LeBron James’ next team has been one of the hottest talking points of the offseason.
With the rumor mill suggesting that LeBron James is unlikely to return to the Los Angeles Lakers, many teams have emerged as potential destinations for the King.
This includes James’ longtime rival, Stephen Curry’s team, the Golden State Warriors. The Dubs reportedly want to pair Curry with James during the twilight years of the two NBA legends.
Unfortunately, the Warriors’ recent Kristaps Porzingis decision has already shut down that possibility.
Golden State Warriors can no longer offer the $15m mid-level exception
Despite Porzingis playing just 15 games for the Warriors last season, the organization has re-signed him to a fresh deal. He signed a two-year, $40m deal with a player option in the second year.
So, how does this impact the Warriors’ aspirations of signing James? Well, Bobby Marks’ recent explanation of the Dubs’ $15m exception answers it.
“The Porzingis extension with Golden State, likely restricts Golden State from having the $15m non-tax midlevel exception,” Marks wrote on X. “$27m below the first apron and does not include a new contract for Draymond Green.”
He added, “You can exceed the apron to sign your own players. Using more than $6.1m of the exception hard caps a team at the first apron.”
In simple terms, the Warriors’ re-signing Porzingis is likely an early indication of James’ move already falling out.
How can Golden State Warriors still sign LeBron James and trade for Anthony Davis
The Warriors’ key selling point to James about joining the team is reportedly reuniting with Anthony Davis, who the Lakers famously traded to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Luka Doncic.
Since then, Davis has already been traded to the Washington Wizards. With the Wizards still being a new project, it’s hard to see them competing for an NBA title. So, the Dubs may trade for AD in exchange for a package around Jimmy Butler.
Assuming the Dubs still use the mid-level exception to sign James, they will have about $193m in salaries and the team will be hard-capped at around $209m.
Considering all of the Warriors’ guaranteed contracts in this scenario, they’d have 10 players on the roster. But most importantly, this is without Draymond Green, who recently opted out of his $27.7m player option.
Including Green, the Dubs would need to sign four players with just $16m to fulfill the NBA’s 14-player minimum roster requirement.
So, unless both Green and James are willing to make a massive sacrifice, there’s a very slim chance that the King will play for Warriors next season.
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