ESPN’s Brian Windhorst: LeBron Is Ghosting Lakers about Re-Signing with L.A.

Brian Windhorst chooses his words carefully, and on the day before free agency he chose two statements and refused to connect them himself. So we will let them sit next to each other.

Statement one: the Los Angeles Lakers reached out to LeBron James to tell him they would love to have him back. Statement two: LeBron has not made himself available for a meeting with the Lakers about his free agency. Per his Instagram, James has been playing golf every day.

"These are just two statements," Windhorst said on the show. "I'm not taking anything from these." He stressed he did not want to be accused of assuming. He does not know for certain James is playing golf rather than weighing his options. But the timing is loud. It was June 29, with free agency opening the next day and every option in every contract set to that date. Windhorst called it decision day. And the Lakers, he said, have not even been able to offer LeBron a contract, because he has not made himself available for one.

Rich floated the obvious gag, sending the Laker executive James likes most to drive the drink cart up to whatever golf course he is on, like serving papers. Windhorst pushed back with the practical version. They do not need to serve a contract. They just need to offer enough money that he makes himself available. To his understanding, the Lakers have not yet told James's representatives a number.

That is where the second thread comes in. Draymond Green opted out of his contract, a move Windhorst said landed only recently, after Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy had publicly assumed Green would pick up his player option. Opting out takes roughly 28 million dollars off Golden State's books, and in an era where the aprons govern everything, that drop opens real doors. One of them is the ability to sign LeBron James for around 15 million dollars, which Windhorst called an incredible deal if you can get it.

The connective tissue is the agent. Green and James share Rich Paul. So does Anthony Davis. Windhorst's understanding is that Davis's representatives met with the Washington Wizards a day earlier about a possible extension, which he cannot sign until August but can discuss now. A sign-and-trade to Golden State is possible. The Warriors, he noted, take a giant home-run swing every transaction window. Most miss. Some, like Kevin Durant and Jimmy Butler, connect. Either way, they are in the batter's box.

So which is it? Windhorst said the people he talked to that day were giving him the side eye, and their read was the boring one: Green re-signs in Golden State, James re-signs in Los Angeles, and Davis gets an extension in Washington. He pointed to actions over words. Last week the Lakers dramatically raised their offer to Austin Reaves the moment they feared the Pistons would pounce, and Reaves could not believe it. The Wizards just gave Trae Young a 200 million dollar extension, which is exactly the comp Davis would cite for himself.

"Part of this could be creating leverage," Windhorst said, "and then everybody gets paid. Or they could all end up in Golden State. I'm not sure which is going to be."