One decision may have cost the Warriors a chance to get LeBron James

In a somewhat shocking turn of events, the Philadelphia 76ers ended up on top of the LeBron James sweepstakes.

Not many people had them as the front-runner to sign the four-time NBA champion, but the path to getting James started weeks before he actually signed.

Per most reports, it all goes back to the Jaylen Brown trade, a surprising, all-in move that showed LeBron that the new-look Sixers were willing to take risks to get to the next level.

Notably, the Golden State Warriors could’ve also made the same move. But according to NBA personality Bill Simmons, they simply weren’t interested.

The Warriors weren’t interested in Jaylen Brown

“They weren’t interested. They were like, they didn’t even counter, when the Celtics were canvassing the league doing the Jaylen fire sale, the Warriors by all accounts, both sides, just not interested for Jimmy Butler’s expiring and some picks,” Simmons said.

In hindsight, it’s hard to blame the Warriors for not thinking Jaylen Brown was the guy they needed to get back to the mountaintop.

Nothing against Brown as a player or a person, but he didn’t bring anything to the table that the Warriors didn’t already have, at least on paper.

However, the move signaled much more than a transaction; it showed that the Sixers were done with their current approach and willing to go the extra mile to finally get over the hump.

James is about to play for one more year, two tops. He hasn’t been close to the NBA Finals for six years now, and that’s only going to be tougher as he gets older.

So, yes, perhaps he deserves some criticism for seemingly taking the easier path to a championship (again). But this should also be a testament to what a front office must do to lure top-tier talent to the mix.