LeBron James' ex-teammate rules out 4x MVP's Lakers departure with hilarious take: "Better chance wrestling an alligator"

LeBron James' future with the LA Lakers has become the talk around the league. James has a player option and the media speculations are catching fire. While the media world is busy discussing James' potential trade from Los Angeles, his former teammate Udonis Haslem doesn’t believe the four-time MVP is leaving the Lakers.

Speaking on ESPN’s Get Up on Monday, Haslem said that LeBron James is a businessman and there is no way he leaves Los Angeles for any other team. Haslem had a hilarious take on James' potential trade.

“He is one of the best businessmen I have ever been around," Haslem said. "Business minds, they are very calculated. With that being said, you got a better chance wrestling an alligator than getting Bron out of LA …

"He ain't going nowhere … he will be at south of France sipping wine while we have these discussions,” added Haslem.

Haslem added that the four-time NBA champion is just exercising his power to sign a bigger deal with the team while he tries to extend his last few years of career in the NBA.

Haslem might not be wrong in his take on James’ future. In the last few seasons that LeBron James has played with the Lakers, he has built his business in LA. Moreover, he has only a few years left in his career, and rather than end it somewhere else, he would want to hang his boots in purple and gold.

If the Lakers know anything apart from how to win a championship, they know how to keep their superstars happy, and they will make sure that James is happy. Moreover, the Lakers are reportedly interested in drafting James’ son, Bronny James in the upcoming draft.

LeBron James' agent Rich Paul says the Lakers’ star is a free agent

While there were still speculations floating in the air about LeBron James choosing his player option for the 2024–25 season, his agent Rich Paul put it to rest. Paul had joined Vince Carter and others on TNT AltCast for Game 2 between the Dallas Mavericks and the Minnesota Timberwolves.

During the conversation with the crew, Paul commented that his agent, LeBron James, was a free agent.

"And you know, look, LeBron's a free agent,” said Paul. “You have to decide, and I gotta focus on his business, and he should be focused on his business, and let the Lakers hire whoever they wanna hire. And he's always showed up and played for whatever coach is there."

James still has a month to decide on his player option. Before June 29, he needs to decide about his free agency. Perhaps Paul had a slip of the tongue because later he remarked that with the Lakers star, he would evaluate the Lakers’ situation and then decide.