The Golden State Warriors have been chasing the fantasy of LeBron James in a Warriors uniform for years. It’s the kind of rumor that refuses to die. And now that LeBron has reportedly told the Lakers he’s testing the market, that fantasy is closer than it has ever been. But according to Shams Charania, there’s a catch that makes everything a lot more complicated.
Charania laid it out bluntly on Tuesday. The Warriors, he said, are not viewed as a serious destination for LeBron unless they can also bring in Anthony Davis. Not just one superstar. Both of them. As a package.
“The Warriors going into free agency, they dreamt up a grand plan of Draymond Green, Stephen Curry, LeBron James. The big domino with them is trying to get a player like an Anthony Davis, you can bring in LeBron James and Anthony Davis as a package deal. Short of that, they’re not really looked at right now at the top of this list,” Charania said during a segment on Underdog NBA.
Here’s the problem. Davis currently plays for the Washington Wizards. So Golden State would need to orchestrate a trade for Davis before they could even think about signing LeBron. That’s not a simple phone call. That’s a multi-team negotiation with a lot of moving parts and probably some serious draft compensation going out the door.
The Warriors have assets. They have young players like Moses Moody and Brandon Podziemski, plus future picks they could dangle. But the Wizards are not a charity. They are going to demand a real return for a player of Davis’s caliber, even if Davis at 33 is not the same guy who dominated in the bubble. He’s still a top-15 player when healthy, and Washington knows that.
If Golden State can’t pull off the Davis trade, Charania suggested they are essentially a non-factor in the LeBron sweepstakes. That puts the Warriors in a weird spot. They have the money, they have Curry, they have the pitch. But they might not have the partner.
LeBron, for his part, has reportedly narrowed his options to six teams: the Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, San Antonio Spurs, and Philadelphia 76ers. That’s a deep list. Some of those teams can offer him a max deal outright without needing to trade for anyone else first.
At 41 years old, LeBron is still playing at an elite level. He carried the Lakers through the playoffs even without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves for stretches. Age is creeping up but the production hasn’t fallen off a cliff. Any team that lands him instantly becomes a contender, or at least they think they do.
The Warriors’ front office has been working behind the scenes for weeks. But the path they need to take is narrow. If they miss on Davis, they miss on LeBron. And if they miss on both, they are stuck trying to upgrade a roster that barely snuck into the play-in last season.
Free agency is moving fast. LeBron is not tipping his hand yet. But the clock is ticking and Golden State’s grand plan might already be running out of time.
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