“I wasn’t surprised at all” — NBA insider reacts to ESPN report on LeBron James and growing Lakers tensions

LeBron James has once again found himself at the center of a Lakers controversy that has little to do with basketball and everything to do with power. According to ESPN, there have been reports of ongoing internal tensions between Lakers governor Jeanie Buss, the Buss family’s long-running disagreements, and LeBron James’ role and influence over the Lakers. While Jeanie Buss has dismissed the claims of any conflict between her and the Lakers legend, the situation has still drawn strong reaction from league insiders and fans alike. One notable reaction came from Skip Bayless, who took another dig at LeBron James and suggested the report only confirmed the beliefs, he held for years questioning James’ influence and intentions within the franchise. While LeBron James himself stayed silent, the story attracted reactions from insiders and analysts including Skip Bayless, who took a sharp dig at James after the report surfaced. “I wasn't surprised about a single thing I read in the new ESPN story about Jeanie turning on LeBron. It just took Jeanie a while to see through the act that has fooled millions of Blind Witnesses.”, Bayless wrote on X.Bayless previously claimed that LeBron James had quietly worked behind the scenes to force Reaves out of the Lakers by using the influence of his agent, Rich Paul. On Jan. 16, Bayless posted on X:“He clearly had conspired with Rich Paul about this. Le-Cron James is trying to push Austin Reaves out of the back door. He wants you gone, AR. Now you know”, Bayless posted on X (January 16, 2026).The ESPN report written by Baxter Holmes said that Jeanie Buss’ relationship with LeBron James slowly became strained over time. Tensions grew because of issues like James' "outsized ego", the fallout from the Russell Westbrook trade, how Bronny James being drafted was viewed inside the Lakers organization, that James should have been grateful, but that he "wasn't", and also Buss’ idea of selling the franchise to Mark Walter for $10 billion. At one stage, Buss even thought about not renewing LeBron’s contract in 2022 and briefly considered parting ways with him. However, after the story gained public attention, Buss was quick to respond. “It’s really not right, given all the great things LeBron has done for the Lakers, that he has to be pulled into my family drama. To say that it wasn’t appreciated is just not true and completely unfair to him”, speaking to The Athletic, Buss said.