Lakers' LeBron James responds to Jeanie Buss' reported frustrations with him: 'It don't bother me'

In the midst of a 3-6 swoon that most recently included a loss to their crosstown rival the Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers have dealt with some additional off-court drama this week in the form of a report into the Buss family drama that led to the team's sale to Mark Walter last year. 

Among the many tidbits of information in ESPN's story was reporting about Jeanie Buss, the team's governor, growing frustrated with superstar LeBron James in recent years for a variety of reasons. From feeling like James got outsized credit for the Lakers' 2020 title to frustrations with how he washed his hands of the Russell Westbrook trade that the Lakers made to appease him and quickly became a disaster, Buss' relationship with James reportedly soured. 

Buss released a statement on Thursday pushing back on the report, but the controversy lingered. On Thursday night after their loss to the Clippers, James was asked about the reporting and shrugged it off, insisting that he's not bothered by how someone feels about him. 

"When I came to this organization, my whole mindset was about restoring excellence, and the things I seen growing up with the Lakers," James said. "I didn't get a chance to watch the Showtime [Lakers] but I know the history and then the early 2000s with Shaq[uille O'Neal] and Kob[e Bryant] and what Kob did those couple runs with him and Pau [Gasol]. So, my whole mindset was how can I get that feeling back to the organization. When the Lakers and Knicks and Bulls and Celtics are good, it's great. And I was able to do that, along with 14, 16 other guys -- winning a championship and bringing a championship here. That's always been my mindset. 

"Quite frankly, I don't really care about articles. I don't care about stories. I don't care about podcasts and all that type of shit. It don't bother me. I'm 41 years old, and I watch golf every day. I don't care about an article. I don't care how someone feel about me. If you know me personally, then you know what I'm about. These guys know what I'm about and that's all that matters. I could care less how someone feel about me." 

While James' tenure with the Los Angeles Lakers got off to a flying start, leading L.A. to its first championship in more than a decade in 2020, things feel very different now. James is in his eighth season with the Lakers and is on an expiring contract after failing to agree on an extension last summer. It seems far more likely he will either retire or play somewhere else if he chooses to continue on for a 24th season in the NBA, rather than continue his career in L.A. 

There have been signs in recent years the Lakers are ready to move on from the LeBron era, with the biggest signal being last year's trade to bring in Luka Dončić. James and Klutch Sports no longer wield the kind of influence they once had over the Lakers' basketball operations, and it's become clear L.A. is ready to move on and build around Dončić. 

That could be because of Buss' feelings toward him or simply the natural progression of a superstar in the late stages of his career. In either case, the Lakers and James seem headed for a split. That there's some messiness to it all on the way out comes as little surprise given the histories of both the player and franchise. However, history also suggests that at some point in the future they'll all come back together to make up and celebrate his tenure in L.A. with a statue outside.