LeBron James has officially joined the Los Angeles Lakers on a four-year deal, and it sounds as if it is only a matter of time before he and Kawhi Leonard are teammates.

The 33-year-old James is coming off a season in which he averaged 27.5 points per game with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

He fulfilled his promise to bring a championship to northeast OH and, despite losing to the Golden State Warriors in back-to-back NBA Finals, he solidified his reputation as the best player in the league, especially after leading an underwhelming supporting cast to the title series last month, one that ended in a 4-0 sweep in the hands of the Warriors.

Even the Los Angeles Rams extended their welcome to James.

WHY: Salary-cap space; business interests; iconic franchise.

Julius Randle remains a restricted free agent who the Lakers have a big decision on.

At the moment, he is expected to team up with Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and a roster composed of high-upside youngsters hungry for relevance and looking for a leader. Just as he did in 2014, James is likely to sign a shorter contract that allows him to do this whole thing again in a few summers. The Lakers, rich with young talent, have always been chasing a co-star for LeBron. That number will slowly rise over the course of the contract.

The bonanza started Saturday night when Durant chose to sign a two-year, $61.5 million deal with the stay with the two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors, one where he'll make $30.5 million this season. He is also not eligible for a no-trade clause.

With the Lakers, James will be playing in the Western Conference for the first time and just down the Pacific Coast Highway from the Warriors, the team that has stymied him three times in the past four finals.

As always, James' decision could change the entire complexion of the National Basketball Association. Now that he's in Los Angeles, that's impossible.

But here's to hoping the Sixers somehow meet the Lakers in the Finals for the movie's sequel "Process That".

George's choice could sway James to sign a short-term deal with Cleveland, but the Lakers are determined to get their hands on the four-time MVP.

If the Lakers can offer up enough assets to snare Leonard, the chances of James heading to La La land would seem a viable option due to Leonard being one of the premier two-way players in the game and the Lakers still having enough cap space to offer James a max deal.

With James signing in Los Angeles, that should invite plenty of agonizing debates regarding which player is better: LeBron James or Kobe Bryant.