The Curry-LeBron rivalry ran from 2015 to 2018, with four consecutive Finals and different outcomes, and eventually gave way to a genuine friendship as the dynasties evolved. Now LeBron James is a free agent for the first time since 2018, and the Warriors are chasing him. In a recent interview with Keith Jouganatos, Curry shared his thoughts on what it’d mean to play alongside LeBron.

“I’d say more, so I’m interested to just play golf with LeBron. We handle the basketball stuff, but I want to see the golf LeBron free agent. He’s out here really grinding on the game, but I’m sure we obviously would love to play together. Hopefully it happens, but he deserves the opportunity and the right to take his time with the decision,” Curry said. 

The partnership makes absolute sense if one thinks back to the 2024 Paris Olympics, where LeBron played under Steve Kerr alongside Curry, Anthony Davis, and Draymond Green. He said that the combination “felt effortless” because they “play basketball the right way.” But turning Olympic chemistry into an actual NBA deal is a different problem altogether, and right now the Warriors are running into walls on multiple fronts.

Per ESPN’s Anthony Slater, while Golden State has received indications from James’s camp that they remain on his short list, team sources have recently expressed doubt that they’re at the top of it.

That’s consistent with what Shams Charania told Stephen A. Smith: “The teams that keep popping up for me when I’m talking to teams are Cleveland, Miami and Philly. It was Golden State at various points, and it still could.”

Kalshi odds currently put the Warriors at just a 15% chance to land LeBron, behind the Cleveland Cavaliers at 49%, Miami Heat at 18%, and the 76ers at 16%.

And the reason Golden State’s odds are that low comes down to the fact that the Warriors’ best shot at landing LeBron is contingent on first trading for Anthony Davis, and that trade is currently stuck.

Charania laid out the plan, saying, “The Warriors’ whole plan going into free agency was, ‘OK, let’s see if we can [get] Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, LeBron James and Anthony Davis.’ Short of that, I don’t think the Warriors are up on that list.”

Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports also confirmed the two-step plan. Trade Davis from Washington, then use his arrival to convince LeBron to sign. The sticking point, though, is Washington. The Wizards are asking for Jimmy Butler (who is recovering from ACL surgery and has publicly said he wants to stay in Golden State), multiple first-round picks, and multiple pick swaps.

There are further complications as well. LeBron has not met with any team directly, assigning Rich Paul to negotiate on his behalf. The Warriors can only offer LeBron the $15.1M non-taxpayer midlevel exception, a significant drop from what he was making in Los Angeles. Draymond Green has already declined his player option and indicated he’s willing to take a discount on a new deal to help create flexibility. But even with that, Golden State’s offer to LeBron barely moves the needle financially compared to what Cleveland or Philadelphia could structure.

If the Davis trade falls through and LeBron goes elsewhere, the Warriors’ fallback is reportedly DeMar DeRozan, who the Sacramento Kings recently released.