2024 NBA free agency rumors: LeBron James considering paycut

The 2024 NBA season is officially over, and the offseason is in full swing.

The league's new collective bargaining agreement allows teams to negotiate with their own players right after the final game of the season. That said, players aren't allowed to negotiate with teams other than their own until June 30 at 6 p.m. ET, and contracts can't be signed until July 6 at 12:01 p.m. ET.

Some of the biggest unrestricted free agents to keep an eye on are LeBron James, Paul George, James Harden and Klay Thompson, to name a few. 

Here's the latest off-court buzz from around the league.

LeBron James has opted out of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers to become an unrestricted free agent, according to a report from The Athletic. James had a player option worth $51.4 million for the 2024-25 season. He's expected to negotiate a new deal with the Lakers, per the report.

Los Angeles Lakers guard D'Angelo Russell has exercised his $18.6 million player option for the 2024-25 season. Russell averaged 18 points per game on 41.5% shooting from 3-point range, in addition to 6.2 assists per game, in 76 appearances with the Lakers last season.

The Atlanta Hawks have agreed to trade Dejounte Murray to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for Larry Nance Jr., Dyson Daniels, a 2025 first-round pick via the Los Angeles Lakers and a 2027 first-round pick, according to ESPN. Murray will join a core of CJ McCollum, Herbert Jones, Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson in New Orleans. The Pelicans finished eighth in the Western Conference last season with a record of 49-33.

The Warriors are buying some time to figure out their situation with Paul. Both sides have agreed to push back the date for Paul's 2024-25 salary to become fully guaranteed until