LeBron James is officially a free agent after he decided not to return to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and Miami Heat are obvious landing spots for James. The Minnesota Timberwolves were floated as another team that is expected to have interest in James.
On Wednesday, however, ESPN insider Brian Windhorst named one intriguing team as an “outlier” in the James sweepstakes: The Denver Nuggets.
“An outlier team for LeBron was Denver,” Windhorst said. “During the year he was overly effusive with Jokic.”
Windhorst: “I have long believed that if there was an outlier team for LeBron…it was Denver.”
— DNVR Nuggets (@DNVR_Nuggets) July 1, 2026
“During the year he was overly effusive with Jokic.”
“He has a relationship with Josh Kroenke.”
“Peyton Watson, the Nuggets restricted free agent, also a Klutch client.”
👀👑 pic.twitter.com/Goa12dx3KM
Windhorst added that James has a relationship with Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke, so that could also be an interesting selling point for Denver.
To add more fuel to the fire, Bennett Durando of the Denver Post also reported that the Nuggets had reached out to James.
James has reportedly instructed his agent, Rich Paul, to gauge interest from across the entire NBA, and all signs point to the future Hall of Famer taking some time before he decides on where he will play in the 2026-27 season.
If LeBron James does end up alongside Nikola Jokic in Denver, the Nuggets would almost immediately be viewed as an NBA Finals favorite.
