Amidst all the noise about the possibility of LeBron James wanting to leave the Los Angeles Lakers soon, neither he nor his agent, Rich Paul, has asked the Lakers to trade him or buy out his contract. In all likelihood, such noise is much ado about nothing.

"The team has been resistant to taking on longer-term contracts in an effort to maintain flexibility," The Athletic wrote. "... if the Lakers were to, hypothetically, trade James to the Golden State Warriors for Jimmy Butler, who is nearly 36, they would have Butler under contract for the 2026-27 season at nearly $57 million."

Trade speculation has been running rampant since right before the start of NBA free agency, when James exercised the $52.6 million option on his contract.