Three weeks after LeBron James told the Los Angeles Lakers he would not return, the basketball world is still waiting. His agent Rich Paul made clear on Monday that the wait will continue on James’s terms alone — and anyone expecting an imminent announcement should adjust their expectations.
“We’re not going to be rushed,” Paul said on his podcast Game Over with Max Kellerman. “It’s his choice to make and when he makes the choice, he’ll make it.” Paul added that multiple teams have called to ask whether there is anything more they should be doing to make their case, and his answer to each has been no. “We don’t need you to go above and beyond about anything. We understand it. It’s clear. All the messages have been sent.”
The Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Philadelphia 76ers, and Miami Heat are all among the franchises continuing their pursuit, according to sources. The three Eastern Conference teams — Cleveland, Philadelphia, and Miami — are believed to be the options most seriously in contention. Paul confirmed no pecking order and no timeline.
“I don’t know when his choice is going to be made, but it could be 48 seconds from now. It could be 48 minutes. I don’t know. You can’t make somebody know something that they don’t know.”
No Decision, No Deadline — and No Comparison to 2010
James made several public appearances in New York last week and gave little away, telling reporters only that he would not “hold you guys up too much longer.” NBA commissioner Adam Silver used an appearance at a CNBC summit in New York on Thursday to say he would like James to make his decision so the league can finalise its schedule. Paul said he spoke to Silver about those comments in person.
“I saw Adam in New York and we discussed it. Like I said, it’s still his choice. So if he doesn’t really know, you can’t rush it.”
Paul was emphatic that the delay is not a calculated attention play and firmly rejected any comparison to “The Decision” — the 2010 ESPN special in which James announced he was leaving Cleveland for Miami. “It’s not about a ‘Decision’ or anything like that. He has a choice to make. He has a business choice to make. We’re not going to sit here and allow someone else to decide when he makes that decision.” When co-host Max Kellerman raised the suggestion that some observers believe James enjoys the attention, Paul dismissed it directly. “It’s the lowest hanging fruit for when you don’t have the information. That’s just what it is.”
Teams Are Still Circling — Including Miami
Miami Heat president Pat Riley appeared on The Dan Le Batard Show this week specifically to discuss the possibility of a LeBron reunion — an unusual degree of public lobbying from one of basketball’s most private executives. James won two of his four championships with the Heat and made four of his ten career NBA Finals appearances in Miami between 2010 and 2014.
Paul’s response was to reassure all interested teams that holding roster spots open while waiting is unnecessary. “If they want to fill their roster spots, we’re not saying don’t fill your roster spots.” Teams should proceed with their own business rather than freeze operations around James’s timeline.
James will play a record-setting 24th NBA season wherever he lands — and he has not yet indicated whether it will be his last. Paul said he has pushed back against all reports claiming the decision is imminent. “These people don’t know anything.”
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