It seems very unlikely that LeBron James will ask to be traded, let alone actually get traded, anytime soon. But the Golden State Warriors haven’t given up on their dream of pairing James with his good friend Stephen Curry.
The Warriors have reportedly tried to trade for the Los Angeles Lakers superstar three times in the last 18 months, including twice since the start of this offseason. The Lakers reportedly aren’t interested in any sort of trade that would send him to Golden State.
In particular, they wouldn’t want to take back six-time All-Star or emerging stud Jonathan Kuminga in any sort of hypothetical deal.
Via Lakers Daily:
“The Los Angeles Lakers have no interest in Golden State Warriors forwards Jimmy Butler or Jonathan Kuminga in a potential LeBron James trade, sources told Lakers Daily,” wrote Ashish Mathur.
James has a very rare no-trade clause that would allow him, at least to a certain extent, to dictate where he would be traded. But don’t expect him to ask to be traded anytime soon.
“James, 40, hasn’t requested a trade from the Lakers and doesn’t plan to, sources said.”
Butler is a six-time All-Star forward whose arrival made the Warriors very competitive again midway through last season. But he will turn 36 years of age next month and has two years left on his contract at well over $50 million per season. Kuminga averaged 15.3 points in 24.3 minutes a game last season, but there have always been questions about the 22-year-old forward’s dedication.
James’ agent, Rich Paul, made a public statement on June 29 that the two “want to evaluate what’s best for” the superstar moving forward. That statement was made when James exercised his player option for the 2025-26 season, and it instantly led to speculation that he would ask the Lakers to trade him.
Such speculation will not fully die down anytime soon, despite the immense complications of any potential trade involving the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers not interested in Jimmy Butler or Jonathan Kuminga for LeBron