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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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The LeBron James era in LA is officially over. On Tuesday morning, ESPN's Shams Charania reported that James has told the Los Angeles Lakers he intends to keep playing in 2026-27, but plans to test free agency elsewhere. Instead of returning to play alongside Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, or retiring altogether, James will be competing for another contender next season.
At 41 years old, James is still playing All-Star caliber basketball, averaging 20.9 points, 7.2 assists, and 6.1 rebounds across 60 games last year, helping the Lakers grab the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference and being their most reliable player in the playoffs.
The widespread belief right now is that James will end up on the Golden State Warriors, forming a superteam next to Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and, potentially, Anthony Davis. The Warriors are the current favorites to land James, according to Kalshi, with Golden State hovering over 60%, followed by the Cleveland Cavaliers at around 20% and the Miami Heat at 10%.
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But soon after the news dropped that James would not be returning to LA, another Western Conference contender quickly emerged, the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski has thrown out the idea that James could be interested in joining the Wolves due to his connection with franchise star Anthony Edwards, and what it would do for his legacy to win one more in Minnesota.
"He has long been a fan of Anthony Edwards. Coming to Minnesota to end a long championship drought would make an even stronger argument for GOAT status," Krawczynski wrote.
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Minnesota just landed LaMelo Ball from Charlotte, sending out Naz Reid and a haul of draft picks to get him. They've now got one of the best backcourts in the NBA, but what they don't have is veteran championship experience.
Adding James would immediately help with that first part. He's won four NBA championships, one with every team he's played for, and is arguably the greatest basketball player of all time. The Wolves would still need to add some more depth in the frontcourt to combat the losses of Reid and Julius Randle, but adding James would be an exciting start.
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James is likely looking at a non-taxpayer mid-level exception after leaving LA, and Minnesota's already tight on cap space after the Ball move and new extension for Ayo Dosunmu. But if they can somehow make it work, it immediately pushes the Timberwolves into the title conversation with a potential starting five of Ball, Edwards, James, Jaden McDaniels an Rudy Gobert.
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