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LeBron James Strongly Denies Report of Rift With Anthony Davis After Luka Doncic Trade

Ryan Phillips

Anthony Davis and LeBron James playing for the Los Angeles Lakers against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Anthony Davis and LeBron James playing for the Los Angeles Lakers against the Memphis Grizzlies. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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LeBron James wants it known that there is no rift between him and Anthony Davis.

On Saturday night, the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks shocked the NBA by consummating a blockbuster trade no one saw coming. Dallas sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers in exchange for a package centered around Davis.

In the aftermath of such a stunning deal, everyone tried to make sense of what had happened. CBS Sports' Bill Reiter was among them and he claimed to have some inside info. Reiter joined CBS Sports HQ and said that at last year's trade deadline, he was told James had grown frustrated with Davis.

James quickly denied the story on social media.

The 40-year-old four-time NBA MVP took to X (formerly Twitter) and tweeted: "You a fkn lie!!!"

That's about as strong a denial as you can get.

The Mavericks shipped Doncic to LA along with Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris, while receiving Davis, Max Christie and a 2029 first-round pick. The Utah Jazz are also a part of the trade as they landed Jalen Hood-Schifino from the Lakers and 2025 second-round picks from Dallas and the Los Angeles Clippers.

It was an absolutely stunning trade that apparently even caught James by surprise.

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Ryan Phillips
RYAN PHILLIPS

Ryan Phillips is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in digital media since 2009, spending eight years at The Big Lead before joining SI in 2024. Phillips also co-hosts The Assembly Call Podcast about Indiana Hoosiers basketball and previously worked at Bleacher Report. He is a proud San Diego native and a graduate of Indiana University’s journalism program.

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