"Lakers Ain't Winning Anything Without LeBron James": Stephen A. Smith Makes Harsh Assessment on LA Side

With the 2026 NBA Draft out of the way and free agency coming up, all eyes are now on LeBron James. Arguably the biggest free agent this summer, James has yet to decide whether he'll stay with the Lakers or join another team. Analyst Stephen A. Smith thinks it would be in the Lakers' best interest to retain James.

"Let me be very clear, the Lakers ain't winning s*** unless they keep LeBron James," Smith said on his show.

"The Los Angeles Lakers don’t have a soul shivering in their boots. Not when the cornerstone of your franchise is Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. The only way this works is if you find a way to keep LeBron James," he added.

Smith's argument centered around James' consistency despite his age. The analyst highlighted how the 41-year-old was available for the playoffs while LA's younger stars weren't.

"There were some games that Austin Reaves missed. Luka Doncic missed the entire playoffs. He's 14 years younger than LeBron. Didn't matter. LeBron James stays ready. You'd better find a way to keep LeBron James," said Smith.

However, the Lakers just took a big cap hit after signing Austin Reaves to a historic $185 million contract. Reaves is now the richest undrafted player in NBA history. Unfortunately, the remaining cap isn't enough for James.

According to sources, James has a massive $57.7 million cap hold, which is beyond the $52.1 million the Lakers have remaining. While LA could still technically sign LeBron for the amount he wants, it would leave the team no room to sign other free agents.

The other option would be to convince the King to take a huge pay cut. If the Lakers go that direction, the best they could offer is the mid-level exception worth approximately $9.4 million.

However, that's less likely to happen because James was already on a $52.2 million contract before becoming a free agent. That's where the Cleveland Cavaliers come into the picture.

NBA insider says LeBron James could head to Cleveland

NBA insider Brian Windhorst suggested that, given the Lakers' cap situation, they could sign-and-trade James instead.

Windhorst mentioned that James could get a ticket back to his hometown team, the Cavaliers, if the Lakers sign him and trade him for another player. And the Cavs may have the player they're looking for.

LA currently lacks a true big man, and Windhorst suggested that Cavs' Jarrett Allen fits the bill, as he can both protect the rim and provide efficient scoring numbers inside.

“Obviously, LeBron would have to want to sign with the Cavs, but if your pathway to paying LeBron the money is to trade Jarrett Allen for him, the Lakers would kill for Jarrett Allen... Kill for him. All right? They would do that deal in 17-tenths of a second." Windhorst said.

Trading James for Allen seems like a sensible choice. The Lakers could potentially fill a needed position while James gets to go back home for one more dance. Whether that's how things play out remains to be seen.