LeBron James ‘agrees to $104MILLION, two-year deal to return to Lakers’ after Los Angeles drafted his son Bronny in the second round

After all, LeBron James will be playing with his son Bronny.

ESPN reports that the 39-year-old LeBron has agreed to a two-year, $104 max contract to return to the Los Angeles Lakers after opting out last week. The deal does include a no-trade clause, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

LeBron’s imminent return to the Lakers was never in doubt. While there was some speculation that he might force his way to Phoenix or wherever Bronny was ultimately drafted, LeBron’s ties to the Lakers were far too strong to leave LA now that his own son and namesake is on the team.

Days after becoming the league’s first father-son duo with the historic selection, the four-time NBA champions headed to X to witness the moment.

‘With the 55th pick in the 2024 NBA draft. The Los Angeles Lakers select……. Bronny James,’ the Lakers star wrote with six crying-laughing emojis. ‘Just having a moment!’

Bronny James has chosen to wear the number 9 shirt for the Purple & Gold, as announced on Tuesday

While James’ critics have encouraged him to retire, his career statistics are still at All-Star levels even as he enters his 22nd NBA season.

James was selected to the All-NBA third team in 2023-24 and averaged 25.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while making 41 percent of his three-pointers, a personal best.

Remarkably, LeBron and Bronny are already the highest-scoring father-son duo in NBA history, despite the latter having yet to score a single point.

LeBron’s NBA-record 40,474 points puts the duo in first place behind Kobe and Joe “Jellybean” Bryant (38,895 points), Steph and Dell Curry (36,338), Klay and Mychal Thompson (28,341) and Rick and Brent Barry (26,883).