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LeBron James seems to be down to four teams in his 2026 free agency: the Cleveland Cavaliers, Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, and Golden State Warriors. Fans of the New York Knicks have known for weeks that "King James" was unlikely to pick New York City as the location of his next throne, leaving them little else to care about this offseason besides replacing Mitchell Robinson and celebrating their NBA Championship.
As James' free agency starts to wind down, though, it's becoming increasingly clear that Knick fans should hope he chooses to start the 24th season of his illustrious NBA career with the Warriors. The reasoning is incredibly simple: they're the only remaining contender for his services that plays in the Western Conference.
The East projects as a brutal battlefield for the defending champions, regardless of whether or not James transfers over from the Los Angeles Lakers. If there's still a world where he winds up out west, though, the Knicks should be hoping they live in it.
Will potential team-up with Curry, Draymond be enough to sway LBJ?
New York has just one roster spot left, and should realistically use it on a third center. James, however, was just the best player on a Lakers squad that won a playoff series against the Phoenix Suns. Even at 41 years old, the superstar has still got "it" and has as good of an argument as anyone else for deserving a final go at a fifth NBA title.
Rich Paul, James' agent, claimed the Knicks would have been the easy choice had they not just won the 2026 NBA Championship. Luckily for fans in the Big Apple, no one will ever actually know if one of the greatest athletes of all time could've ended their title drought. They did it on their own, with a cast of stars, role players, and even coaches that had chips on their shoulders.
Brunson, as a result, joined the likes of superstars like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, and Dirk Nowitzki that "won the right way." While Antetokounmpo just recently gave up on the Milwaukee Bucks, it's only been five seasons since he had Brunson's place atop the basketball world.
James, on the other hand, has been there four times — most recently in 2020. He clearly understands that, to do it again, he needs to buy into being someone's Robin. If it's Curry, the Knicks avoid a few extra regular season games' worth of documentary credits and hubbub at Madison Square Garden.
Trying to become the first NBA Champion in nine seasons to mount a successful title defense is already hard enough. The Knicks won't have any control over where James lands, but they can certainly hope it's somewhere in the Western Conference.
The Minnesota Timberwolves certainly have room after moving off of Julius Randle and Naz Reid. But, just like the late 2010s when it came to defeating James, the Warriors seem like New York's only hope.
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This article was originally published on dailyknicks.com as Knicks better hope LeBron James joins Stephen Curry's Warriors.
