Lakers’ LeBron James Responds to Jeanie Buss Rumors, ‘Don’t Care How Somebody Feels About Me’
LeBron James isn’t reading too much into the recent report that detailed his relationship with Los Angeles Lakers governor Jeanie Buss during his eight seasons with the organization.
Following the Lakers’ 112-104 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday, James told reporters he doesn’t “care how somebody feels about me” when asked about the story.
“I don’t really care about the reports, to be honest,” James said. “Since I’ve been here, my eighth year here [in L.A.], been in this league 23 years, there’s [always going to] be another article tomorrow, especially involving me.”
The questions came in the aftermath of a story from ESPN’s Baxter Holmes that was primarily about the Buss family drama that led to the Lakers’ sale to Mark Walter. It also included information about Buss growing tired of some things involving James over what was described as his “outsized ego and the overt control that he and Klutch Sports” exerted over the organization at times.
Holmes also wrote that Buss considered not giving James a contract extension or potentially trading him to the Clippers in 2022.
James maintained that he has always viewed his relationship with Buss as “good,” but he understands how it could be interpreted another way:
“I thought it was good, but, you know, somebody could see it another way. It’s always two sides of the coin. … How I represented this franchise, and what I wanted to do to represent this franchise since when I got here until now, it’s been with the utmost respect and honor and dignity. And I would say loyalty. I mean, s–t, I played here longer than pretty much any other franchise I played for besides Cleveland.”
Even though there have certainly been frustrating moments throughout the course of James’ tenure in Los Angeles, the partnership has overall been a fruitful one for all involved.
The Lakers won an NBA title in James’ second season with the club in 2020. They have made the playoffs in five of the previous six seasons after a six-year drought from 2013-14 to 2018-19.
James became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer as a member of the Lakers on Feb. 7, 2023, surpassing the record that had been held by franchise icon Kareem Abdul-Jabbar since 1984.
It will be interesting to see how things play out between James and the Lakers going forward. He has a full no-trade clause in his contract, but his deal expires at the end of this season.
The Lakers’ efforts going forward are focused on building around Luka Dončić. James, who turned 41 on Dec. 30, has not given any indication that he is looking to retire beyond acknowledging the end is coming “sooner than later.”
