LeBron James' unique decision could spoil Mavericks' master plan in free agency

Jared A’Latorre

Klay Thompson, LeBron James / Harry How/GettyImages

The Dallas Mavericks are looking to strike gold again in free agency.

Earlier this week, the Mavs traded for Quentin Grimes from the Detroit Pistons for Tim Hardaway Jr. and three second-round picks.

Golden State veteran sharpshooter Klay Thompson had seemingly been interested in testing free agency waters even before the season ended.

However, one NBA superstar could make one move that would disrupt the Mavericks' hopes of grabbing Thompson in free agency.

LeBron James is willing to take less money to help Lakers sign Klay Thompson

The Mavs, including the Lakers, Clippers, and 76ers will have discussions with Thompson as free agency opens up, according to NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski.

It seems the Mavs have always played second fiddle to the Lakers in free agency in recent history, and this year could be no different.

However, in the past few days, the Mavs have been strong candidates to grab Thompson. This interest in Thompson dates back to before Dallas' season ended, and everything that has been reported so far indicates that the Mavs are deep in the mix for him.

Sources have told NBA reporter Dave McMenamin that Lakers superstar LeBron James is willing to take less money in order to sign a veteran or a big man, such as Klay Thompson or Jonas Valanciunas.

LeBron is willing to make a financial sacrifice for an established veteran playmaker or big man like Klay Thompson, James Harden or Jonas Valanciunas, sources told @mcten.

If the Lakers are unable to entice a player like that, James will seek the max, his agent Rich Paul said. pic.twitter.com/738xfWm597
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 29, 2024

Since their elimination in the 2024 NBA Finals, the Mavericks have needed a solid 3-and-D guy, and landing Grimes got the team better as a whole.

LeBron James will likely sign a new deal with the Lakers, after he chose to opt out of his final year of his Lakers contract. While one factor is his age, he's definitely looking for a veteran player aside him and Anthony Davis.

While James has his son by his side now, the roster for the Lakers is not enough to win a championship. That's why James is looking to spoil Dallas and their plans to grab Thompson in free agency.

For the Mavs, they're a team in contention for a championship. Maybe 10 years ago, the Klay Thompson sweepstakes wouldn't be a much of a competition between L.A. and Dallas, but Dallas as a basketball culture has changed. The attraction is a new ownership, Doncic, Irving and an improved defense where Thompson doesn't have the pressure of being a "splash brother."

Jared A’Latorre

Jared is the Site Expert of Sport DFW, and oversees Dallas sports all the time. He also spent time as a Senior Contributor to The Smoking Cuban, The Landry Hat and Gig Em' Gazette. His work has been featured on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, Yahoo Sports and MSN. He also covered various sports at Oklahoma State and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sports Media from Oklahoma State. He's done play-by-play radio broadcasting in North Central Oklahoma and currently does play-by-play radio broadcasting for high school football in North Texas. Jared is also a co-host for Grizzlies Digest, covering the Memphis Grizzlies. In his free time, Jared loves watching sports, spending time with family and friends and watching anything Billy Bob Thornton related.