Cleveland Cavaliers: Would LeBron James actually join the Warriors?

Rumors of LeBron James’ interest in joining the Golden State Warriors took the NBA by storm this week. But are clues of his departure legitimate?

The prospect of an NBA apocalypse set the internet ablaze this past week (or NBA utopia, depending on your point of view). LeBron James, nearly the greatest basketball player of all time, is considering joining the nearly greatest NBA team of all time, the Golden State Warriors.

Or those are the rumors according to ESPN‘s Chris Haynes, at least. The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar attempted to quell the gossip during media availability. James called the story “nonsense” and a “nonstory” while speaking with reporters.

It takes Sherlock Holmes-like detective work to determine if James is lying. On one hand, the thought of one team balancing the King, Keven Durant and Stephen Curry is absurd. Especially with the NBA cap shrinking this coming season.

But on the other hand, James is historically unpredictable. Nobody saw LeBron upending the 2010 free agency, stunningly “taking his talents to South Beach.” Maybe more surprisingly Cleveland’s prodigal son made his pilgrimage back to his home city in 2014. It was a return few saw coming, causing Cavaliers faithful to sheepishly unbury the ashes of charred James jerseys.

But let’s try to Sherlock this thing and see if James dropped any “clues” reflecting his feelings towards his future. First one, James’ recent comments concerning player/ owner relationships as it pertains to free agency. Multiple outlets quoted LeBron as chiding the current environment, claiming players are wrongfully looked at as “snakes” for leaving their teams. Here is the full quote from the New York Post:

"“When a player gets traded, [the front office] was doing what was best for the franchise,” James told reporters Tuesday. “But when a player decides to leave, he’s not loyal, he’s a snake, he’s not committed.”"

Is James trying to soften his fans’ opinions on his imminent departure? Maybe it was a Freudian slip, and his potential free agency is top of mind. Possibly. On the other hand, it could’ve been just an honest reaction to a reporter’s question, fueled by the backlash he received the first time he broke his fanbase’s hearts.

How about this? Prior to joining the Miami Heat, James supposedly bonded with future teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the 2008 Olympic team. Their friendship blossomed for two years before the trio joined forces in Miami.

In 2016, he teamed up with three Warriors players, Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green on his way to a gold medal in Rio. Is it possible that he formed the same bond with that trifecta that he did with his past Miami teammates?

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And “clue” three, James’ likely first selection in the NBA All-Star draft. LeBron chose Durant, possibly hoping to use the game is testing ground for their chemistry. Kind of like the time you took that one girl you met on Tinder to a wedding.

After a few drinks and an awkward attempt at slow dancing, you realize there aren’t any sparks. This case, however, is different. James and Durant spent two summers together on Olympic teams. They’ve been studying each others’ games for years, not to mention multiple meetings in the NBA Finals. There would be no need to give this relationship another test drive. Besides, James probably picked Durant first because he was the best player available.

Let’s put aside that doubt, however, and pretend James plans on joining the Warriors. Golden State would have to free up cap space to offer James a max contract. According to ESPN, the most likely scenario would be through a sign-and-trade, involving the four-time all-star Thompson and former Olympic teammate Andre Iguodala.

Durant would also have to take a pay cut, and another player would need to be moved. It isn’t rocket science, but acquiring James would take some serious maneuvering and many pieces had to fall in place.

What would Golden State look like with LeBron on the team? It’d be a juggernaut in so many ways, armed with three of the deadliest scorers in the game, with defensive versatility and length in the frontcourt. At minimum, four future Hall-Of-Famers, arguably the game’s best shooter ever with two of the top 10 most prolific scorers.

As “The Crossover” podcast points out, the Warriors don’t need James, and a potential partnership would damage both their legacies. But at least a small part of most curious NBA fans must want to see what that team would play like.

Next: 2018 NBA Draft big board: End of January

For the sake of the league’s 29 other teams though, let’s hope it doesn’t happen.