Warriors reportedly fear ex-Lakers star LeBron James will not join Steph Curry, Draymond Green

The Golden State Warriors know that LeBron James is the biggest free agent available and want to pair him with Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and the rest of their veteran core. James has largely stayed out of the process, allowing his agent, Rich Paul, to handle phone calls and negotiations.

The Warriors have done everything to land James, including Curry meeting with him before free agency started.

“Pairing him with Stephen Curry is going to be something that the Warriors are going to pursue over the next few weeks… It seemed very doubtful, it seemed low percentage, now it’s kind of questionable. Now there’s going to be some legs to this… That same source told us that Steph is planning on meeting and talking with LeBron about potentially joining the Warriors over the course of the next few weeks leading up to free agency,” NBA insider Brett Siegel said.

James has narrowed his list to five organizations he believes can compete for an NBA championship. Now, all that remains is for him to make his decision.

“It’s decision time for LeBron James… The Leading suitors have been CLE, MIA, GSW, PHI, and MIN…. LeBron James has made it clear privately that he wants to go somewhere he can compete for a championship. Somewhere he feels he finds that happiness from a team environment and culture that he can uplift,” ESPN’s Shams Charania said.

While the Warriors have done everything possible to convince James to come to the Bay Area, it no longer appears to be enough. Golden State reportedly feels like it is on the outside looking in.

“I'm kind of hearing today that the Warriors internally kind of feel like they're a dark horse at this point, that LeBron James is probably going out east,” ESPN insider Marc Spears said.

The Warriors believed they were in a strong position to land James until recently. They offered him the chance to form a generational duo with Curry, a pairing that would have immediately become one of the most feared in the NBA. James would also have had the opportunity to play alongside Green, one of his closest friends.

It is an unfortunate position for the Warriors, but the reality is they may not offer James the best opportunity to win another championship. Ultimately, that appears to be what his free agency decision will come down to.

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