STATELINE, Nev. -- As the Golden State Warriors' front office actively pursues unrestricted free agent LeBron James, the face of the franchise, Stephen Curry, acknowledged the appeal of a late-career Hall of Fame team-up with his longtime NBA rival.
"Up until probably two, three years ago, that was like a pipe-dream question or even a thought," Curry said. "But that's part of the allure. Him going into his 24th season, me going into my 18th, the battles we've had, that would be such a unique story in NBA history, in sports history. But a little premature right now to talk about it."
Curry is at Edgewood Tahoe golf course in Nevada this weekend competing against a group of sports stars and celebrities as one of the favorites in the American Century Championship, an event he won in 2023.
In advance, Curry had media availability Thursday afternoon, anticipating and receiving a flood of questions in relation to the Warriors' ongoing pursuit of James.
"Stay out of my personal business," Curry joked after a specific question about their recent communication.
Curry and James have talked in the last week, league sources confirmed, mostly through text message. Longtime Curry teammate Draymond Green is vacationing with James in Puerto Rico and was spotted on the golf course with him Thursday afternoon.
Since the early hours of free agency, Warriors sources have maintained a low level of optimism in regard to their chances of ultimately persuading James to join them, primarily acknowledging the Cleveland Cavaliers as a suitor that'd be difficult to beat.
But Golden State's advantages include the mutual respect and friendship James has with Curry and Green and the relaxed, veteran-friendly environment created by both of them along with coach Steve Kerr, who coached James and Curry in the 2024 Olympics.
"I don't have a percentage," Curry said. "It's kind of up to him. I feel like any place he calls and says I want to play there, you move mountains to make it happen."
The Warriors could theoretically improve their chances if they used their draft picks and executed a trade to bolster their roster before James makes his choice, but team sources have said only that they plan to keep roster room and a bit of financial flexibility for James until he is ready to declare his next NBA home.
"The pitch is: Do you want to play good basketball and be around people that know how to play the game?" Curry said. "Hopefully raise our floor and our competitiveness this year. There's good golf in the Bay. We're an organization that's been there. He knows that. That's really self-explanatory. It's a matter of where he sees himself fitting. At the end of the day, that's up to him."
If James declines to come to the Warriors, they mostly profile as an aging 37-45 team that is opting to run it back. Golden State has re-signed Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton in free agency and is expected to re-sign Green, who opted out of his player option to give the team temporary flexibility to chase James.
Is Curry comfortable if the roster is stable and James doesn't join?
"I mean, it's to be determined," Curry said. "That's what free agency is about. LeBron's in a situation where the league is waiting. It's great to get KP back, great to get Melt back. We're in a unique situation where Jimmy [Butler] is hurt, Moses [Moody] is hurt and they're going to miss a good amount of the season. You have to try to hold the fort down until those guys get back because we do have an idea of what we could be with them."
The Warriors did make a transaction Thursday afternoon, adding backup center Charles Bassey on a one-year contract, giving them a young energy big to absorb regular-season minutes after losing reserve center Quinten Post to Memphis.
Bassey fills the 11th slot on the Warriors' roster. It's anticipated that Green will eventually fill the 12th spot, and there is mutual interest, league sources said, in bringing Gary Payton II back.