NBA rumors: Warriors-LeBron not dead, Nets Ben Simmons problem, G League Ignite in limbo

NBA rumors: Too early to write off LeBron James trade to Warriors

The Golden State Warriors tried to trade for LeBron James before the Feb. 8 deadline, but the Los Angeles Lakers star rebuffed their advances. James has since proclaimed his loyalty in fairly uncertain terms, while the Lakers appear ready to go above and beyond to convince James to stick around. That could even mean drafting his son Bronny James, despite a poor freshman season at USC.

While James has planted deep roots in LA, it's hard to get the idea of him joining Stephen Curry in Golden State out of one's mind. For years, the NBA fandom has fantasized about what James and Curry would look like together. James is no longer in his prime, but the core skill set remains. His playmaking talent, combined with Curry's space-bending gravity as a shooter, would leave defenses in a constant scramble.

Brian Windhorst is one of the most connected LeBron reporters in the business. On Monday, he appeared on ESPN's Get Up to discuss the possibility of James joining the Warriors via offseason sign-and-trade.

The two sides "could revisit" a trade in the offseason, per Windhorst, who said he "would be a fool" to rule it out entirely. That said, ESPN's basketball guru also cautions against raising expectations. He dubs a LeBron-Warriors trade extremely unlikely. If anything, LeBron could use the Warriors as leverage to squeeze more guaranteed money out of Los Angeles in free agency.

James is probably destined to finish his career in purple and gold. Maybe that changes — a lot could be riding on his son — but very few teams have the cap space to make a competitive offer, and even fewer teams are legitimate contenders, too. All signs point to LeBron staying in LA, even if the Lakers continue to fail him with shoddy roster moves.