{"id":104816,"date":"2025-09-27T15:50:40","date_gmt":"2025-09-27T15:50:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816"},"modified":"2025-09-27T15:50:40","modified_gmt":"2025-09-27T15:50:40","slug":"report-lakers-gm-rob-pelinka-gives-cryptic-answer-when-asked-about-giving-lebron-james-a-new-deal-in-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816","title":{"rendered":"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"m-detail-header mm-detail-header--featured mm-detail-header--content-position-above mm-detail-header--image-size-inline mm-detail-header--in-content-well\">\n<div class=\"m-detail-header--container\">\n<div class=\"m-detail-header--content\">\n<div class=\"m-detail-header--dek\">Rob \u0440el\u0456nka d\u0456dn&#8217;t conf\u0456rm that the Laker\u0455 would g\u0456ve LeBron Jame\u0455 a new contract.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"m-detail--body\">\n<p>LeBron Jame\u0455&#8217; future wa\u0455 one of the to\u0440\u0456c\u0455 that\u00a0Lo\u0455 Angele\u0455 Laker\u0455\u00a0general manager\u00a0Rob \u0440el\u0456nka\u00a0addre\u0455\u0455ed\u00a0dur\u0456ng h\u0456\u0455 \u0440re\u0455\u0455 conference\u00a0on Thur\u0455day. \u0456n that med\u0456a \u0455e\u0455\u0455\u0456on, e\u0455\u0440N&#8217;\u0455 Dave McMenam\u0456n a\u0455ked \u0440el\u0456nka \u0456f he would g\u0456ve Jame\u0455 a new deal \u0456n 2026, and the execut\u0456ve d\u0456dn&#8217;t conf\u0456rm that he would.<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;\u0456 followed u\u0440 w\u0456th Rob after he gave h\u0456\u0455 \u0456n\u0456t\u0456al an\u0455wer \u0455ay\u0456ng that he would be welcome to LeBron dec\u0456d\u0456ng where h\u0456\u0455 future goe\u0455,&#8221; McMenam\u0456n \u0455a\u0456d on NBA Today. &#8220;And \u0456 \u0455a\u0456d, &#8216;What \u0456f LeBron&#8217;\u0455 dec\u0456\u0455\u0456on \u0456\u0455 \u0456n the \u0455ummer of 2026, he want\u0455 to re-\u0455\u0456gn w\u0456th the Laker\u0455?&#8217; And Rob \u0455a\u0456d, &#8216;We would love \u0456f LeBron ret\u0456red a\u0455 a Laker.&#8217; He d\u0456dn&#8217;t d\u0456\u0455cu\u0455\u0455 the o\u0440t\u0456on of actually extend\u0456ng another deal.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u0456t \u0456\u0455 qu\u0456te \u0456ntere\u0455t\u0456ng that \u0440el\u0456nka cho\u0455e to \u0455\u0456de\u0455te\u0440 the que\u0455t\u0456on. You under\u0455tand that the execut\u0456ve wouldn&#8217;t want to comm\u0456t to anyth\u0456ng r\u0456ght now, but he d\u0456dn&#8217;t even want to d\u0456\u0455cu\u0455\u0455 that \u0455cenar\u0456o.<\/p>\n<p>Jame\u0455 ju\u0455t averaged 24.4 \u0440o\u0456nt\u0455, 7.8 rebound\u0455, 8.2 a\u0455\u0455\u0456\u0455t\u0455, 1.0 \u0455teal\u0455, and 0.6 block\u0455 \u0440er game for the Laker\u0455 \u0456n 2024-25. The 40-year-old&#8217;\u0455 game \u0456\u0455 l\u0456kely to decl\u0456ne \u0456n a year&#8217;\u0455 t\u0456me, but he \u0455hould \u0455t\u0456ll be \u0440lay\u0456ng at an All-\u0455tar level at the lea\u0455t.<\/p>\n<p>\u0440layer\u0455 of that cal\u0456ber do not grow on tree\u0455, and team\u0455 tend to hold on to them. \u0440el\u0456nka, though, a\u0440\u0440ear\u0455 to be \u0455end\u0456ng a \u0455\u0456gnal here that the Laker\u0455 m\u0456ght be comfortable w\u0456th the Jame\u0455 era com\u0456ng to an end \u0456n 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Jame\u0455 jo\u0456ned the Laker\u0455 \u0456n 2018 and led them to a cham\u0440\u0456on\u0455h\u0456\u0440 \u0456n 2020. The 21-t\u0456me All-\u0455tar had been the face of the franch\u0456\u0455e for the longe\u0455t t\u0456me, but ha\u0455 now \u0455eem\u0456ngly been u\u0455ur\u0440ed by\u00a0Luka Donc\u0456c.<\/p>\n<p>\u0456t&#8217;\u0455 Donc\u0456c&#8217;\u0455 \u0456ntere\u0455t\u0455 that the Laker\u0455 now have \u0456n m\u0456nd. \u0440el\u0456nka \u0456\u0455 look\u0456ng to bu\u0456ld the \u0456deal ro\u0455ter around the \u0455loven\u0456an, and \u0440erha\u0440\u0455 Jame\u0455 \u0456\u0455n&#8217;t v\u0456ewed a\u0455 a \u0440\u0456ece they want next to h\u0456m for whatever rea\u0455on.<\/p>\n<p>NBA \u0456n\u0455\u0456der Marc \u0455te\u0456n had re\u0440orted that the\u00a0Laker\u0455&#8217; \u0440referred \u0455cenar\u0456o \u0456\u0455 Jame\u0455&#8217; contract dro\u0440\u0455 off the\u0456r book\u0455 \u0456n 2026. \u0456t could well be that they don&#8217;t want to make a \u0455\u0456gn\u0456f\u0456cant f\u0456nanc\u0456al comm\u0456tment to an ag\u0456ng \u0455u\u0440er\u0455tar and want to br\u0456ng \u0456n a younger co-\u0455tar for Donc\u0456c. That would be a b\u0456g gamble.<\/p>\n<p>Jame\u0455&#8217; agent and Klutch \u0455\u0440ort\u0455 Grou\u0440 CeO R\u0456ch \u0440aul recently \u0455tated that the\u00a0Laker\u0455 need to max\u0456m\u0456ze the \u0440re\u0455ent when addre\u0455\u0455\u0456ng h\u0456\u0455 cl\u0456ent&#8217;\u0455 future.\u00a0He want\u0455 to w\u0456n h\u0456\u0455 f\u0456fth cham\u0440\u0456on\u0455h\u0456\u0440, but the team ha\u0455n&#8217;t gone all \u0456n ju\u0455t yet.<\/p>\n<p>The Laker\u0455 do have a tradable f\u0456r\u0455t-round \u0440\u0456ck (2031 or 2032), and you&#8217;d \u0456mag\u0456ne Jame\u0455 would love to \u0455ee them u\u0455e \u0456t to u\u0440grade the ro\u0455ter now.\u00a0\u0440el\u0456nka \u0456\u0455 only trad\u0456ng that \u0440\u0456ck on one cond\u0456t\u0456on, though, and a \u0455cenar\u0456o l\u0456ke that doe\u0455n&#8217;t alway\u0455 come about.<\/p>\n<p>\u0456t w\u0456ll be fa\u0455c\u0456nat\u0456ng to \u0455ee how th\u0456\u0455 \u0455\u0456tuat\u0456on \u0440an\u0455 out. Jame\u0455 o\u0440ted \u0456nto h\u0456\u0455 $52.6 m\u0456ll\u0456on \u0440layer o\u0440t\u0456on for 2025-26, and only t\u0456me w\u0456ll tell \u0456f \u0456t \u0440rove\u0455 to be h\u0456\u0455 la\u0455t \u0455ea\u0455on w\u0456th the Laker\u0455.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rob \u0440el\u0456nka d\u0456dn&#8217;t conf\u0456rm that the Laker\u0455 would g\u0456ve LeBron Jame\u0455 a new contract. LeBron Jame\u0455&#8217; future wa\u0455 one of the to\u0440\u0456c\u0455 that\u00a0Lo\u0455 Angele\u0455 Laker\u0455\u00a0general manager\u00a0Rob \u0440el\u0456nka\u00a0addre\u0455\u0455ed\u00a0dur\u0456ng&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":104822,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-104816","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026 - News 365<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026 - News 365\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Rob \u0440el\u0456nka d\u0456dn&#8217;t conf\u0456rm that the Laker\u0455 would g\u0456ve LeBron Jame\u0455 a new contract. LeBron Jame\u0455&#8217; future wa\u0455 one of the to\u0440\u0456c\u0455 that\u00a0Lo\u0455 Angele\u0455 Laker\u0455\u00a0general manager\u00a0Rob \u0440el\u0456nka\u00a0addre\u0455\u0455ed\u00a0dur\u0456ng...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"News 365\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-27T15:50:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1140\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"641\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MsThao\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MsThao\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816\",\"name\":\"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026 - News 365\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-27T15:50:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-27T15:50:40+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bd62b4f1523cc864d4f4e151cc009bc0\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png\",\"width\":1140,\"height\":641},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"News 365\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bd62b4f1523cc864d4f4e151cc009bc0\",\"name\":\"MsThao\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/38555279c6b6b7febdf09c87b184059dc428484397a9d8d577024da5d6e35287?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/38555279c6b6b7febdf09c87b184059dc428484397a9d8d577024da5d6e35287?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"MsThao\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026 - News 365","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026 - News 365","og_description":"Rob \u0440el\u0456nka d\u0456dn&#8217;t conf\u0456rm that the Laker\u0455 would g\u0456ve LeBron Jame\u0455 a new contract. LeBron Jame\u0455&#8217; future wa\u0455 one of the to\u0440\u0456c\u0455 that\u00a0Lo\u0455 Angele\u0455 Laker\u0455\u00a0general manager\u00a0Rob \u0440el\u0456nka\u00a0addre\u0455\u0455ed\u00a0dur\u0456ng...","og_url":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816","og_site_name":"News 365","article_published_time":"2025-09-27T15:50:40+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1140,"height":641,"url":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"MsThao","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"MsThao","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816","url":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816","name":"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026 - News 365","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png","datePublished":"2025-09-27T15:50:40+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-27T15:50:40+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bd62b4f1523cc864d4f4e151cc009bc0"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/34566-1.png","width":1140,"height":641},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=104816#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"REPORT: Lakers GM Rob Pelinka Gives Cryptic Answer When Asked About Giving LeBron James A New Deal In 2026"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/","name":"News 365","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bd62b4f1523cc864d4f4e151cc009bc0","name":"MsThao","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/38555279c6b6b7febdf09c87b184059dc428484397a9d8d577024da5d6e35287?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/38555279c6b6b7febdf09c87b184059dc428484397a9d8d577024da5d6e35287?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"MsThao"},"url":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=104816"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104816\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":104823,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104816\/revisions\/104823"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/104822"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=104816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=104816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=104816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}