LeBron's Lakers Teammates Reportedly Predicted Warriors as Landing Spot Before James' 76ers Contract

The Golden State Warriors were reportedly the "predicted landing spot" for LeBron James in free agency this summer by "plenty" of his former Los Angeles Lakers teammates, per The Athletic's Dan Woike.

Instead, James signed with the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday, joining Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Jaylen Brown and V.J. Edgecombe.

As Woike noted, Golden State would have been an understandable choice for James, where he "would be able to stay on the West Coast where he and his family had made their home the past eight years. He'd be able to play with people his age. It's easy to imagine the amazing dinners and amazing bottles of wine, the conversations beginning with, 'Remember when,' while the defining winners of a generation—James, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Steve Kerr—put the finishing touches on an era of NBA basketball."

What the Warriors couldn't necessarily offer compared to other suitors, however, was the ability to keep pace with the top title contenders. A core of James, Curry, Green, Kristaps Porziņģis—and eventually Jimmy Butler upon his return from a torn ACL—would have been talented, no doubt, but would it have kept pace with the Oklahoma City Thunder or San Antonio Spurs?

When James and Curry were in their primes, no doubt. Now, however, it's hard to imagine that group keeping pace in the Western Conference.

It's far easier to envision Philadelphia emerging from the Eastern Conference given an absolutely stacked roster. Even if the 41-year-old James and the injury-prone Embiid miss plenty of games this season, Maxey, Brown and Edgecombe are available to pick up the slack. And when that group is fully healthy, James' playmaking ability will be vital, allowing Maxey—who thrived next to James Harden—to play off the ball.

As Woike noted, "Sources close to James told The Athletic on Friday, on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, that the reason he picked Philadelphia wasn't a part of some complicated decision matrix. It was, simply, the place James thought he could go and have the best chance to win a championship."

Nobody would have blamed James for easing into retirement with a fun season in Golden State. But he wants another chance at a title, and ultimately Philly made more sense in that regard.