NBA Rumors: Warriors want LeBron James, Anthony Davis to join Stephen Curry

The Golden State Warriors have been among the offensive teams over the past few cycles looking for star power to go along with an aging Stephen Curry. They were linked to Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard at the trade deadline. They have been rumored to be interested in LeBron James as a free agent, and are trying to trade him in 2024. Now, according to Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo, they are looking beyond just James, but also former teammate Anthony Davis.

The basic premise here would be that Golden State will execute some kind of trade centered around Jimmy Butler and possibly writing money to the Washington Wizards for Davis. The Warriors will then try to sign James, combining the cores of their roster with the Los Angeles Lakers for most of the 2020s. Golden State will have the oldest starting team in the NBA, but one loaded with Hall of Fame talent.

There are immediately a few potential obstacles to a James-Davis reunion involving Curry, so let’s go over them quickly:

• Although Davis has never appeared to be committed to playing for the Wizards next season, it is unclear whether Washington is willing to trade him. Wizards general manager Will Dawkins even revealed that the contract was extended when he appeared on the radio during the second round of the NBA Draft. “We will have that discussion in mid-August when we will have it officially,” he said.
• Even if Washington is open to moving Davis, it’s unclear whether the Wizards would be interested in bringing Butler back to work. He’s recovering from a torn ACL, and with a midseason return expected, he may not be ready early, and there’s no telling what the 36-year-old will look like when he returns. The Wizards recently drafted AJ Dybantsa No. 1 overall and has other young players who need minutes, so Butler will enter a logjam in Washington.
• Golden State may not be the only team interested in Davis if he is traded. Marc Stein and Jake Fischer reported that the Portland Trail Blazers may view Davis as a potential plan B for Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown.
• On the James front, Golden State’s ability to offer him a reasonable salary depends on many other factors. After re-signing Al Horford earlier this week, the Warriors are nearly $20 million under the starting cap assuming Draymond Green picks his $27.7 million player. The mid-level variant creates the first apron, and starts at about $ 15 million, but currently the Warriors have only 10 players under contract, so filling the list with James at that price would be difficult. The Warriors are expected to keep Kristaps Porziņģis at center again, which will further reduce their flexibility. They could shell out more money in a trade, or Green could decline his player option and re-sign for less, but for now, figuring out how the Warriors can afford to pay everyone is tricky.

Put all this together and the Warriors are fighting an uphill battle in combining James, Davis and Curry. Anyway, we’re talking about a team that once won 73 games and convinced Kevin Durant to sign with them after beating the then-Oklahoma City Thunder star in the Western Conference Finals. Golden State has worked roster-building miracles before, and with James and Davis both past their primes, both will likely be as available as ever.