Lakers need LeBron James, and he needs them. Its time to get deal done

Let’s be real. The Lakers need LeBron James.And he needs them. Why is this taking so long?There’s no better free agent on the market than James, who pretty much single-handedly carried the Lakers past the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs.Of all the stars on the team, it was the 41-year-old whose body was healthy come playoff time.

While Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves were sidelined with injuries, James led the team to a 3-0 series lead over Houston.He’s still a superstar.

He still has unparalleled durability. How many playoff games has James missed over his 23-year tenure in the NBA?Zero. It’s shocking.But James is as reliable as they come, even as the oldest player in the league. James embodies a lot of things the Lakers lack on their current roster, headlined by Doncic and Reaves. He’s a big body.

He has championship experience.He can impact things on the defensive end.

And above all else, he can be counted on during the postseason, something invaluable to a franchise that has won 17 championships and considers anything short of a title as a failure. As for James, he’s not going to find a better situation than the Lakers. He wants a chance to win his fifth title.There was proof in concept of how successful the trio of James, Doncic and Reaves could be in March, when they went 15-2 and looked like one of the NBA’s best teams.

Who knows how far they could’ve gone during the postseason had they all remained healthy. He doesn’t want to leave his family.He wants to be able to attend as many of his 11-year-old daughter’s volleyball games as possible.

He wants to play alongside his son, Bronny, who has a partially guaranteed contract with the Lakers next season. And during his free time he wants to play golf, his latest obsession since turning 40.That pretty much eliminates Cleveland, which is a frozen tundra for much of the year. It’s hard to imagine he’d want to start over with new teammates and a new coach in the ...