Stephen Curry has already made the recruiting pitch.
Now the Golden State Warriors know what they can realistically put on the table.
ESPN front office insider Bobby Marks outlined Friday the financial framework available to Golden State if LeBron James decides he wants to join the Warriors, illustrating just how much roster maneuvering could be required to reunite two of the NBA’s biggest stars.
“Barring trading Moses Moody’s $12.5 million contract, Golden State has the $3.9 million veterans exception available to offer James,” Marks wrote.
That exception represents the Warriors’ simplest path.
A larger offer would require more significant moves.
Marks wrote that trading Moody would move Golden State roughly $38 million below the NBA’s first apron hard cap. If Draymond Green then signed a new contract in the $20 million-to-$22 million annual range, the Warriors could still fill out the roster with veteran minimum contracts while increasing James’ offer to approximately $6 million.
The numbers illustrate the financial limitations Golden State faces.
If James chooses the Warriors, it almost certainly won’t be because they offered the most money.
Warriors Continue Full-Court Recruitment
Golden State’s recruiting effort has extended well beyond the front office.
Curry publicly endorsed the idea Thursday while speaking at the American Century Championship.
“I don’t have a percentage,” Curry said when asked about the Warriors’ chances of signing James. “It’s kind of up to him.
“I feel like any place he called and said, ‘I want to play there,’ you move mountains to make it happen.
“And I know we’re in that boat as well.”
Behind the scenes, communication has continued.
According to ESPN’s Anthony Slater, Curry and James have exchanged text messages over the past week as the Warriors continue making their case.
Meanwhile, Green has been spending part of his offseason vacation with James in Puerto Rico, where the two were photographed playing golf together on Thursday.
The conversations underscore how seriously Golden State is pursuing the four-time NBA champion despite its limited financial flexibility.
Championship Opportunity May Matter More Than Salary
The Warriors’ recruiting pitch has never centered on money.
It has centered on basketball.
Curry made that clear Thursday.
“So the pitch is: Do you want to play good basketball and be around people who know how to play the game?” Curry said. “Raise our floor, competitiveness… There’s good golf in the Bay.”
The recruiting effort draws heavily from the chemistry Curry and James developed while leading Team USA to the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics under Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
James later described that experience as “everything and more,” calling the opportunity to finally play alongside Curry in meaningful games one of the defining moments of his career.
Marks’ salary cap breakdown helps explain the challenge now facing Golden State.
The Warriors can create a pathway to sign James.
Doing so, however, would require difficult roster decisions, financial sacrifices and, perhaps most importantly, a willingness from James to prioritize another championship opportunity over maximizing his next contract.
That has always been the Warriors’ bet.
Curry, Green and the organization are selling James on fit, familiarity and a chance to contend—not on the size of the paycheck.
Golden State Warriors’ Realistic LeBron James Offer Revealed