With Draymond Green opting out of his contract, there’s a looming possibility that the Warriors could pursue LeBron James in free agency and Anthony Davis via trade. Here’s how that could work financially:
For starters, the Warriors must include Jimmy Butler as a salary match in any potential trade for Davis. Butler’s $56.8 million salary matches up almost perfectly with Davis’ $58.5 million, and nobody else’s salary number on the team comes close — save for Steph Curry’s, and Golden State won’t trade him.
Then, the Warriors needed Green to opt out of his $27.7 million contract to have enough flexibility to trade for Davis and still sign James with their nontaxpayer midlevel exception — or perhaps even to take him in via a sign-and-trade. If Green renegotiates his deal to stay with the Warriors for, say, $52 million over three years, that would shave $11 million from his salary for 2026-27.
That $11 million makes all the difference in the Warriors staying under the first apron salary threshold, which they would need to do to offer James the $15 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception.
What we know about LeBron James’ retirement decision
Dan Woike
Trading Butler and draft capital to the Wizards for Davis would add about $1.5 million to the Warriors’ books. Add in the already agreed-upon deals with Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis adds another $26 million. If second-rounder Lajae Jones signs for the rookie minimum of $1.3 million, there are three roster spots left to fill and nearly $14 million below the projected first apron line with which to do it.
The Warriors couldn’t accommodate the entire MLE for James in this scenario, but they could pay him about $9 million — or maybe slightly more if Green takes more of a haircut than in my estimate above.*
(*Side note for the schemers out there — yes, it is theoretically possibly that Green could sign for the $2.4 million veteran’s minimum and then have a wink-wink agreement with the Warriors to take care of him on a huge salary a year from now using his Bird rights. However, the fun police in the NBA’s legal department would (correctly) view this is as blatant cap circumvention, and would not treat this as a laughing matter. Any contract Green signs needs to be relatively honest.)
However, James’s salary can rise as high as $21 million if the Warriors can work his acquisition as a sign-and-trade for the injured Moses Moody.
Moody would probably need to go to a third team along with fairly significant draft capital. He has two years and $26 million left on his deal and likely will miss most or all of the 2026-27 season after tearing his patellar tendon last March.
For instance, in my example above here Green makes $16 million in 2026-27 and Jones signs for the rookie minimum, the Warriors would have $26.5 million to spend below the first apron. Thus, they could accommodate three veterans at the $2.4 million veteran’s minimum and a $19 million salary for James in a sign-and-trade for Moody, and juuuust skate below the first apron.
