Shams listed LeBron’s suitors twice this week, Denver wasn’t on either list

It’s been nine days since the Denver Post reported the Nuggets contacted LeBron James. Eight days since Rich Paul put Denver on the whiteboard. A week since the odds shifted from 70-1 to 25-1 for him to sign in the Mile High City.

And ESPN’s Shams Charania has not mentioned the Nuggets once in the past two days.

Not on Wednesday. Not on Thursday. Two straight days of national television, two straight lists of LeBron suitors without the Nuggets on them.

On July 8, Charania rattled off the “leading contenders” on SportsCenter: Golden State, Cleveland, Miami, Philadelphia, Minnesota.

No Denver.

On Thursday, he went on NBA Today and gave the latest: teams have been sending voice notes to LeBron through Rich Paul. Golden State, Cleveland, Miami, Minnesota and Philadelphia.

Meanwhile, Charania’s colleague Brian Windhorst — the guy who started the LeBron-to-Denver conversation — went on ESPN Cleveland this week and said the 76ers are the favorites to land James because of his close friendship with Tyrese Maxey.

Some voices outside of ESPN have still listed the Nuggets as an option but it’s clear Denver is, at the very least, moving toward the bottom of the options.

But it’s worth noting, the Warriors — once the favorites — have moved in the hierarchy based on the way Charania is talking. On July 7, he told the Stephen A. Smith Show: “The teams that continue to come up are Cleveland, Miami and Philadelphia… I have a hierarchy of Cleveland, Miami and Philadelphia and then some teams on the periphery.”

But being “periphery” is different from being invisible.

What we know: the Nuggets made the call, Rich Paul confirmed Denver was on the board, and the basketball fit with Nikola Jokic remains the best in the league. What we also know: James is “not in a rush,” there’s “no timetable,” and the last two weeks have been “a lot of family, friends, and golf.”

One of those friends? Brandon Weems — LeBron’s childhood buddy and a leading executive with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Another friend he’s about to spend time with? Draymond Green, who is also conveniently a free agent after declining his $27.7 million player option to give the Warriors flexibility.

LeBron is golfing with Cavs executives and hanging with Warriors free agents. He’s not, as far as we know, on a yacht with Josh Kroenke, at least this time around.

The Nuggets waived Jonas Valanciunas this week to lessen the load on their wallets. They signed Marvin Bagley III and Tyus Jones. They’re still working to lock up restricted free agents Peyton Watson and Spencer Jones. Denver’s offseason is moving forward with or without James — because it has to, even if he’s the only piece that can change the outlook of the Nuggets coming season.

None of this means Denver is dead. Rich Paul said it himself: “It wouldn’t be on the board, Max.” That was eight days ago. But the silence from ESPN’s most connected reporter, two days running, is hard to ignore. In the LeBron James sweepstakes, where it’s seemingly always about attention with the King, Denver hasn’t gotten any lately.