Stay or go: 5 NBA stars with player options (and which should decline)
The clock is starting to tick a lot faster for a number of NBA stars to opt into their contracts for the 2025-26 season.
Following this week's NBA Draft, players and teams with contract options available have until June 29 to make their decisions. That's barely three days for agents and general managers to navigate the fallout of the draft and try to get a sense of what the free agent market will look like.
Fortunately for a number of big names with player contract options, the decisions are fairly simple. In fact, we've gone ahead and made the choices for them. Here are five stay or go decisions for stars with a player option to exercise.
LeBron James, F, Los Angeles Lakers
2025-26 Salary: $52,627,153
VERDICT: STAY — Easiest decision to stay imaginable. Especially now that there's reporting that this won't be the 40-year-old's final season. James averaged 24.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 8.2 assists per game. Age is only a number for this guy.
James Harden, G, Los Angeles Clippers
2025-26 Salary: $36,346,154
VERDICT: STAY — As tempting as a reunion with Kevin Durant in Houston sounds in theory, Harden is perfect right where he is. The Clippers finished 18 games over .500 and went an impressive 19-5 over the final month of the regular season.
Julius Randle, F, Minnesota Timberwolves
2025-26 Salary: $30,935,520
VERDICT: STAY — He's still just 30 years old, playing on a team that made back-to-back Western Conference Finals and contributed 18.7 points per game as a secondary option. It won't get better than this for Randle.
Kelly Oubre Jr., G-F, Philadelphia 76ers
2025-26 Salary: $8,382,150
VERDICT: LEAVE — Oubre is another solid piece who can help a contender. It's just not clear if that's what the Sixers at the moment. Until Joel Embiid can prove he's healthy and durable, Oubre is better off chasing rings and cash elsewhere. His 15.1 points per game will be more valuable elsewhere.
Bobby Portis, F, Milwaukee Bucks
2025-26 Salary: $13,445,754
VERDICT: LEAVE — While the Bucks figure out whether or not Giannis will be part of their future, Portis is already on record stating he'd like more money. At 30 years old, and averaging 13.9 points and 8.4 rebounds last season, Portis remains a solid contributor who could help plenty of contenders. He might as well take control of his future rather than hand it to the Bucks.
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