The Golden State Warriors have quickly gone from betting favorites to almost an afterthought in the LeBron James free agency sweepstakes.
Per ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers have emerged as the three finalists to land James, dealing bad news to the Warriors, who have reportedly kept a roster spot open for the four-time MVP.
“The teams that continue to come up are Cleveland, Miami and Philadelphia,” Charania told “Straight Shooter” on Tuesday night.
“… When the Sixers got Jaylen Brown, I did some research and [James] is taking their pitch very seriously. When I talk to teams now, I have a hierarchy of Cleveland, Miami, Philadelphia and then some teams on the periphery.”
Notably, Charania also said that James and Draymond Green — who opted out of his contract to create cap flexibility for James — are slated to meet this week. However, it’s unknown if the meeting will lead to James inking a deal with Golden State.
Warriors Still Pursuing LeBron James
The Warriors have had a relatively quiet free agency thus far. While they re-signed free agents Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis and De’Anthony Melton to new deals, they struck out in their pursuit of Rui Hachimura and Anfernee Simons, and have yet to announce a new deal for Green, who opted out of his 2026-27 player option.
Yet, Golden State continues to keep a roster spot open for James.
“They have limited financial flexibility after bringing back Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis, keeping space for Draymond Green to ultimately return and continuing their slow pursuit of LeBron James,” ESPN’s Anthony Slater said this week.
“On the James front, Warriors sources continue to express a low level of optimism that James will ultimately pick them as his next team, but they intend to keep roster space open for James until he ultimately declares his choice.”
LeBron James Pursuit Still Alive?
The Athletic’s Marcus Thompson, though, has pushed back on the notion that the Warriors are out of the LeBron James free agency race. The Warriors insider believes Stephen Curry and Co. have just as good a chance as the Cavaliers, Heat and the other suitors for the four-time NBA champion.
“You keep saying they’re not the favorites but who is at this point? If it was that easy [to go to Cleveland], he already would have signed,” Thompson said.
“I think if LeBron is scouring this league looking for a situation, he clearly hasn’t found too many better than the Warriors.”
Much like Charania, Thompson said that James has yet to make up his mind and continues to mull his options.
“I mean, I know he is canvassing the league. Clearly, money is not a thing for him because they Lakers didn’t offer him what he wanted, so he said, ‘I’m out,’ and he gave away his leverage,” he told KNBR radio in San Francisco.
“So now he is at the point where not that many teams can offer him money. Unless he is willing to take the minimum and go somewhere, the Warriors’ midlevel looks pretty good. Steph Curry, Draymond Green, his boys, it’s looking pretty. Cleveland might be the best competition for the Warriors.”
LeBron James is reportedly in no hurry to make his decision, and could make his suitors wait several weeks or possibly even a month.
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