The Warriors came up short in the LeBron James sweepstakes, but they may not be the team left holding the most painful bill.
Golden State had plenty riding on James’ decision. His arrival would have brought a jolt of hope, a heavy dose of nostalgia, and at least the idea of one more swing at relevance alongside Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. Instead, the Warriors are left to clean up the rest of their roster, even if Green’s extension is already done.
Still, the damage in Golden State may not compare to what happened in Cleveland.
As Sam Quinn wrote in CBS Sports, the Warriors’ situation “is no worse now than it was a month ago.” The problem, of course, is that their baseline was already shaky. Cleveland, by contrast, built its entire offseason around landing James and paid a real price for that pursuit.
“The Warriors' overall position is no worse now than it was a month ago. That position just happened to already be quite poor.
But Cleveland staked this offseason entirely on the James pursuit. The Cavaliers lost Dean Wade and Keon Ellis -- their two best on-ball defenders -- in order to preserve financial flexibility to chase LeBron.
There are no worthwhile replacements out there.” Sam Quinn, CBS Sports
That’s the key difference. Golden State at least managed to keep its core rotation from unraveling.
The front office re-signed Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and De'Anthony Melton before the James chase reached its end. Each comes with questions, especially around availability, but the Warriors needed all three back because there wasn’t much of anything comparable sitting on the market.
Cleveland, meanwhile, watched two useful pieces walk out the door. Dean Wade was a meaningful part of last season’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals, even if his numbers were modest.
He averaged 4.4 points, shot 37.5% from three, and started a bunch of games across all three rounds. Along with Keon Ellis, who left for the Brooklyn Nets, the Cavaliers lost two of their most important perimeter defenders.
That matters even more when you look at the bigger picture in Cleveland. Assuming James Harden remains, the Cavaliers still have four All Star-caliber players and the pressure is squarely on to turn that into a title.
But the bench has taken a hit, and the depth chart now looks thinner than it did before the James pursuit. Mario Hezonja’s return from European basketball adds one more name, but it doesn’t change the uneasy feel of the roster.
If Dennis Schröder is moved on from this offseason, that picture gets even murkier.
Golden State’s ceiling is still limited, and losing James obviously stings. He was the best chance they had to land another star without gutting the future.
But at least the Warriors came out of the process with most of their roster still standing. In that sense, they may have lost the sweepstakes without suffering the worst fallout.
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One hypothetical has been enough to keep the topic alive, with a proposed framework built around Charlottes roster and draft flexibility to make the money work. It is the kind of exercise that feels far-fetched until it suddenly does not, which is why even a summer rumor around Curry lands with extra weight in Golden State, where every quiet stretch only sharpens the questions about what comes next. [Read more 🡒]