How NBA Stars Spent Their Summers

When you think about two of the top players in the NBA today, LeBron James and Stephen Curry come to mind. Their summers, though, paint very different pictures.

LeBron played it safe after his fifth championship win. He took a careful look at team rosters across the league and seemed to like what he saw from the Sixers with the addition of Jaylen Brown. Ultimately, he signed a minimal contract, perhaps in pursuit of one last championship.

Curry, on the other hand, is also in the race for his fifth title but seems to be taking more of a gamble. He’s placing his trust in Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr., who, interestingly, is moving forward without a focus on Curry’s later years. The Warriors, after all, only managed to win 37 games last season.

Surprisingly, the Warriors didn’t sign any free agents this offseason or make any trades. Steve Kerr is back as coach, but he’s dealing with new assistants and rookies needing to take on bigger roles.

With the exception of Jaxel Lendeborg, not much has changed for the Warriors. They’re still looking to add a few more players to complete their roster of 15, but the big news was re-signing Draymond Green for $28 million.

Dunleavy seemed satisfied with the offseason, stating, “Overall, I’m happy with the offseason. We like this team.”

During a video conference with the press, which felt a bit anticlimactic, Dunleavy addressed the lack of significant changes. Injury timelines for Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody are still unclear, and there’s been little advancement on a contract extension for Brandin Podzemski, although Dunleavy noted a desire to extend his contract.

As it stands, the outlook for Curry winning a fifth ring doesn’t seem overly optimistic.

“If people understood the cold calls I made to support our players, they’d see how hard we work,” Dunleavy commented. “We’re super aggressive.”

The Warriors missed out on high-profile players like Giannis and LeBron, and reportedly didn’t pursue Brown. Many of Dunleavy’s calls ended up yielding no trades.

Consequently, Curry is stepping into his 38th season with nearly the same roster that faced a play-in elimination against the Suns, who themselves were swept by the Thunder.

The Warriors have managed to re-sign several key players: Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, De’Anthony Melton, Gary Payton, and, of course, Green. They also drafted Jaxel Lendeborg while parting ways with Quinten Post.

Dunleavy explained, “We had to make a decision between talent and free time. There wasn’t really a perfect balance between the two. We opted for talent… hoping for luck, while improving in some medical aspects.”

The focus has shifted to the health of Porzingis and Horford, who collectively played just 60 games last season. Even Curry, while still talented, is dealing with health issues. Knee problems kept him to just 43 games last year, a situation Dunleavy described as “delicate.”

Still, Dunleavy has a vision. He sees a championship pathway with the current roster, but acknowledges, “We need to get healthy. We need to stay healthy. We need to evaluate where we are, and if we can improve, we will.”

Dunleavy also confirmed that the Warriors will actively seek roster improvements as the season progresses, aiming for more favorable outcomes.

If Curry were like many other superstars, perhaps he’d be looking to retire or push harder for changes. That’s often the norm in the NBA. However, unlike LeBron, who will be starting with a fourth team, Curry has made it known he wants to remain with just one team.

Currently, Curry is under contract for one more season, totaling $62.8 million.

Dunleavy expects they’ll finalize a deal when Curry becomes eligible for an extension later this month, although there hasn’t been any communication from Curry’s side to suggest any issues.

But his comments could be seen as telling.

“I’m pretty confident Steph will finish his career here,” Dunleavy remarked, “but ultimately it’s his decision.”

He continued, “If he wants to talk to me or Joe [Lacob], we’ll listen. We might not love it, but he deserves to choose his path. The idea that he’s going somewhere else? That’s not what we’re thinking or what he’s indicating.”