LeBron James has officially made his decision.
He will be putting pen-to-paper on a deal with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The news was announced on Friday by ESPN insider Shams Charania.
“LeBron James is signing with the Philadelphia 76ers on a two-year, $8 million deal with a player option, Klutch Sports Group and Klutch CEO and Game Over show host Rich Paul tells ESPN,” he posted to X.
It was once again a long-drawn process for 41-year-old James, who is set to enter his 24th season in the NBA.
After revealing he would be leaving the Los Angeles Lakers after eight seasons – a career-long tenure – in which he brought the franchise their 17th NBA championship, at the end of June, the free agency frenzy began.
There were reports that he could team up with Stephen Curry at the Golden State Warriors, with the two having relished the opportunity to play together for the 5×5 Men’s Olympic Team back in 2024, winning a gold medal.
While James’ agent Rich Paul initially stated that all 29 teams in the NBA (excluding the Lakers) were on the table, that list was very quickly whittled down to three.
The Miami Heat. The Cleveland Cavaliers. The 76ers.
All signs almost immediately pointed to James heading back to the Eastern Conference, where he spent the first 15 seasons of his career, and that is exactly what has unfolded.
In comparison to the Western Conference, where the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs and Denver Nuggets battle each other, the East is considered considerably weaker competition-wise, even if the New York Knicks are the reigning NBA champions.
In fact of The Ringer’s Top 10 players last season, only three of them – Jalen Brunson (No. 4), Giannis Antetokounmpo (No. 7), and Cade Cunningham (No. 9) – played in the East.
For James, who despite posting 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 7.2 assists and 1.2 steals in Year 23, being in a ‘weaker’ conference per se ultimately gives him the best chance to win his fifth championship ring before calling time on what has been an illustrious career.
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Bell has rung in the the City of Brotherly Love
In joining the Sixers, James is seeking to become the first player in NBA history to win rings with four different teams, with no other player ever achieving such a feat.
Of course, Danny Green, Robert Horry and John Salley all join James as the only players in league history to win rings with three different teams.
On paper, joining Cleveland perhaps looked to be the best fit, with Miami looking a little depleted on wing shooting and guard play after having to gut the majority of the depth of their roster in order to swing the blockbuster trade for Antetokounmpo.
Returning home to Ohio also had less fears of the unknown compared to the 76ers, with an often unreliable – and ageing – Joel Embiid, and the arrival of Jaylen Brown in another mega trade that occurred this offseason at the helm alongside the young, but hugely talented, backcourt of Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe making up their core.
But the difference between the Cavs and the Sixers is that Brown gives them somebody with championship-winning pedigree, while their young backcourt are barely even in their primes, and will only continue to get better as they get to grips with learning the ropes of the league.
While Cleveland have veteran experience, players like James Harden have never been able to prove that they could be successful in the playoffs, and that liability may have been a determining factor as to why James ultimately chose to roll with a relatively young group in Philadelphia.
Perhaps this was ‘the process’ that Embiid was asking the fans to ‘trust’ after all – LeBron James, welcome to the City of Brotherly Love.
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