Breaking news! LeBron James will stay with the Lakers for the remainder of this season! The Cavaliers are expected to aggressively pursue him during the offseason!

At 4 AM Beijing time on February 6, the NBA trade deadline will shut, giving teams limited time left. Today saw several major trades, including one involving Anthony Davis, who was traded along with Russell, Jaden Hardy, and Deni Avdija to the Wizards. The Mavericks received Middleton, AJ Johnson, Marvin Bagley, Malaki Branham, two future first-round picks, and three second-round picks.

The Clippers, Raptors, and Nets completed a three-team trade as well, with Chris Paul moving to the Raptors. The Nets acquired Abak, Toronto’s 2032 second-round pick, and $3.5 million. It is reported that Paul will be waived by the Raptors, likely marking the end of his NBA career soon.

The Bulls traded Kobe White and Mike Conley to the Hornets in exchange for Sexton, Jalen Johnson, and three second-round picks; meanwhile, the Thunder acquired guard Jared McCain from the 76ers, sending the Thunder’s 2026 first-round pick originally from the Rockets and three second-round picks in return.

Regarding LeBron James, renowned reporter Dave McMenamin stated that the Cavaliers, Warriors, and Knicks are potential future destinations for him. However, as the trade deadline approaches, LeBron is expected to remain with the Lakers through the end of this season.

The Athletic’s Cavaliers beat writers Joe Vardon and Jason Lloyd reported that people close to LeBron see the Cavaliers as an obvious destination for him this summer.

“LeBron will become a free agent this summer. Sources close to him reveal that if he chooses to play his 24th season, Cleveland will be his clear choice. Although the salary will be much lower than his current $52.6 million annual pay with the Lakers, the 41-year-old LeBron understands that this is the reality of the market if he continues his career.”

According to Cavaliers Nation columnist Ashish Mathur, insiders say that Mitchell and Harden are expected to recruit LeBron back to Cleveland during the offseason.

“If LeBron decides not to retire after this season, the Cavaliers are expected to aggressively pursue him on the free-agent market. Harden and Mitchell both have good personal relationships with LeBron, and LeBron himself is open to joining his hometown team, the Cavaliers, this offseason—provided he does not retire.”

“Additionally, sources say Harden and Mitchell believe the Cavaliers have the capability to win the championship this season, but even if they do, they still expect to recruit LeBron in the offseason. Multiple league sources think that if LeBron chooses to continue playing, the likelihood of him re-signing with the Lakers this summer is very low.”

As expected, LeBron will stay with the Lakers until the end of this season. After 4 AM tomorrow, LeBron cannot be traded, and players can only change teams this season by becoming free agents. It’s also unlikely that LeBron will be waived by the Lakers to sign with another team on a veteran minimum contract.

Today, on the “Court Brain” show, LeBron confirmed that his new signature shoe is nearly ready for release: “A few days ago, when we were playing in Portland, I met with Nike. We are working hard to finalize the details for the 24th edition of my signature shoe. You know, the 23rd just came out recently, and now we’re almost done designing the 24th. Next, we’ll discuss development for the 25th—it’s a long process.”

So, to summarize.

The Lakers are unlikely to make any major trades this season and will probably stick to their usual strategy of focusing on the free-agent market to find bargains. They likely believe their current roster is strong enough to make the playoffs.

The possibility of LeBron retiring after finishing this season with the Lakers is low. With Harden joining, the hometown Cavaliers’ championship potential has surged, increasing the chances that LeBron will become a free agent this summer and take a pay cut to return to Cleveland. We shall see.