In the midst of rumors stemming from a Wednesday night story that stated LeBron James would consider a max offer from the Golden State Warriors if one came his way this upcoming offseason, the Cleveland Cavaliers superstar was quick to shut down that notion during his first chance after today’s practice.
In fact, The King had confided in people close to him that he would “never” join the Warriors, based on the impact that would have in his legacy, according to Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com.
James told reporters not to trust any reports that didn’t come from the horse’s mouth, calling the report “nonsense” and insisting his focus remains in finding a way to navigate this Cavaliers team into a fourth-straight NBA Finals appearance.
The Cavs forward has seen the avalanche that came after Kevin Durant once he chose not to re-sign with the Oklahoma City Thunder and bolted for the Bay Area in the summer of 2016. Having already taking plenty of heat for joining his friends in South Beach in 2010, a wiser James knows just what avenues to avoid if he hopes to come away with a clean legacy once his career is over.
Mathematically speaking, it would take a massive reconstruction for the Warriors to make such an offer to James — a re-engineering of their entire homegrown system just to even have the chance to pitch a max-offer, which he could decline at a moment’s notice.
A narrative of if-you-can’t-beat-them-join-them is barely enough to bring any substance to this and even if he’d listen, it’s very unlikely he would consider making such a risky career move based on his red-carpet road to the Hall of Fame as soon as his playing days are under wraps.