AA-Sport > Basketball > James stays at the team to record, Harden renews contract with 81.5 million yuan, Timberwolves keep Randle

James stays at the team to record, Harden renews contract with 81.5 million yuan, Timberwolves keep Randle

Basketball

NBA offseason continued to heat up, and the operations of each team gradually accelerated. Many renewal and re-signed transactions were completed one after another, especially the Clippers and Timberwolves. For the Lakers, James chose to execute the player option, continued to stay with the Lakers and set a new record. But the team's future is still facing a complex situation, with both hope and uncertainty. Next, let’s take a look at the current specific situation.

According to the report of the famous ESPN reporter Shams, James's agent and Klutch Sports CEO Ritchie Paul revealed to the media that James has decided to implement the $52.6 million player option for the 2025-26 season. This means that James will continue to stay with the Lakers and usher in his 23rd season of his career, which also makes him the first player in NBA history to compete in the 23rd season of his career. In the past season, James still maintained his top-level individual form, averaging 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 8.2 assists and 1 steal, shooting percentage of 51.3% and three-point shooting percentage reached 37.6%.

James' choice to execute the player option to continue to stay in the team is undoubtedly an important benefit for the Lakers. The team can still keep the core of the lineup unchanged in the new season and is expected to continue to compete for higher honors. However, this does not mean that the Lakers have no challenges. US media reporter Evan Sidery subsequently reported that if the Lakers fail to strengthen their lineup through trades, especially in the fierce competition in the West, James is likely to apply for a trade. It is understood that James knows that the Lakers are currently making plans for the future around Luca Doncic. If the team does not have enough reinforcement, it may affect his confidence in the team's future.

At the same time, the Lakers' defensive core Finney Smith also chose to test the waters of the free market. Previously, the Lakers introduced Finney Smith from the Nets through a trade, who refused to execute the $15.4 million player option next season to become a free agent. During his time with the Lakers, Smith averaged 8.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game, shooting 44.8% from the field and 41.1% from three-point shooting. More importantly, his stable performance on the defensive end is impressive. It is expected that many championship teams will actively pursue him. Although the possibility of Smith returning to the Lakers still exists, given the Lakers' current salary situation and difficulties in operating later, their operations will be very challenging, especially in terms of inside reinforcement. In addition, other teams often require the Lakers to provide more bargaining chips when dealing with inside players, which also increases the difficulty of the Lakers strengthening the lineup. The operation of the Timberwolves is also attracting attention. After signing Reed, they also managed to keep Randall and reached an unexpected contract with him for a lower amount than Gobert. The Timberwolves reportedly reached a three-year, $100 million contract extension with Randall, of which the 27-28 season was the player option. Randle's performance this season exceeded most people's expectations, especially in the playoffs, where he contributed impressive data many times, averaging 21.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game, shooting 50.2% from the field and 38.5% from three-pointers. His outstanding performance helped the Timberwolves go further. Despite this, the Timberwolves faced the dilemma of not being able to retain Walker after leaving Reed and Randall. Walker averaged 9.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game this season, and is an important member of the rotation lineup. With the expiration of the contract, Walker will become a full free agent and is expected to choose to leave the Timberwolves by signing first and then changing.

For the Clippers, Harden reached a new contract renewal agreement with the team. According to Shams's revelation, Harden decided to refuse to execute the player options and signed a two-year contract with the Clippers worth $81.5 million, including player options and some guarantee terms in the second year. Such contract arrangements also provide more flexibility for the Clippers' future operations. Harden still performed well this season, averaging 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 8.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game, shooting 41% from the field and 35.2% from three-point shooting, and was re-selected as the All-Star after two years. In the end, Harden decided to stay in the Clippers and maintain the team's competitiveness. The question of staying and leaving between James and Harden has been settled. Next, the Lakers and Clippers will make targeted adjustments and strengthening based on their current lineup and future goals. Whether it is the Lakers' inside reinforcement or the Clippers' operations in other positions, the future trends are still full of suspense. We look forward to these teams having more exciting operations in the later stage of the offseason to add more highlights to the competition in the new season.

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