The Warriors’ reported Anthony Davis chase was loud for about a minute, then the whole thing started falling apart.
What began early Monday as a stunning idea - Golden State trying to land Davis as part of a bigger push to bring LeBron James to the Bay - quickly turned into a case of conflicting reporting, skeptical insiders and a lot of people around the league acting like the story had gotten ahead of itself.
The first wave came Sunday night, when Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports reported the possibility. By Monday morning, ESPN’s Shams Charania had added fuel to it, writing on social media after Draymond Green declined his player option that Green was doing so to give the Warriors “flexibility to pursue LeBron James in free agency and Anthony Davis via trade to form a Big 4.” Charania didn’t spell out the mechanics, but the salary math would have required Golden State to move Jimmy Butler in any deal for Davis.
Around the same time, Anthony Slater of ESPN framed the situation by saying league sources told Charania the Warriors were “planning a pursuit” of James and Davis. Slater also noted the obvious connection: Davis, Green and James are all clients of Klutch Sports, the agency run by Rich Paul.
Then the pushback started.
On “The Rich Eisen Show,” ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said Golden State has a history of taking big swings during the NBA’s two main acquisition windows, pointing to Kevin Durant in 2016 and Butler in 2025. But the more telling detail came when he said Davis and his agent had discussed an extension with the Wizards on Sunday, the same day the Warriors rumor surfaced. Windhorst said his sources were “giving me the side-eye” because they believed the reports were really about negotiating leverage for Davis in Washington.
That skepticism kept building. In the “Stein Line” newsletter, Marc Stein and Jake Fischer reported the Warriors “certainly haven’t been operating under the premise” that they need Davis to get James.
They also said Butler “had been privately assured by team officials that he was going nowhere.” San Francisco Standard columnist Tim Kawakami reported that James and his agent haven’t explicitly demanded the Warriors acquire Davis before James would sign.
Golden State then made another move Monday, bringing center Kristaps Porzingis back on a two-year, $40 million deal. In ESPN’s story on that signing, Slater wrote that the Warriors “could” explore a Davis trade, but that “there has yet to be tangible movement on that front.”
That was a very different tone from the original “planning a pursuit” framing.
By Tuesday morning, Windhorst was even more direct. “I’m taking the Anthony Davis thing off the front-burner,” he said.
“I do not have data that says that’s likely to happen. Now, my information could change.
I do not see traction from the Wizards to want to do that. The Warriors told Jimmy Butler they’re not trading him.”
As for the real target, Windhorst said the attention is on James. “I think the focus right now is can they get LeBron James away from the Los Angeles Lakers? That’s something they’re going to try to get done today.”
That picture got a fresh jolt on Tuesday morning, when Charania reported that James had informed the Lakers he will be playing elsewhere next season. If James wants Golden State, the Davis angle could still come back into play. But for now, the supposed Warriors pursuit of Davis looks like it was dead before it ever truly got off the ground.
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For a team that has shown a willingness to explore the market when the right opportunity comes along, that matters. Porzingis contract structure leaves the door open for trade scenarios the Warriors would otherwise have had to set aside, and it is the kind of detail that can shape how aggressively they can pursue help around the core if a bigger name becomes available. [Read more 🡒]