The Golden State Warriors can be as interested as they want to be in LeBron James, but there are a few different reasons to suggest that they won't actually have an opportunity to land him.
For one, finding the perfect trade package for the Los Angeles Lakers to agree to will be tough, and the Warriors aren't exactly loaded with assets that they likely want to give up in a deal.
One potential path, according to Sam Quinn of CBS Sports, is swapping Jimmy Butler for James straight up. He also had another possible scenario for the Warriors to consider, but it would make things even more confusing than they already are.
How can Warriors get LeBron James?
“Rather than including Butler, the Warriors could match money by dealing several smaller salaries, including Draymond Green, Moses Moody and Buddy Hield.
“However, such a maneuver would hard-cap the Warriors at least at the second apron because they'd be aggregating contracts, and potentially, they could be locked below the first if they take back less money than they send out in the deal, which would be probable. Notably, the Warriors have not signed a single veteran free agent this offseason because they don't want to trigger a hard-cap of any kind,” he wrote.
As he touched on, being hard-capped at the second apron would be far from ideal.
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The Warriors are trying to stay far away from the second apron, and for good reason.
Every team around the NBA right now is, too, as it essentially kills teams from building the best possible roster.
Ultimately, however, if they could land James, it might be something to consider.