final year of his contract with the Lakers.

Also according to McMenamin, the Los Angeles Lakers have no interest in giving D’Angelo Russell a contract extension that comes close to the max available to him. He’s eligible for a $67.5 million extension over two years by June 30th.

That doesn’t mean the Lakers and Russell won’t land on a deal for next year, though. There’s still a path that could wind up with him playing at least another year in purple and gold because the market for Russell isn’t expected to be all that hungry, at least at the max level price point.

"“And the market could be flat for the 27-year-old Russell, as the teams with that type of cap space this summer — Houston, San Antonio, Utah, Orlando, Oklahoma City, Detroit and Indiana — are either still in rebuild mode or already filled at the position,” McMenamin says."

There are significant questions for LA moving forward, and time is ticking on the opportunity to win another title with James on the roster. To this point, the only title the team has won in the LeBron era was the one they earned in the Covid-19 bubble.