LeBron James Signs Record-Breaking Lakers Extension, Becomes NBA’s Highest Earner.

The deal includes a player option for the 2024-2025 season and makes James the NBA‘s highest-paid player ever, with $532 million in guaranteed money. Kevin Durant previously held that distinction, with $509 million in guaranteed contracts.

The four-time NBA champion can choose to become a free agent in 2024, or wait until 2025 to sign with whichever team drafts his 17-year-old son, Bronny, who is expected to enter the league that season. James has repeatedly expressed a desire to play alongside Bronny, who is entering his senior season at LA‘s Sierra Canyon School.

The deal also includes a 15-percent trade kicker, meaning James is unlikely to be moved before the deal expires. Furthermore, he’s actually ineligible to be traded during the upcoming season, per NBA rules, because the second season of his new deal includes a raise of greater than 5 percent.

Lakers spokespeople did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for confirmation on the details of the extension.

ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski was the first to report the extension.  The deal could be worth as much as $111 million over two years, depending on the fluctuating NBA salary cap, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania.

LeBron James, 37, won the most recent of his four NBA titles with the Lakers in 2020

LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension, according to multiple reports

James was heading into the final season of his deal with a 2022-23 salary of $44.5 million.

Now he’ll earn $46.7 million for the upcoming season, while joining All-Star teammate Antonio Davis in controlling his immediate future. Both players can opt to become free agents in 2024 or 2025.

The Lakers are coming off a disappointing, injury-plagued season in which the team missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year and head coach Frank Vogel was fired and replaced with Milwaukee assistant coach, Darvin Ham.

Los Angeles has reached the postseason twice since James signed with the team in 2018, suffering a first-round playoff loss in 2021 and winning an NBA title in the league’s COVID bubble in 2020.

While the team has struggled with injuries, including his own, James played well last season, averaging more than 30 points a game for just the third time in his career, while making a career-best 2.9 3-point field goals per night.

James recently became the second athlete to become a billionaire, following fellow NBA legend Michael Jordan, according to Forbes, although James did it as an active player. Jordan, 59, was not valued at $1billion until 2014, 11 years after he’d retired from basketball and before he became the Charlotte Hornets owner.

As for Bronny’s immediate future, he still has one more season of high school basketball and is expected to play at least one year in college, which would make him eligible for the 2025 NBA Draft.

Oregon Ducks fans had reason to celebrate after On3.com reported Tuesday that the school had emerged as favorites to land 17-year-old Bronny.

But before the Ducks faithful could celebrate their good fortune, LeBron effectively killed the rumor on social media.

‘He hasn’t taken 1 visit yet and has only had a few calls with coaches and universities,’ the 37-year-old LeBron tweeted in response to the report. ‘When Bronny makes his choice you’ll hear it from him.’

James is only the second-highest compensated athlete in the world between salary and endorsements with $121.2million, beaten out by PSG and Argentina superstar Lionel Messi, who raked in $130million. However, the investment game is where LeBron has made enough money to dwarf the likes of Tiger Woods, Messi, Magic Johnson and Floyd Mayweather

LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers watches son Bronny play with Sierra Canyon High School during the Ohio Scholastic Play-By-Play Classic against St. Vincent-St. Mary High School at Nationwide Arena on December 14, 2019 in Columbus

Source:https://www.dailymail.co.uk