{"id":174258,"date":"2026-01-25T11:49:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T16:49:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=174258"},"modified":"2026-01-25T11:49:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-25T16:49:09","slug":"why-giannis-and-lebron-are-emerging-as-warriors-targets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/25\/why-giannis-and-lebron-are-emerging-as-warriors-targets\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Giannis and LeBron Are Emerging as Warriors Targets"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"647\" data-end=\"782\"><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/a\/antetgi01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Giannis Antetokounmpo<\/a> and <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/j\/jamesle01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">LeBron James<\/a> are on the Warriors\u2019 radar as Golden State looks ahead to a potentially blockbuster offseason.<\/p>\n<p>According to league <a  href=\"https:\/\/marcstein.substack.com\/p\/the-jake-fischer-latest-the-nba-trade\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">reports<\/a>, the Golden State Warriors are monitoring both superstars in the upcoming offseason window, with Antetokounmpo viewed as a trade target while James is a possible free-agency option as the Dubs look to reshape their roster.<\/p>\n<h2>Why Giannis and LeBron Are Emerging as Warriors Targets<\/h2>\n<h3>The Warriors Need a Superstar<\/h3>\n<p>Golden State will need to find a high-level replacement for <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/b\/butleji01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jimmy Butler<\/a> after his recent <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/20\/jimmy-butlers-injury-changes-everything-for-warriors-this-season-and-future-what-is-next-for-the-dubs\/\" target=\"_self\">season-ending injury<\/a>. While the idea of acquiring both Antetokounmpo and James may seem like a dream scenario for Dub Nation, landing at least one of them could become a real possibility. With the Warriors sitting eighth in the conference (25-21), they can&#8217;t afford to waste any more time in maximizing another championship run. Either Antetokounmpo or James would represent an ideal solution to Golden State&#8217;s search for a Butler replacement.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>Since arriving in a February 2025 trade, Butler quickly became the Warriors&#8217; secondary offensive engine. The six-time NBA All-Star <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.nba.com\/warriors\/news\/jimmy-butlers-seamless-fit-with-warriors-and-rejuvenating-impact-of-his-starpower-20250219\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">instantly made an impact<\/a>, elevating those around him since day one while still averaging 20 points per game this season. Since he has been sidelined, Golden State have yet to win a game, highlighting just how important his presence has been.<\/div>\n<div><p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 800px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"b0c95bc04383cef69c6b47df872135cf\" image-id=\"WmOBr89LUKd1\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3072px; aspect-ratio: 3072\/2106;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Why LeBron Fits<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Warriors Want LeBron James, Can Lakers Get Something In Return?!\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/mBKtke8o8aM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><span>Even at this stage of his career, James remains one of the league&#8217;s most reliable playmakers. He would provide the Warriors exactly what they need: a proven figure capable of stabilizing an offense that has become <\/span><span><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/11\/30\/can-the-warriors-survive-at-least-one-week-without-injured-curry\/\" target=\"_self\">increasingly dependent<\/a> <\/span><span>on <\/span><span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/c\/curryst01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Stephen Curry<\/a><\/span><span>.<\/span><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><span>Despite being the oldest player in the league, there&#8217;s no doubt James still fits naturally within Golden State&#8217;s system. Built on spacing and movement, the Warriors would give him the freedom to thrive. With Curry drawing defensive attention, <\/span><span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/greendr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Draymond Green<\/a><\/span><span> facilitating, James could have complete control to attack mismatches and dominate games.<\/span><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><span>James has long shown an <\/span><span><a  href=\"https:\/\/www.cbssports.com\/nba\/news\/lakers-lebron-james-says-he-wants-to-play-with-warriors-stephen-curry-i-love-everything-about-that-guy\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">interest in playing alongside Curry<\/a><\/span><span>, and after the pair led the United States on the international stage during their 2024 Olympic gold medal run, a reunion at the NBA level could represent a fitting final chapter to James&#8217; career.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3>Why Giannis is in Play<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Bucks need to &#039;WAKE THE HELL UP&#039; &amp; trade Giannis \ud83d\ude33 Stephen A.&#039;s message to Milwaukee \ud83d\udd0a | First Take\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MwaYqnZx5-o?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div><span>Trading for Antetokounmpo represents the ultimate franchise-altering option for the Warriors. With questions continuing to surround his <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/01\/24\/what-does-giannis-antetokounmpos-latest-injury-means-for-the-bucks-and-when-will-he-return\/\" target=\"_self\">long-term future in Milwaukee<\/a>, the possibility of a deal at this point in his career no longer feels unrealistic. For Golden State, Antetokounmpo provides exactly what the roster needs. He brings elite size, interior scoring, and a championship pedigree, all of which would complement Curry\u2019s perimeter-based game.<\/span><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><span>The &#8220;Greek Freak&#8221; has recently been mentioned in <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2025\/12\/09\/could-warriors-pull-off-giannis-trade\/\" target=\"_self\">trade talks involving the Warriors<\/a> after his calf injury sidelined him for weeks, raising the possibility that a deal could materialize sooner than the summer trade window. A ten-time All-Star averaging 28 points per game at 6-foot-11, Antetokounmpo offers a higher ceiling than any other available target and represents exactly what the Dubs need in the pursuit of their eighth championship.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><span>\u00a9 Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images<\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James are on the Warriors\u2019 radar as Golden State looks ahead to a potentially blockbuster offseason. According to league reports, the Golden State Warriors are monitoring both superstars in the upcoming offseason window, with Antetokounmpo viewed as a trade target while James is a possible free-agency option as the Dubs look [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5650,"featured_media":174412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,25,62],"tags":[306,142,38,48],"class_list":["post-174258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-warriors","category-nba","tag-giannis-antetokounmpo","tag-jimmy-butler","tag-lebron-james","tag-stephen-curry"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/174258","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5650"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=174258"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/174258\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":174417,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/174258\/revisions\/174417"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/174412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=174258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=174258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=174258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}