For many years, LBJ actually wasn't the highest paid player in the NBA. He regularly took small discounts to maintain his ability to control his own destiny. Part of this is tied to how crazy Cavs owner Dan Gilbert was when LBJ left in 2010. So when he went back to Cleveland, he regularly played under a 1 year deal (with player option). To be honest, he probably knew he'd end up in L.A. at some point due to his entertainment interests.
There is really no precedent in the 21st Century of an All NBA caliber player playing for peanuts just to win. If I think hard enough, maybe Tim Duncan was low paid towards the end of his career but he wasn't an elite player at that point either. Obviously pro athletes have huge egos, and the list of guys who did what you suggest begins and ends with Tom Brady. Hypothetically if LBJ signed a contract anywhere close to the veteran's minimum to bring on another superstar, there would be allegations of bad faith and collusion. (Recall his move to Miami in 2010.) Only aging veterans without a championship will play for the minimum to "chase a ring," and it is within their rights to do so.
Also, salary cap math comes into play. LBJ is not a free agent now, but assume that he is. Even if he signed a minimum deal, the Lakers are still splashing money on free agents Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. So then they could go out and get a guy in free agency, but not a maximum salary guy like Kyrie Irving unless they found somewhere else to shed some salary. The players union would not be happy if LBJ played for $2M and also convinced Kyrie to play for $20M.
I have a personal theory on why LBJ signed a 4 year max deal with the Lakers a few years ago. You may say $44M (pre tax) isn't that much compared to his off court earnings and business empire. But I believe LBJ already has a gentlemen's agreement with Adam Silver that he gets first shot at owning the future expansion team in Las Vegas. Unfortunately for LBJ, the cost of the team is going to be in the vicinity of $4B. If he wants to be managing owner (aka Governor), he needs to own approx 1/3 of the team. LBJ is rich, but he's not that rich yet. So he needs all the money he can earn now, and he's going to have deep-pocketed investors in his bid.
As for LBJ the player, the WCF could have been more interesting if Darvin Ham had started Rui from game 2. He wasted a lot of minutes on D'Angelo Russell and Vanderbilt, and made the roster moves too late to matter. LBJ showed in game 4 he can still bring it, but due to fatigue, he stopped attacking in the second half. If they didn't ask him to guard Jokic (which he did well), and insisted he attacks the rim all game, it might have been a different series. It doesn't take a genius to know playing LBJ 48 minutes is not a smart move. The reason Ham had to stick Rui or LBJ on Jokic is because although AD is a very good defender, he doesn't relish guarding bigger men.
I'm not taking anything away from the Nuggets because I knew they were superior and am pulling for them to win their first title. But several of those games were decided in crunch time, so a few key adjustments could have made a difference.
There is really no precedent in the 21st Century of an All NBA caliber player playing for peanuts just to win. If I think hard enough, maybe Tim Duncan was low paid towards the end of his career but he wasn't an elite player at that point either. Obviously pro athletes have huge egos, and the list of guys who did what you suggest begins and ends with Tom Brady. Hypothetically if LBJ signed a contract anywhere close to the veteran's minimum to bring on another superstar, there would be allegations of bad faith and collusion. (Recall his move to Miami in 2010.) Only aging veterans without a championship will play for the minimum to "chase a ring," and it is within their rights to do so.
Also, salary cap math comes into play. LBJ is not a free agent now, but assume that he is. Even if he signed a minimum deal, the Lakers are still splashing money on free agents Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. So then they could go out and get a guy in free agency, but not a maximum salary guy like Kyrie Irving unless they found somewhere else to shed some salary. The players union would not be happy if LBJ played for $2M and also convinced Kyrie to play for $20M.
I have a personal theory on why LBJ signed a 4 year max deal with the Lakers a few years ago. You may say $44M (pre tax) isn't that much compared to his off court earnings and business empire. But I believe LBJ already has a gentlemen's agreement with Adam Silver that he gets first shot at owning the future expansion team in Las Vegas. Unfortunately for LBJ, the cost of the team is going to be in the vicinity of $4B. If he wants to be managing owner (aka Governor), he needs to own approx 1/3 of the team. LBJ is rich, but he's not that rich yet. So he needs all the money he can earn now, and he's going to have deep-pocketed investors in his bid.
As for LBJ the player, the WCF could have been more interesting if Darvin Ham had started Rui from game 2. He wasted a lot of minutes on D'Angelo Russell and Vanderbilt, and made the roster moves too late to matter. LBJ showed in game 4 he can still bring it, but due to fatigue, he stopped attacking in the second half. If they didn't ask him to guard Jokic (which he did well), and insisted he attacks the rim all game, it might have been a different series. It doesn't take a genius to know playing LBJ 48 minutes is not a smart move. The reason Ham had to stick Rui or LBJ on Jokic is because although AD is a very good defender, he doesn't relish guarding bigger men.
I'm not taking anything away from the Nuggets because I knew they were superior and am pulling for them to win their first title. But several of those games were decided in crunch time, so a few key adjustments could have made a difference.