Rob Pelinka opened up his start-of-season press conference Thursday by thanking LeBron James for his eight years with the Los Angeles Lakers.
"I thought it would be appropriate ... to express gratitude for the LeBron era here," the Lakers' president of basketball operations and general manager told reporters. "Clearly, new team, new players, and that's what we're gonna talk about today. But we just as an organization are still grateful for the run that we had with him here.
"The Lakers have become - as they should - a perennial playoff team. Won a championship, went to the Western Conference finals, and it was a great era, and we're grateful for it. So, I just think it's important to say at the onset as we turn into a new chapter."
James led the Lakers to their 17th championship during his second season with the club in 2019-20. The four-time Finals MVP also became the league's all-time leading scorer as a member of the purple and gold.
James signed a two-year, $8-million contract with the Philadelphia 76ers this offseason. Pelinka added that he has no ill will toward James and his camp, saying his departure was done "amicably" and "professionally."
With the 22-time All-Star now playing elsewhere, Pelinka is looking forward to starting a new Lakers era around Luka Doncic.
"Luka is the world's greatest offensive player, and for us to be able to have ... that player in our building every night as a 26-year-old is special," Pelinka said. "And it requires us to do special things to build the team around him. And that's what we started this summer. And we're really, really happy with the way it's looking so far."
Los Angeles' notable offseason moves included re-signing Austin Reaves, acquiring center Walker Kessler in a sign-and-trade with the Utah Jazz, and inking free-agent guard Quentin Grimes to a four-year, $60-million contract.
The Lakers were swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the second round of last season's playoffs.
