Like sharks sensing a presence in the water, Rich Paul's cryptic statement that accompanied LeBron James' decision to opt in to his $52.6 million salary for next season led some teams to call the Los Angeles Lakers about the four-time NBA MVP's availability.

LeBron is the master of offseason passive-aggressive statements to get his team to spend. This is more of the same.

LeBron James captured his fourth and most recent NBA title in 2020 with the Los Angeles Lakers. Since then, both LeBron and the Lakers have made repeated efforts to chase another championship, but every postseason run has ended in disappointment.