For the second year in a row, the Golden State Warriors are at least keeping the door open for LeBron James should he consider leaving the Los Angeles Lakers.

On Wednesday’s episode of Stand upBrian Windhorst of ESPN stated that the Warriors will “definitely monitor” James’ status in the unlikely event that he desires a trade:

“The Warriors have been dreaming of pairing LeBron with Steph Curry and Draymond Green since last year. You made a request that was posted last February. That was before LeBron played with Steve Kerr and Steph Curry and won the gold medal. “So, they’ll definitely be monitoring the situation and I don’t think they’ll do anything without knowing that door is closed, but I’d just say it’s up to him to have a no-trade clause. There’s no indication that he wants the Lakers to do anything other than improve their roster, and not that he wants to go anywhere.

The talks went nowhere as neither the Lakers nor James were willing to explore a trade, but Warriors governor Joe Lacob made the call with “encouragement” from Draymond Green.

After James and Stephen Curry played together on Team USA in the Olympics this summer, fans began to at least speculate about the possibility of them working together in the NBA.

When James was asked about that possibility during training camp in October, he didn’t give a definitive answer, although he didn’t completely rule it out either.

James received a full no-trade clause from the Lakers two years, $101.4 million Contract he signed in the offseason. It always felt like he would finish his career in Los Angeles since he joined the team in the summer of 2018.

With the Lakers having fallen to eighth place in the Western Conference standings after losing seven of their last nine games, James may be coming to a point where he wants to see if there is a situation that is more suitable, to fight for a title in his career closer to a conclusion.

The Warriors have an elite defense that ranks fourth in scoring, but their offense ranks just 14th this season. Jonathan Kuminga has been a disappointment so far after breaking through in the 2023/24 season. De’Anthony Melton is out this year with an ACL injury that required surgery.

All of the depth that Golden State was praised for over the summer is starting to evaporate, leaving Curry and Green to carry a heavy load going forward.

With this duo, James would give the Warriors more clout, but the chances of him or the Lakers even considering a trade at this point seem slim.