National Basketball Association

Should the Lakers trade LeBron James?

Updated Dec. 21, 2022 11:19 a.m. ET

The Los Angeles Lakers have reached fight-or-flight mode.

The team is currently gasping for air as it claws to stay afloat in the Western Conference. At 27-31, the Lakers are buried at the West's ninth spot, though as of Friday, the Lebron James-led troupe does remain firmly in playoff contention.

Up to this point, fighting has been a difficult pursuit for the Lakers. They remained dormant at the trade deadline, opting instead to plow forward with their current assembly of players.

"Ultimately, we didn’t find a deal that had a net positive effect for the short term success of the team and the long term, and those are both things we consider," team GM Rob Pelinka said following the deadline.

But without a resolute fix to their problems, the Lakers appear to be fighting a losing battle. This leaves another possible solution: Flight.

Dozens of trade ideas have been floated, mostly offering up names like Talen Horton-Tucker, Kendrick Nunn, Russell Westbrook and even Anthony Davis.

But one man's name is starting to rear itself as a central trade topic, and it's the one that holds the most weight within the organization: LeBron James.

The "First Things First" crew debated whether unloading James would be a beneficial move going forward.

Nick Wright opined that James himself should be the one asking for a trade.

"The Lakers should hope he does not," Wright said.

Is trading LeBron James the best path for Lakers?

Should the Los Angeles Lakers consider trading LeBron James? Nick Wright and Chris Broussard explore that idea, and decide whether they agree the Lakers should make that move.

Chris Broussard's answer was a flat-out "no."

"Let's say the Lakers never got LeBron, and they were still toiling with Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram," he stated.

"LeBron James is in Cleveland and going to be a free agent, ready to leave. Would the Lakers want him? They would move mountains to get LeBron James, especially if they had Anthony Davis. You're where most franchises want to be with two guys like LeBron and AD. One guy is putting up some of the best numbers in the league, and the other guy is smack dab in the middle of his career. The problem is not LeBron, it's that AD cannot stay healthy."

LeBron, Lakers need each other

Should the Lakers trade LeBron James? Ric Bucher breaks down why LeBron isn't going anywhere on "Speak For Yourself."

Addressing the issue on "Speak For Yourself," Ric Bucher said that James isn't going anywhere.

"This is one of those ‘until death or retirement' do us part marriages," Bucher said. "The reality is that LeBron James at this point, even if the Lakers aren't playing for titles, is a box office draw. They don't have anybody else who is a box office draw."

James has already opened the door on a possible exit from Los Angeles, but he generally likes to control his own narrative.

Could the Lakers flip the script in Hollywood by striking a golden deal for their King?