Report: Cavs extend LeBron’s close friend amid superstar’s uncertain future

Cleveland Cavaliers president Koby Altman made some headlines on Monday over news of a contract extension with the franchise.

But Altman wasn’t the only one in the Cavs front office to be extended, as reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania. The NBA insider detailed that “owner Dan Gilbert rewarded Altman and his front office staff, including general manager Mike Gansey and assistant general manager Brandon Weems, with multiyear extensions, sources said.”

Weems, as it turns out, is a close friend of franchise legend LeBron James, a detail that may be of interest to some amid rumors about James’ future.

Weems and James are both Ohio natives who played sports together growing up, including in high school at St. Vincent-St. Mary. James reacted to Monday’s news on social media.

Rumors about James’ future have been one of the biggest storylines of the NBA offseason, and the drama all started when James’ camp made a statement to ESPN that raised some eyebrows.

When James decided to exercise his player option for the 2025-26 season with the Los Angeles Lakers, he added a twist, sending a message through his agent Rich Paul that he wants to compete for a championship.

“We do want to evaluate what’s best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career,” Paul’s statement said in part.

The statement seemingly left the door open for the veteran to request a trade. Naturally, there has been noise about the possibility of the Cavs being a landing spot for James if he were to leave the Lakers.

Last week, it was reported that Cleveland would only be interested in James if the Lakers were to buy him out. However, a separate report surfaced later indicating that the Cavs reached out to the Lakers about trading for the future Hall of Famer.

James may very well end up back with the Lakers when the new season begins, but his future is going to remain a hot topic for now and perhaps for the remainder of his NBA career since his L.A. tenure appears to be nearing an end.

The Cavs drafted James and then won a championship with him in 2016 after he returned to the team for a second stint. Another reunion between the two sides would make for an unbelievable ending to his NBA career.