Apparently, the Golden State Warriors are not entirely out of the LeBron James business.
Jake Fischer, who works for the outstanding Stein Line Substack, noted over the weekend how the interest in LeBron James from the Golden State Warriors—which was certainly has been a low hum in the NBA discourse for a long time, getting louder periodically—hasn't gone away. Golden State will apparently be kicking the tires on LBJ for a while longer.
It's a reminder that the speculation around LeBron, which is a constant anyway, is only going to get louder. Now it's not a forgone conclusion that James leaves LA after this season, for reasons explored in the episode. And it's highly unlikely, short of a catastrophic turn of events for the Lakers, that he's traded during the season (again, for reasons explained on the show). And even as a free agent, James might find that, depending on how his priorities truly shake out, the best spot for him is still the Lakers (for... wait for it... reasons explained in the episode).
That news may not excite a certain section of the fanbase, no question.
Meanwhile, it was a big Kobe Bryant weekend, with his birthday (8.23) followed by Kobe Day (8.24). Which got us thinking, in the spirit of the LeBron vs. Kobe rivalry the NBA could never quite make happen on the floor, but that certainly gained traction off it, where are the next great player rivalries?
Is the league not as well-constructed for that type of thing now?
Could the Lakers now be in a new "Rivalry Era" with Luka in the fold and the potential to generate more repeat playoff matchups with the same stars in competition with each other?
HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky
SEGMENT 1: LBJ rumors aren't going to stop.
SEGMENT 2: Where is LeBron going to be able to go?
SEGMENT 3: Rivalries!
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