LeBron James agrees to 2-year, $85M extension with Lakers: reports

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LeBron James is staying in Los Angeles.

The Lakers star agreed to a two-year, $85 million contract extension that will see him playing in Los Angeles until 2023, his agent Rich Paul told The Athletic and several other outlets on Wednesday. 

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James, who will turn 36 at the end of this month, will now earn $39.2 million this upcoming season, $41,180,544 the next and $44,474,988 in his final season, ESPN reported. 

Fresh off his fourth NBA championship, James recently hinted at his desire to stay in L.A. when he said on the NBC Sports podcast Road Trippin’ that the Lakers could easily repeat this season. 

“I mean, it's that simple,” James said. “We absolutely can … First of all, it all starts with health. You have to have some luck. You have to have health. If we can stay healthy.” 

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The Lakers defeated the Miami Heat in six games to win the franchise’s 17th title in a season that was halted for months by a pandemic and then restarted in a bubble. 

The NBA will be the first major sport to make a second return this year as the threat of the pandemic continues to grow. The league sent out a 63,000-word document to teams over the weekend explaining some of the health and safety protocols ahead of the season start on Dec. 22. 

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The plan will still need to be approved by the NBA Players Association, but it will provide the blueprint for teams to begin training camp this week.  

The Associated Press contributed to this report.