LeBron James Predicted To Join Former NBA Finals Rival After Potential Lakers Exit

LeBron James’ future remained uncertain, but if he decides to continue his NBA career, one team is waiting in the wings to sign him and pair him with a fellow basketball great. 

According to NBA legend Gary Payton, James’ most likely destination will be the Golden State Warriors if he leaves the LA Lakers following this season. 

“I really think he is going to stay West,” Payton said in the Nightcap Show hosted by Shannon Sharpe, James’ friend. “There’s a good shot if he leaves [LA], he’s going to Golden State. I’m telling you he’s coming to Golden State if he leaves.”

If James decides to sign with the Warriors in the offseason, he would pair up with Steph Curry and Draymond Green, his former NBA Finals tormentors from 2015 to 2018. He would then also be coached by Steve Kerr, who mentored James in Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

He would also tag along with Jimmy Butler, whom James faced in the 2020 NBA Finals in the Orlando Bubble, where the Lakers won their last NBA championship. 

However, Payton believed that Lakers owner Jeanie Buss would not let James leave in the offseason if he still decides to play for one more year in the NBA. 

“I don’t think Jeanie Buss is going to let him leave,” he said. “I don’t think she is going to let him go anywhere.”

James is on an expiring deal after this season. He is earning $52.6 million this season, the highest-paid player on the Lakers roster. 

James’ retirement or transfer to any team would open up cap space for the Lakers, which they can potentially use to sign another star or quality role players to surround Luka Doncic, who many peg as the face of the franchise for the next decade. 

For Now, LeBron James Has Yet To Disclose His Next Career Move

GettyLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 11: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers warms up prior to Game Four against Oklahoma City Thunder in the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena on May 11, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)

LeBron James has yet to announce his next career move, as many options remain available after he got swept for the fourth time in his career against the OKC Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals. 

“With my future, I don’t know, honestly. It’s obviously it’s still fresh from, obviously losing [the series]. And I don’t know. I don’t know what the future holds for me,” James said after Game 4, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. 

James also revealed what it would take for him to continue playing basketball at the highest level. 

“If I can commit to still being in love with the process of showing up to the arena 5½ hours before a game to start preparing for a game, giving everything I got, diving for loose balls and doing everything that you know that it takes to go out and play,” he said.  

“Showing up to practices, 11 o’clock practice, I’m there at 8 o’clock preparing my body, preparing my mind, preparing to practice, to put the work in. So I think for me, I’ve always been in love with the process … so I think that would be a big factor.”

LeBron James Among 7 Potential Free Agents From the Lakers

GettyLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 11: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on against the Oklahoma City Thunder during the first quarter in Game Four of the Second Round of the NBA Western Conference Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena on May 11, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)

LeBron James will be among the seven potential free agents from the Lakers this offseason. 

He joins the list bannered by Austin Reaves, the Lakers’ second-leading scorer this season, Marcus Smart, Deandre Ayton, Luke Kennard, Maxi Kleber, and Rui Hachimura. 

With that many free agents, the Lakers are seen as an aggressive team in the season as they look to build a championship-caliber supporting cast alongside Luka Doncic next year. 

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