LeBron James’ Agent Stomps Out Lakers Star’s Trade to Warriors

Perhaps after last year’s blockbuster deal that saw the Lakers land star guard Luka Doncic, there is a growing belief in the NBA’s observer class that, hey, anything is possible. What if that anything was a trade that saw the Lakers trade away star LeBron James to one of the few places he might OK (he has a no-trade option in his contract) at this year’s NBA trade deadline?

The Warriors.

The idea came from Bill Simmons of The Ringer, who suggested that James could be sent north to the Warriors in a swap for Jimmy Butler, solving a couple of problems for both teams. The Lakers need a more pure perimeter forward to pair with Doncic, one who can bring a little attitude and some defense–more than James does at this stage of his career, at least. That’s Butler.

And the Warriors need a better up-tempo forward to drop into their lineup, one that does not force them to choose between playing at the crisp pace Stephen Curry prefers and the plodding pace that suits Butler. That’s James.

Easy enough. Swap them, right?

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Rich Paul: LeBron James-Warriors Trade ‘Not Gonna Happen’

Well not exactly, according to James’ agent, Rich Paul. Speaking on his podcast with Max Kellerman, “Game Over,” Paul said the Lakers and Warriors aren’t about to start playing “fantasy basketball.”

“Why don’t we just play duck-duck-goose?” Paul said. “I don’t like to get into that. It’s not gonna happen so why are we talking about things that aren’t gonna happen?”

A deal swapping Butler and James would work financially, and there’s no doubt that both James and Curry would welcome the opportunity to play together in the NBA before their legendary careers run up. Neither is on a sure contender this year.

Curry is 37 and averaging 28.7 points for a team that is 18-16. James, meanwhile, just turned 41 and is averaging 20.3 points for a team that is 20-11 but has lost four of its last five games.

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Lakers Trade Would Be ‘Fantasy Basketball’

There’s no guarantee, of course, that a James-Curry pairing would work well together, but it would be entertaining, and for both players, and for both the Warriors and the Lakers, doing something that is at least entertaining would probably be an upgrade.

But Paul seems to know that there are reasons–which he did not quite disclose, in part because Kellerman insists on interrupting him–why the Lakers and Warriors would not make such a deal. He did acknowledge that Butler would fit in Los Angeles and James would fit in Golden State, but added that each would fit on any team across the league.

“You and Bill can play fantasy basketball all you want,” Paul told Kellerman. “You can do that about anyone in the league. I believe any time you’re placing LeBron James on any team in the league it makes basketball sense. I think Jimmy Butler plays basketball the right way to where Jimmy Butler fits any team. Right now, I like him on the Golden State Warriors.”

So don’t expect that to change.

 

 

Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney