CLEVELAND — LeBron James will not pick up the player option on the final year of his contract with the Cavaliers and will become an unrestricted free agent, according to ESPN and multiple reports.
James had until 11:59 p.m. ET Friday to inform the Cavs of his intentions before the option expired.
The decision will make the four-time MVP the headliner of a star-studded free-agent class that includes Paul George, Chris Paul and DeMarcus Cousins, among others.
Free agency will begin at 12:01 a.m. ET Sunday and the balance of power in the NBA could shift, should James leave Cleveland to possibly create a new superteam with the Los Angeles Lakers or join a burgeoning power such as the Houston Rockets or Philadelphia 76ers.
James has bolted as a free agent twice — in 2010, when his contract was up with Cleveland and he chose the Miami Heat, and in 2014, when he exercised the early termination option in his Heat contract and returned to Cleveland. He also opted out of his contract with the Cavs in 2015 to sign a new “one-plus-one” deal, and then opted out of his contract again in 2016 to sign a new deal with two years guaranteed and a player option for the third year.
That third season — worth $35.6 million for 2018-19 — is the one that James is declining to opt in to.
According to ESPN front-office insider Bobby Marks, Cleveland can offer James a more lucrative deal than any other team — a five-year max contract in the neighborhood of $207 million. Any other suitor can offer a four-year pact worth $152 million.
Should James re-sign with a shortened one-plus-one deal in Cleveland in order to give himself the chance to explore free agency again in the summer of 2019, his compensation for 2018-19 would be for $35.4 million and ’19-20 would jump to $38.2 million, as the option year.
James, 33, is coming off one of his finest campaigns as a pro in 15th season. He played all 82 games for the first time in his career and averaged 27.5 points (his most since 2009-10), tied a career high with 8.6 rebounds per game and set a career high with 9.1 assists per game while shooting 54.2 percent from the field. He followed that up in the playoffs by averaging 34 points, 9.1 rebounds and 9 assists while shooting 53.9 percent as the Cavs were swept by the Warriors in the NBA Finals.
James finished second in MVP voting, amassing 738 points behind only first-time winner James Harden of the Rockets (965).
In the days that have led up to James’ opt-out decision, the Lakers have jockeyed for positioning in the race to obtain the three-time champion by ramping up trade talks with the San Antonio Spurs in order to acquire all-NBA forward Kawhi Leonard, as reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Source : ESPN
