LeBron won’t waive no-trade clause

If any teams had hopes of prying LeBron James from the Cleveland Cavaliers before Thursday's trade deadline, it seems they can disregard that possibility.

James will not waive his no-trade clause and is committed to seeing this season through with the Cavs, despite their recent struggles.

"I owe it to my teammates to finish the season out," James said following the Cavs' 116-98 loss to the Magic in Orlando on Tuesday night. "I would never waive my no-trade clause."

Cleveland has lost 13 of its last 19 games and is in danger of slipping to fourth in the Eastern Conference. The Cavs are currently 6 1/2 games back of the No. 2 seed and 7 1/2 back of the conference's top seed.

James has the option to become a free agent this offseason, fueling speculation that he will leave Cleveland for the second time in his career, without the Cavs receiving anything in return.

Per Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports, the Cavaliers have been looking to buy at the deadline and have not talked with James about the idea of rebuilding, which would mean trading away core players.

James would be due $35.6 million in 2018-19 if he opts into the final year of a three-year, $100 million pact signed in August 2016.

James finished with 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in the defeat against the Magic. Entering Tuesday, the 33-year-old was averaging 26.3 points, 8.7 assists and 8.0 rebounds per game across 51 games in his 15th NBA season. — Reuters