ESPN pundit wants Warriors to trade for LeBron James

Responding to the rumors that the Warriors were searching for a star to pair with Stephen Curry, Wilbon suggested the NBA's biggest star and Curry's gold-medal teammate from the Paris Olympics.

"Let's cut to the chase with this. All those (Warriors) assets are great if Steph and Draymond (Green) are 31 and 32, and you could wait on them," Wilbon told the "NBA Today" panel. "But they're not 31 and 32 years old. You're talking about maximizing now, tonight." Wilbon added, "The Lakers stink, OK?"

The Warriors are 13-8, having snapped a five-game losing streak Thursday night with Curry and Green resting. It's been a solid start, but Wilbon acknowledged the team is a cut below other Western Conference contenders like the Oklahoma City Thunder (17-5) and the Dallas Mavericks (15-8) — though the Warriors have defeated both teams this year.

The team seems to agree that they need more. Friday, ESPN's Shams Charania reported that the Warriors were "on the real hunt for a star" to play with Curry. They unsuccessfully pursued trades for both Paul George and Lauri Markkanen this summer, then switched gears and added role players Kyle Anderson, Buddy Hield and De'Anthony Melton while extending Moses Moody.

But with Melton out for the season with a torn ACL and the Warriors struggling to close out games, the Warriors need more from their roster. James would be an incredible fit, though he'd be a good fit on any team.

What would the Warriors have to trade? The likeliest piece of trade bait is fourth-year forward Jonathan Kuminga, who put up a career-high 33 points in Thursday's win.

Kuminga's potential is sky-high, but he'll also be due a big contract as a restricted free agent this summer. Plus, he's been unhappy with coach Steve Kerr and his playing time in the past.

What it comes down to is whether James himself is open to a trade. So far, he's shown no inclination to leave the Lakers, either as a free agent this summer or when the Warriors showed trade interest before last season's deadline. The Lakers drafted his son and hired his former podcast partner, JJ Redick, to be the head coach, so James is pretty invested in Los Angeles. Even if they "stink."

So don't expect James to take his talents to San Francisco Bay any time soon. No matter how much fun it was to see him play with Curry on Team USA.