Warriors reportedly have $73M Plan B for ex-Spurs 6-time All-Star if LeBron James signs elsewhere originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Golden State Warriors have been at the center of free agency headlines and remain one of the teams most heavily linked to LeBron James. Golden State knows it likely has one final opportunity to compete for a championship with Steve Kerr, Steph Curry, and Draymond Green leading the way.

Early in the process, the Warriors appeared to be the favorite to land James. Curry reportedly met with James in June to discuss the possibility of joining Golden State.

“Pairing him with Stephen Curry is going to be something that the Warriors are going to pursue over the next few weeks… It seemed very doubtful, it seemed low percentage, now it’s kind of questionable. Now there’s going to be some legs to this… That same source told us that Steph is planning on meeting and talking with LeBron about potentially joining the Warriors over the course of the next few weeks leading up to free agency,” NBA insider Brett Siegel said.

However, if James ultimately decides not to sign with Golden State, the Warriors already have a backup plan in mind: veteran forward DeMar DeRozan.

“The Warriors will pursue DeMar DeRozan in free agency, if LeBron James decides to sign elsewhere, per Anthony V. Slater. Golden State now has their Plan B option in place,” NBA reporter Evan Sidery wrote.

DeRozan became available after the Sacramento Kings moved on from the veteran, giving contenders around the league an opportunity to pursue him.

“The Sacramento Kings have waived DeMar DeRozan, the team announced Monday, making the six-time All-Star one of the top free agents on the market. DeRozan had a partial guarantee on his contract for next season, but he and Sacramento worked on his release to allow him to find a new home. Multiple contenders are expected to have interest in the veteran guard,” ESPN wrote.

The Warriors would still be adding an accomplished veteran if they land DeRozan after missing out on James. While he is not the same caliber of player as James at this stage of his career, DeRozan would still provide Golden State with another proven scorer and six-time All-Star.

DeRozan was on a $73 million contract with the Kings before being waived. What a deal with the Warriors would look like remains unknown, but one thing is clear: Golden State appears prepared to aggressively pursue DeRozan if it misses out on James.

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