Many of the biggest free agents have already been signed, the NBA draft is over and Ben Simmons is out there putting workout clips on social media. News about the league is not as easy to come by as it is in other times, but that also makes topics about some of the NBA’s biggest faces get highlighted more. 

For example, consider the murmurs surrounding LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Rumors have swirled around the potential of the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player asking the Lakers to trade him somewhere else, as it becomes apparent that Los Angeles is a team that belongs to Luka Doncic. 

Could the future Basketball Hall of Famer force his way out of Tinseltown to be back with the Cleveland Cavaliers (again)?

That’s just a scenario for now, but if that ends up being the case, the only way James could get to Cleveland without getting traded and while on a contract is if the Lakers buy out his deal. Only James and Damian Lillard, who just signed with the Portland Trail Blazers, have standing no-trade clauses on their deals at the time of this writing. 

James can waive that clause, but even then, the Cavaliers can’t push for such a trade because they are a team that is operating above the second apron. Unless they have one player that matches James’ $52.6 million salary for the 2025-26 season, no such trade can happen. Getting below the second apron by shedding contracts just to regain the rights to bundle players to trade for James just seems too much for an aging ‘Bron.

But timing is also important. 

Via Dan Woike and Joe Vardo of The Athletic:

“If the Lakers were to buy him out of his contract before the start of training camp, he would be free to sign with the Cavs. But if the Lakers were to buy him out during the regular season, he would be barred from signing with Cleveland because of restrictions on teams above the second apron.”

It’s fun to imagine James being back in The Land and getting the potential to win yet another ring with the Cavaliers in what could be his last hurrah in the league. But if the apron doesn’t fit…