According to the predication-based app Kalshi, as of July 5, the Minnesota Timberwolves have a 5% chance of landing superstar LeBron James.
Although that’s not a high percentage of likelihood, it’s enough to at least dive into what the Wolves would look like in 2026-26 if, by some chance, James would decide to pair up with Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and company.
And if The King decided to come to Minnesota, he would be in line to experience something he hasn’t played with for a decade.
King of the Pack?
The case for James to sign in Minnesota on the court is strong, especially since James has made it known that he will not be making The Decision Part II of choosing where to play off of financial decisions. Instead, he has made it known he is weighing happiness and a chance to win a fifth title at the top of his wish list. With the Wolves only having enough money remaining to sign someone with a veteran’s minimum contract, this at least makes this scenario a possibility.
From an on court standpoint, the Wolves currently don’t have a natural power forward on the roster, instead trusting small forwards Jaden McDaniels and Terrence Shannon Jr. to play out of position. This does leave the sparring spot open for James should he sign with the Wolves, but the Wolves true case comes from what they can provide on the court for one of the best to ever play the game.
History of Health — Or Lack Thereof
Pairing James with an offense that includes Edwards and Ball at the guards would give James an elite backcourt, something James has experienced the past two seasons in Los Angeles with Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves. However, in Edwards, James gains something that he hasn’t fully had since 2016-17 in Cleveland — a healthy secondary star. The last year in Cleveland, James played with Kyrie Irving, who played and started in 72 games that season. The following year after Irving’s departure, only JR Smith, Jeff Green and Kyle Korver played over 62 games with the Cavaliers.
The following season, James went to Los Angeles to revitalize a Lakers team that had been stuck in transition since the retirement of Kobe Bryant, playing just 55 games for the Lakers in that first season en route to a 37-45 record. On that team, young up-and-coming Lonzo Ball would only play 47 games, 21-year-old swing man Brandon Ingram would only log 52, and other than Kyle Kuzma, JaVale McGee and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, no one on that team would play more that 70 games.
The following year, in 2019-20, the Lakers would win the championship in the bubble, thanks to a massive trade to land Anthony Davis. The season would be shortened to just 69 games with a month-long break before returning to action for the home stretch of that season. Davis would play 62 games or the equivalent of 73 games in a normal 82 game season, but his health was helped by the time off to recover mid-season.
During the pandemic-shortened season of 2020-21, James would be limited to playing 42 of the 72 games, with Davis playing just 36.
In 2021-22, it was just 40 games for Davis and 56 games for James, while Malik Monk and a 33-year-old Russell Westbrook were the only players to play over 70 games.
In 2022-23, Davis played in 56 games and a young Austin Reeves played in 64 games, starting 22 of them.
The following season was the healthiest team James has had, with Davis playing in 76 games, Reeves playing in all 82, and D’Angelo Russell playing in 76 — however, the team finished as the eighth seed that year and lost to Denver 4-1 in the postseason.
The 2024-25 campaign saw Davis traded to Dallas for Doncic, and Doncic battled injuries before he even landed in LA, playing just 28 games to end the season.
And then last season, in 2025-26, James saw Doncic play 64 games, Reeves play 51, and himself be limited to just 60 games.
You get the point here.
Wolves Can Offer Health
Since that 2016-17 season, James has only had an All-Star caliber player play 70 games with him once, that being Davis in 2023-24, thus has had more seasons missing the playoffs (two) than championships (four). For the Wolves, this is the biggest pitch they have for James — he won’t have to do it alone.
Last season, the Wolves won the award for the best medical staff in the NBA and they had six players play over 70 games. Donte DiVincenzo played in all 82, Julius Randle played in 79, Naz Reid in 77, Rudy Gobert suited up for 76, McDaniels played 73, and Bones Hyland took the court in 71. Edwards played in 61 games after battling a toe injury in the early season and knee inflammations at the end of the year.
Three of the six 70-plus-game players would be back next season around a hypothetical James signing. DiVincenzo will make his return at some point given he progresses well from his Achilles rupture in the playoffs. For Edwards, the 61-game season is the first time he has played under 72 games in his career, this coming after three straight years of playing in 79 games.
The pitch for James could be focused around the brilliant passing of Ball and how Edwards can take pressure off of James on the offensive side of the ball. It could also be about Gobert and McDaniels being able to take the toughest perimeter matchup and post match up every night allowing James to rest more on the defensive end. The Wolves could focus on their depth as Ayo Dosunmu, Shannon Jr., Joan Beringer and eventually Divinvenzo give the Wolves a legitimate nine-man deep rotation with scoring and defense at every level.
However, the best case might be the simplest. After a decade of James having to play with injured stars, the Wolves can offer him a healthy roster that won’t leave him as the lone star.