LAS VEGAS \u2014 Notes from around the NBA and observations from Summer League.<\/p>\n
The prevailing belief among execs\u2014at least the ones I talked to\u2014is this July intrigue won\u2019t lead anywhere. A buyout is out of the question. A Buss-led franchise isn\u2019t paying anyone real money to play elsewhere, much less James. Incoming owner Mark Walter may have a different perspective, but it would shock a lot of people if L.A. paid James to go chase a championship elsewhere.<\/p>\n
A trade? More plausible than a buyout, but where? Golden State? L.A. isn\u2019t interested in Jimmy Butler\u2019s contract. Dallas isn\u2019t keen on gutting its roster for James. I\u2019m told the Knicks aren\u2019t either. New York is pretty happy with its offseason, which included adding Jordan Clarkson and Guerschon Yabusele to the mix. And Mike Brown has been a big hit with everyone in the organization. Besides, the history between James and Leon Rose and William Wesley\u2014Rose, James\u2019s former agent, and Wesley, a former close adviser are now the two most influential execs in New York\u2014coupled with a still frosty relationship between Rose and Wesley and Paul\u2019s Klutch Sports, makes that feel unlikely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Could the crosstown Clippers make a play? Maybe. The Clips have had a solid offseason, turning Norman Powell into John Collins and Bradley Beal. But any deal that doesn\u2019t include Kawhi Leonard is tricky. And I\u2019m not sure either team would be interested in that.<\/p>\n
James\u2019s desire for the Lakers to push their chips in is understandable. The clock is ticking on his career and as formidable as a James\u2013Luka Doncic duo is, L.A. needs something to compete with Oklahoma City, Houston, Denver, even Dallas in the Western Conference. But the Lakers\u2019 preference to preserve their cap flexibility is understandable, too. When James\u2019s contract comes off the books, L.A. will have the opportunity to acquire another star to pair with Doncic, one who better fits the timeline of a team with a 26-year-old star.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There could be some uncomfortable moments when training camp opens in September. But right now, all indications are that James will be there.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Damian Lillard returned to Portland on a three-year deal, Sports Illustrated reported Thursday. \/ Benny Sieu-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
The biggest reason, I\u2019m told: Family. Lillard embraced being traded to Milwaukee and was excited for a chance to win a championship. But he missed the life he left behind, which included his three kids, who stayed in the Pacific Northwest. Consider what Lillard told SI in 2024<\/a>, five months after the trade.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cBeing away from my kids is tough,\u201d Lillard says. \u201cIn Portland, my life was set up. My mom was down the street; my brother was the other way down the street. My sister was down the street. My kids in school. Just my whole life was set up perfectly right there. It was a great situation. So just leaving that behind alone is a lot.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s definitely lonely because I\u2019m such a family guy. My life is my family. After games, I would come out and my whole family would be back there. My kids coming out of the playroom. My mom, my brother, my cousins lived there, you know what I mean? My best friends live in Portland. So I would come out, we would go to dinner. They might come to my house. After practice, I might go to my mom\u2019s house and just chill. That\u2019s how my life was. So, I mean, I\u2019m fine because I\u2019m grown. But it\u2019s definitely lonely. I\u2019m filled up by those people.\u201d<\/p>\n In returning to Portland, Lillard, 35, may be giving up his dream of winning a championship. The Blazers are rebuilding. There is some interesting talent on the roster\u2014more on that below\u2014but Portland is years away from contending. Lillard is expected to spend all of the 2025\u201326 season rehabbing his surgically repaired Achilles. When he is ready to play, he will join a team more in need of a veteran mentor than a missing piece.\u00a0<\/p>\n Winning undoubtedly still matters to Lillard. But after two years away he has learned that some things matter more.\u00a0<\/p>\n