“It is with great remorse that I am writing this. After many years as a peer and many years as a friend and teammate, I have decided to end my friendship with LeBron James,” Jefferson wrote in a note posted on his Snapchat account. “I am saying this publicly so that the fans and media members can please stop asking me where he is going in free agency. I don’t know, my family doesn’t know and neither do my kids.

“Unfortunately I live in Los Angeles so the questions are unavoidable but hopefully this helps clear things up. Truth be told I never liked the guy. He works too hard it makes the rest of us look bad. He’s my son’s favourite player and I view that as a complete betrayal of how hard I’ve worked to put a roof over his head.”

Jefferson, 38, spent last season with the Denver Nuggets after playing with James for the previous two seasons with the Cleveland Cavaliers, helping the team win the 2015-16 championship.

James, 33, could become a free agent on Sunday by opting out of the final year of his deal with the Cavaliers. The Los Angeles Lakers are expected to be among the many teams competing for his services if he becomes available.