When it was announced that LeBron James would not be returning to the Los Angeles Lakers next season, there seemed to be a couple of suitors that would be clear favorites to gain his services.
The Golden State Warriors are a pairing that many thought would be LeBron’s clear top choice, as it would give him the opportunity to team up with Stephen Curry and play with his friend Draymond Green. The Cleveland Cavaliers would allow for a storybook ending in what would be his third tenure with his home-state team.
Now, maybe the 41-year-old already knows what team he will be playing for next, and he just wants to be wined and dined by other teams. The fact is though that the Minnesota Timberwolves are on the now famous Rich Paul whiteboard.
Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic reported late Friday night that “the Timberwolves are ramping up their push for LeBron James.” Krawczynski also described what makes the Timberwolves' pitch so enticing.
"The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe ongoing deliberations, said the Timberwolves have been in contact with James’ representatives with a bold pitch: team up with Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert to go after the kind of championship that could end any discussion about who is the greatest player of all time." Krawczynski wrote.
It’s hard to find a better basketball fit, or a spot where he can further a legacy that is basically untouchable.
Timberwolves seem to be perfect match for LeBron
James helped the Cavaliers get the franchise’s first title in 2016. The Warriors have won four titles in the Curry era. A potential return to the Miami Heat would just bring LeBron back to a team he previously won two championships with.
The Philadelphia 76ers, another team rumored to have a large interest in James, haven’t taken home a ring since 1983. They still have won two since moving to Philly. That’s two more than the Timberwolves have accumulated, and they are still looking to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.
It wouldn’t just be about possibly bringing the Timberwolves a long-awaited championship that could bolster LeBron’s legacy. It would be doing so for the city of Minneapolis and the state of Minnesota as a whole. Both the Minnesota Vikings and Minnesota Wild have never experienced being the last team left standing. The Minnesota Twins last won the World Series in 1991.
Clearly, the Minnesota fanbase is starved for a championship team, as it has been three and a half decades since any of their four major men’s professional sports teams have done so (the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx have won four titles, last winning it all in 2017).
That doesn’t even account for the obvious basketball fit for James with the Wolves. He would more than fill the hole in the power forward depth chart for the team (they did sign Trey Lyles on Friday, but LeBron is obviously a much more impactful signing).
He could slide into a frontcourt featuring Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert to help lessen his defensive responsibilities in Year 24. Veteran leadership is lacking now that Mike Conley and Joe Ingles are no longer rostered by the team, and LeBron can take that on as well.
In the GOAT debate that mostly features James and Michael Jordan, winning with the Wolves might be the team that could nudge LeBron in many people’s minds past MJ.
The Timberwolves would be an incredible fit for the 2003 first overall pick. Let’s just hope that he hasn’t already made his decision and that Minnesota actually has a chance of adding him.
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