While the Golden State Warriors remain in the hunt for LeBron James, their chances of landing “The King” will increase exponentially if they can acquire his former teammate, Anthony Davis, per multiple insiders.
Amid those reports, a potential Warriors trade proposal has been floated that will see the Bay Area franchise land Davis and three rotational pieces from the Washington Wizards in a package headlined by Jimmy Butler III.
Warriors Trade Pitch for Anthony Davis
Warriors would receive: Anthony Davis, Bilal Coulibaly, Cam Whitmore, Bub Carrington
Wizards would receive: Jimmy Butler III, Moses Moody, 2027 first-round pick (unprotected), 2031 first-round pick (unprotected), 2028 first-round pick swap, 2030 first-round pick swap, Round 1: GSW pick (WAS right to swap)
While the Warriors may be hesitant to part with two unprotected first-round picks and two pick swaps for an aging and injury-prone Anthony Davis, the move is angled to help the team lure LeBron James. Furthermore, the potential Warriors trade brings back three young rotational pieces that can be surrounded with James, Davis, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis to form a win-now squad.
Carrington flashed a lot of upside while starting 48 games for the Wizards last season, averaging 10.7 points and 4.6 assists while making 2.1 threes at a clip of 40%. The young point guard could be a perfect backup for Stephen Curry.
As for Whitmore and Coulibaly, the verdict is out on both wings after their inconsistent first few seasons in the league. While Coulibaly’s efficiency — he shot 42% from the field last year — has been erratic, some have questioned the motor of Whitmore, who was once pegged to be a part of the Houston Rockets‘ core before being shipped to Washington. Both players, though, have flashed a lot of potential and could be intruging fits on a veteran Warriors roster where they will assigned proper roles.
How Warriors Can Secure LeBron James
Per ESPN’s Shams Charania, the Warriors are behind the Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the pecking order for LeBron James due to their lack of star power and their reported unwillingness to trade Butler for Davis.
“The Warriors would need a little bit of work still [to land LeBron],” Charania said last week. “And the big thing with the Warriors was packaging LeBron James with another star player. And that’s when you would get LeBron James’ attention. That’s the idea.”
The insider added that there has been “no traction” on a potential Warriors trade for Anthony Davis recently, after the idea was consdiered at the start of free agency.
“And that’s when the Warriors went into free agency. Can we start a Big Four? Steph, Draymond, LeBron, and Anthony Davis. We know the relationship between AD and LeBron goes deep. And so, are you able to get that done?
“And so far, we’re 16 days into July. There’s been no real traction in any trade conversations the Warriors have on AD or any other star, which then leads me to believe that they are behind.”
Again, the Warriors are justified in not giving up too many assets for an aging Davis, who is owed over $120M in the final two seasons of his contract. But adding Davis could be their only real hope of bringing James onboard.
Warriors Proposed to Land Anthony Davis to Pair With LeBron in Mega Trade