What did Rob Pelinka say about LeBron James? General Manager hopes NBA icon retires with the Los Angeles Lakers

It is currently unclear if LeBron James will remain with the Los Angeles Lakers after the 2025-2026 campaign. Despite not negotiating a longer-term contract with the organization, the four-time NBA MVP chose to exercise his $52.6 million player option for the upcoming season.

Now, recently, the team's general manager, Rob Pelinka, opened up about the NBA icon and his future with the team. Additionally, NBA pro Luka Doncic also did the same a few days ago.

Rob Pelinka and Luka Doncic hope LeBron James retires with the Los Angeles Lakers amid an uncertain future

LeBron James' contract with the Los Angeles Lakers is about to expire. In December, he turns 41. Furthermore, there is more ambiguity in his future than there has been in a long time.According to Rob Pelinka, the general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers, it "would be great" if James retired with the team.

He opened up about the same at the press announcement on Saturday, which was conducted to announce Luka Doncic's three-year, $165 million contract extension.

When asked if he thought that the giant would play for the L.A. Lakers until the end of his career, Rob Pelinka responded:"All the interactions we've had with LeBron and his camp, Rich Paul in particular, have been very positive and supportive… Very professional and Rich has been great.

The dialogue with him has been open and constant.The Los Angeles Lakers’ general manager then said:"In terms of LeBron's career, I think the No. 1 thing we have to do there is respect he and his family's decision in terms of how long he's going to play. I think that's first and foremost. We want to respect his ability to come up with his timetable and that's really important. If he had the chance to retire as a Laker, that would be great."

However, he didn’t say anything specific to the reporters.

Meanwhile, he wasn't the only person from the team to think that. NBA player Luka Doncic also shared the same sentiment.The Slovenian superstar has recently made his position known. This happened amidst growing issues about LeBron James' schedule and the team's choice to focus on Luka Doncic. Luka Doncic, the NBA's all-time best scorer, also wants LeBron James to end his career wearing purple and gold. However, he hasn't given any justification for his remarks as of yet. Also read: Luka Doncic wants LeBron James to finish his career with Los Angeles Lakers despite growing tensions