According to NBA insider Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, the Golden State Warriors’ attempt to acquire LeBron James from the Los Angeles Lakers “was never, ever supposed” to leak.
Shelburne and Adrian Wojnarowski broke the story of the Warriors trying to trade for LeBron.
“Woj and I started working on it last Thursday night after the trade deadline,” Shelburne said on Zach Lowe’s podcast. “Everyone we called to check on it, I think their first reaction was, ‘How the hell did you hear about this? How the hell did you even get wind of it?’ Because like we use the word clandestine in the story, but it was. Another person said top secret. Like this was never, ever supposed to get out.”
LeBron and Warriors forward Draymond Green have the same agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports Group. Neither the Lakers nor LeBron were interested in a Warriors trade going down.
LeBron, 39, can become an unrestricted free agent this offseason if he declines his 2024-25 player option with the Lakers worth $51.4 million. If The King becomes a free agent, the Warriors will pursue him again, a source told Hoops Wire.
The NBA’s all-time leading scorer, LeBron has played for the Cleveland Cavaliers (twice), Miami Heat and Lakers. He’s a four-time MVP, four-time champion and four-time Finals MVP. The Chosen One wants to play with his son, Bronny, in the NBA next season. Bronny is eligible for the 2024 NBA Draft.
Despite being the oldest player in the NBA, LeBron is still a dominant force. He’s averaging 24.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 7.8 assists this season while shooting 52.0% from the floor, 39.5% from 3 and 74.1% from the free-throw line.
It will be fascinating to see where LeBron is playing next season. Most NBA insiders expect LBJ to be on the Lakers, but nothing can be written in stone with King James.
