The reason why 'happy' LeBron James would never leave the Lakers

LeBron James is now eligible to sign a two-year contract extension worth $97 million with the Los Angeles Lakers. But some around the NBA worry he could walk away next summer if the team doesn’t fare well.

James’ tenure in Los Angeles has been full of ups and downs. The team hasn’t been able to be a consistent contender, and some claim the championship in 2020 was an outlier and not their reality.

Whatever the case, it seems like those rumors couldn’t be further from the truth. According to Jalen Rose, there’s no way LeBron leaves Los Angeles at this point in his career with his family already settled in.

NBA Rumors: Jalen Rose Says LeBron Won’t Leave The Lakers Because Of His Family

“They know he ain’t leaving now,” Rose said on ESPN. “So it don’t even matter what happens with the contract. They know he got that house out here, the wife out here, they know the kids out here. We always think about it as LeBron James the superstar, not always LeBron James the father, the dad, the human being. I don’t think he’s gonna necessarily wanna uproot his family to go play somewhere else.”

James Is Happy In Los Angeles Despite Lakers’ Struggles

That’s similar to what NBA insider Marc Stein reported a couple of days ago. Apparently, the James household is quite happy in Southern California and isn’t planning on leaving any time soon:

“Sources briefed on the matter stress that James is extremely happy in Los Angeles despite the Lakers’ back-to-back rocky seasons,” Stein wrote. “He and his family, by all accounts, have grown increasingly entrenched in Southern California since James signed with the Lakers in the summer of 2018.”

Of course, there’s always the possibility that LeBron leaves the Lakers to sign with whichever team drafts his older son, Bronny. But we’re still years away from that, so there’s no point in speculating right now.