The Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors poor recent form has seen the trade rumor mill start up again.
On December 15, 80 NBA players who signed as free agents in the summer will become eligible to be traded. One of these is the LA Lakers‘ LeBron James.
James is not expected to be traded, he has never left a team mid-season, yet speculation has begun to ramp up, following the same pattern as earlier this year.
Prior to the trade deadline there was an approach from the Golden State Warriors, and on ESPN it has been debated whether LeBron James should be a target for them once again.
The Warriors are keen to add a superstar to join Stephen Curry in the twilight of his NBA career. After seeing him team up with former rival LeBron James in the Olympics, it’s back under discussion, at least in media circles.
The Warriors were a play-in team last year and looked to have made a big improvement this year, before a collapse sparked by De’Anthony Melton’s injury.
Having been second in the Western Conference, they have dropped to fifth at 13-9, and are considering how they can strengthen. NBA expert Bill Simmons has tipped them to move for Zach LaVine.
The possibility of a blockbuster move for LeBron James is remote, yet it’s one that made national headlines, in part because of the LA Lakers collapse in form.
The Lakers lost again last night to fall to 12-11 for the season. They are now 10th in the West.
Speaking to ESPN LA, Brian Windhorst reflected on the Warriors’ enquiry for LeBron James last season, and discussed how the Lakers actually asked the superstar what he wanted to do.
He explained: “One of the most fascinating stories of last season was the story about the Warriors calling the Lakers at the trade deadline, asking about trading for LeBron. That was a fascinating moment.
“The Warriors don’t do that unless they thought there was a real possibility that LeBron would want to go and that the Lakers would trade him.
“With the Lakers, from what I understand, the Lakers came to him, you know, is this what you really want [to stay]? You know, right?”
James decided to stay in LA – but the clear insinuation from Windhorst’s comments was that the Lakers would have listened to him if he said he wanted to leave, which would make sense, as he had some value and his contract was up in the summer.
And in any case, keeping the most high-profile player against his will, would have only led to more problems.
Windhorst went on to add that LeBron James’ current situation is a curious one. He noted that the LA Lakers did not fulfil their commitment to him to strengthen their roster in the summer – even though he pledged his immediate future to them.
He explained: “In the off season, LeBron was a free agent, unrestricted free agent. Could have gone anywhere. He openly told the Lakers, if you can get these certain players, I’ll take less money.
“The Lakers weren’t able to do that, and LeBron re-signed, and his son is here, and the coach that he preferred is on the bench.
“When LeBron re-signed, he knew the Lakers hadn’t improved their roster, right? He bypassed going to the Warriors last year. He bypassed going anywhere this summer.
“It wasn’t like he was stuck in the contract. He was willing to take less money. If he was willing to take less money, he could have gotten a lot of places and gotten less money.”
So on the face of it, LeBron James is very happy in LA, and has reason to be. It’s where he lives, Bronny James is on the team, and he fought to appoint JJ Redick.
Yet with seven losses in nine games, something is wrong. Trading Anthony Davis is the nuclear option – but very unlikely.
A few smaller trades are more likely, with the likes of Wizards center Jonas Valanciunas tipped as a target.
As for the Warriors, it’s quite possible they monitor LeBron James’ situation – and prompt another conversation with the superstar and the LA Lakers to check if he is happy to stay.
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