Will LeBron James finish his career with the Los Angeles Lakers? If the Golden State Warriors have their way, the answer will be no. The Warriors have contacted the Lakers multiple times in the last 18 months to inquire about trading for James, according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.
Here’s more from Fischer, emphasis mine:
“As long as LeBron James’ future in Los Angeles remains uncertain, Golden State will undoubtedly be mentioned as a potential James suitor. I’m told that the Warriors have called the Lakers on multiple occasions over the past 18 months to see whether there is any trade pathway to pairing James with Stephen Curry, who roughly a year ago at this time was teaming with LeBron for the United States senior men’s national team on its run to a gold medal at the Paris Olympics.”
Fischer also noted that Curry and James “were said to greatly enjoy their experience as teammates on the international stage.”
The Warriors’ interest in James was first reported around the 2024 trade deadline, when Adrian Wojnarowski indicated that Warriors owner Joe Lacob contacted Lakers owner Jeanie Buss to discuss the possibility. Buss told Lacob to speak to James’ agent, Rich Paul, who made it clear that James wanted to remain with the Lakers.
Fischer’s report is the first time that the Warriors’ continued pursuit of James has been revealed.
This has been an interesting summer for James and the Lakers, who are in the process of transitioning from the James era to the Luka Dončić era. Dončić, who arrived in a blockbuster trade ahead of the deadline this season, signed a three-year, $165 million extension on Aug. 2.
According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst and Ramona Shelburne, James has not been thrilled about how the Lakers have handled that process.
“James understood the Lakers taking advantage of an opportunity to pivot to the younger superstar. But from James’ perspective, sources said, nuance was sometimes lost during the transition,” Windhorst and Shelburne wrote.
Prior to Dončić’s extension, James decided to pick up his $52.6 million player option for the 2025-26 season instead of opting out and signing a multi-year contract with the club in free agency. When James opted in, Paul released an eyebrow-raising statement to ESPN:
“LeBron wants to compete for a championship. He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we’ve had for eight years with Jeanie [Buss] and Rob [Pelinka] and consider the Lakers as a critical part of his career.
“We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what’s best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career. He wants to make every season he has left count, and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and want what’s best for him.”
James’ decision to only commit to one more season with the Lakers, combined with Paul’s statement, left many wondering about “The King’s” future — both with the Lakers and in the NBA. In fact, speculation was so rampant that our own Sam Quinn ranked every team’s chances of trading for James. The Warriors, for what it’s worth, ranked third on his list.
LeBron James trade rumors: Ranking all 29 teams as possible destinations if the King and the Lakers break up
Sam Quinn
Paul threw some cold water on the possibility of a James trade in late July, however, during an appearance on “The TylilShow Live.”
“The man has a no-trade clause. End of story. He has a no-trade clause,” Paul said. “It’s up to him. He has a no-trade clause. So, in the event when a player has a no-trade clause and a team wants to trade that player, that player has the ability to say no. That’s in his contract.”
James is unlikely to be traded this season, but it’s clear the Warriors aren’t giving up hope of bringing the league’s all-time leading scorer to the Bay Area. Perhaps the real drama will begin next summer when James is set to hit free agency.