It may be the summer of 2010 all over again for LeBron James.
The New York Knicks are a team thought to appeal to the Los Angeles Lakers star James in free agency this summer, Bleacher Report’s Eric Pincus reported on Wednesday. Pincus does add though that the Knicks would have to reduce their payroll in order to sign James and would likely be out of the running if James and the Lakers pull off a sign-and-trade this offseason sending him elsewhere.
New York is one of the NBA’s top contenders this season at 37-22 (third in the Eastern Conference). They also have a long and well-documented history of interest in the four-time NBA champion James, including in 2010 before he signed with the Miami Heat and in 2018 before he signed with the Lakers.
Now 41 years old, James is playing out the final year of his contract in Los Angeles at $52.6 million. His season averages still look fairly LeBron-like overall at 21.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 7.0 assists per game.
Of course, the Knicks do have a dicey financial situation right now and have the fifth-highest payroll already on their books for the 2026-27 season at $205.5 million. But recently, we did hear of the possibility of James maybe playing out next season on a veteran’s minimum contract and then recouping the lost money through the media streaming rights to his anticipated grand farewell tour.
That said, there have been some suggestions in the past claiming that James would never play for the Knicks. As such, perhaps one of the four other teams that James has already been linked to in free agency would make more sense instead.