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Following the February 8 NBA trade deadline, the Warriors made waves after a report surfaced that they attempted to acquire Los Angeles Lakers superstar Lebron James.
Joining TNT’s “Inside the NBA” panel with Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal ahead of the 2024 NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, James addressed the blockbuster rumor.
“He didn’t get very far,” James told Johnson, Barkley, Smith and O’Neal. “In fact, I found out when everyone else found out. Charles has been in the league, Kenny has been in the league, Shaq has been in the league and sometimes there are conversations that happen behind closed doors that you don’t even know about until, I guess, whether they’re real or not, Then they will bring it to you.
“But it never reached me, so I also heard it when the reports came in.”
James acknowledged that he had heard of the rumor but did not fully confirm its validity. His response comes a few days after Golden State guard Steph Curry offered his stance on the James rumors to the Warriors.
“It’s always a surprise when things like that come to light,” Curry told reporters Wednesday. “Because I’m assuming that every team is making calls that if every fanbase or media group knew about it, it would normalize the conversations that happen in the front office, especially around the trade deadline when you’re scouting around the league who’s available and who’s available.” No.
“Obviously, a guy like Bron, you’d probably call just to see. I don’t know what the depth of the conversations were, but it was certainly a nice little surprise this morning.”
The idea of James dressing up for the home crowd at the Warriors’ Chase Center in San Francisco is understandably far-fetched.
Given the rivalry between James and the Warriors that has dominated the NBA playoffs and other prime time for a decade, it’s fair to assume the trade was baseless.
However, Warriors owner Joe Lacob, speaking with Tim Kawakami on the “TK Show” last Wednesday, didn’t hesitate to explain how Golden State always keeps its eyes open for improvements, no matter the means.
“As far as the reports go, I’m not going to say anything about any specific players or anything,” Lacob told Kawakami. “I’m just going to tell you that we are aggressive and we are analyzing things all the time.
“When we acquired Kevin Durant many years ago, we made an incredibly aggressive move. I think half our staff left to get (the deal) done. Even though we had a really good team, we felt like we could be better and (we improved). I tell Mike (Dunleavy Jr.) and Kirk (Lacob) that nothing is off the table, nothing.”
While Curry and James weren’t convinced by the rumors, one thing’s for sure: Lacob isn’t afraid to shoot if it means Golden State can improve.
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