Winners and Losers of the LeBron James to Philadelphia 76ers Move
- Aarav Sharma
- 4 min read
It finally happened. LeBron James is a member of the Philadelphia 76ers. I’ll make this part quick: I hate this move. I hate it a lot.
As a long-time New York Knicks fan, this makes the back-to-back rings part hard, but also as a LeBron fan, like, why? Like he should’ve known people were gonna call this ring-chasing at its highest form. If he joined Miami or Cleveland, it would’ve just seemed like he was ending his career in places where he won rings. If he joined the Warriors, everyone would’ve talked about the INSANE matching of Stephen Curry and LeBron James. I don’t know, I just don’t like it. So let’s grade it, and tell me what you think!
LePhiladelphia Begins:
- The Deal: LeBron James to the Sixers on a two-year, 8 million dollar deal
- Philadelphia 76ers Grade: A+
- LeBron James’s Grade: C-
I’m going to always be real with basketball. Any team that acquires LeBron James at any age is gonna be better. Especially a team that’s got another elite scorer in Jaylen Brown, a former MVP center in Joel Embiid, a high-level PG in Tyrese Maxey, and an athletic guard in VJ Edgecombe. Even though I have doubts on chemistry and bench issues, this team is a top five starting lineup already. Since LeBron’s playing the point, this offense has almost too many options now. No matter what, I believe Philly is a 50-win team.
Winners Of LePhiladelphia:
Mike Gansey
The Sixers were in a historically dark place when Daryl Morey got fired. The Paul George contract, Embiid’s health issues. All of a sudden, Mike Gansey just managed to get an MVP candidate and arguably the greatest player of all time! If they win a ring, he’s getting enshrined in the Sixer HOF.
Joel Embiid
Joel “22 games a season” Embiid is finally gonna get some rest. For years he’s been flamed for being unplayable, unclutch, and just downright bad. Well now he’s got Jaylen Brown and LeBron James to carry him through the season. He’s not gonna get as much attention, or as much pressure to carry the team into the conference finals.
Eastern Conference Competitiveness
For a couple years now people have labeled the east as weak compared to the west, especially during the Boston Celtics' easy run in 2024, and Miami’s surprise appearance in the finals in 2023. Well that has been put to rest. Kawhi back in Toronto? The reigning champion Knicks? The Giannis Heat? The Pacers with a returning Haliburton? Don’t get me wrong, the west is still good, but man this Eastern conference has so much depth.
Losers Of LePhiladelphia:
Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors
I wish I didn’t have to say this, but the Warriors' time contending is over. As a Steph Curry fan, I’m disappointed, but it’s true. Curry is now stuck on this mediocre team until he retires because they failed to get LeBron James. Everybody knew this would’ve been the most fun destination. Truthfully, they wouldn't have been contenders anyway, but there would’ve been hope.
Tyrese Maxey
LeBron James is expected to take over point guard duties, which could significantly diminish Maxey’s on-court role and force major gameplay sacrifice. Since Maxey would have to take a shooting guard off-ball role, my "he-will-average-32.5-points" take will age like milk. A roster featuring LeBron, Maxey, Jaylen Brown, and V.J. Edgecombe features too many dominant ball-handlers; head coach Nick Nurse may stagger their minutes. Maxey might find his role reduced to anchoring secondary bench units.
The Eastern Conference
Sure, the competitiveness is fun to watch, but the rest of the east is losers to this just as much. The Knicks are gonna have to face a much different Philly team than last year. Don’t even talk to me about the disgusting Jaylen Brown trade! The Celtics are definitely gonna struggle this year. The Cavs and the Heat are gonna feel this too—they tried to get James but he chose against his former teams, and now they have to face him in the playoffs.