Speculation surrounding the future of LeBron James is running wild after he picked up his 2025-26 player option rather than sign a new deal in free agency. If the Los Angeles Lakers end up trading him, there's now a real chance that the Phoenix Suns could position themselves to land him.
And it's all thanks to the Lakers' reported big-picture plans.
According to ESPN's Dave McMenamin, Los Angeles is attempting to position itself for massive amounts of cap space not next offseason, but during the summer of 2027. This tracks with their decision to sign Deandre Ayton, and give him a player option.
Waiting for 2027 also allows them to maximize their wiggle room, provided they structure their spending until then accordingly. Though Austin Reaves will be on a new deal by that time, he's easily movable if needed. Getting to the point where Jarred Vanderbilt is an expiring contract in 2027 and effortlessly tradeable may matter more to the Lakers.
Regardless of the exact reasoning behind this plan, the vision itself is great news for members of the Suns and their fans hoping to actualize a LeBron-to-Phoenix pipe dream—because it means a Bradley Beal-for-James swap is more likely to be on the table.
The Lakers may not be opposed to taking on Bradley Beal
The idea of using Beal’s contract, which includes a no-trade clause and will pay him $110.8 million through 2026-27, is ludicrous upon first consideration. There is no way the Lakers saddle themselves with his deal in a vacuum, let alone doing so while giving up LeBron.
But this scenario doesn’t exist in a vacuum. LeBron has a no-trade clause all his own. That gives him the leverage to dictate where he wants to go. And Phoenix could feasibly crack that list. It is just a short flight away from Los Angeles and his family, and his youngest son, Bryce James, is slated to attend the University of Arizona. Heck, the Suns may even be in line to reunite with LeBron's BFF, Chris Paul.
Other teams may finish higher on LeBron’s eventual wishlist. Or maybe not. If the Suns’ past acquisitions of Chris Paul, Kevin Durant and Beal himself have taught us anything, it’s that stars want to play with Devin Booker.
Taking on Beal’s contract still won’t be ultra-palatable to the Lakers. But their 2027 cap-space vision aligns with the expiration of his deal, making it inherently less onerous. It helps that he’s not a total zero on the court, too. As a third or fourth option in Phoenix, he’s struggled to scale down. Playing second fiddle to Luka Doncic in Los Angeles is more up his alley—and an opportunity that likely convinces him to waive his no-trade clause.
Trading for LeBron will require the Suns to get creative
While a Beal-for-LeBron swap can technically work, the Suns will need to sweeten the pot. That gets difficult when they have no first-round picks to trade, and when they remain over $12 million above the second apron.
Skirting that dreaded second apron may be the skeleton key that unlocks the LeBron-to-Phoenix fantasy. This would allow the Suns to aggregate salaries in any deal, which paves the way for including Khaman Maluach as an actual salary, re-aggregating Mark Williams, or expanding the construction to take back Vanderbilt (or other unwanted money) from the Lakers.
This may necessitate involving the Brooklyn Nets. They are the only team with cap space, although a handful of squads have exceptions that can be used to soak up someone like Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale, or Dillon Brooks. Whether the Suns have the sweeteners to grease the wheels of dumps is debatable. If Oso Ighodaro and Ryan Dunn are on the table, they should.
Phoenix can figure it out if a LeBron trade becomes a distinct possibility. And now that we know the Lakers’ own timeline aligns with the expiration of Beal’s contract, hey, it just might.