Throughout this dragged-out process, LeBron James has said that winning — playing in meaningful games with an opportunity to chase a fifth ring — was his top priority. Friday he backed up those words.
After taking nearly a month to make his decision, LeBron is signing a two-year, $8 million deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, a story broken by Shams Charania of ESPN, who got the news from LeBron’s agent Rich Paul.
LeBron described his decision this way in a thread on X:
“I thought I was done when the season ended. I wasn’t ready to announce it, and I knew I needed some time to really decide, but I was pretty sure I played my last game. I was honest at that last press conference when I said I needed to look at myself and deicide if I still love this game. I still truly love this game, and I have more to give.
“The last few weeks have really been special. I’ve never been able to have no clue what to do and take real time to just think. I’ve had an incredible few months with all the people I love trying to figure it all out. This is my last decision. I’m not going for money. I’m not going for family. What am I really playing for at this point? I still want to sacrifice. I still want to work. I still want to grind. I still want to compete, to win and to have a chance at the feeling of winning another championship.
I believe I can help make the Philadelphia 76ers a championship team and I am so excited to energize a new fan base and start this incredible journey one last time.
Thank you LA. Miami I’ll forever love and Northeast Ohio will always home! 🙏🏾🫡👑"
LeBron joins a stacked East team featuring point guard Tyrese Maxey and just-acquired wing Jaylen Brown — both All-NBA players last season — as well as Joel Embiid, who showed last year during the playoffs against Boston that he is still capable of taking over a series and winning it for his team. The team also has VJ Edgecombe at the two, power forward Dean Wade (who likely moves to a bench role now), plus depth in Anfernee Simons, Ariel Hukporti, and promising rookie Labaron Philon Jr. It likely helped that Maxey, Brown and Embiid all worked hard to recruit LeBron to Philly as well.
LeBron said from the start he was going to take his time with his decision and let major moves — such as the trades of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jaylen Brown — take place first. When the dust settled a little, he would make his call. He held true to that, if Philly doesn’t land Brown this summer then LeBron doesn’t go there. From the start, LeBron said this was not about money, it was about being competitive for a title and his happiness.
That landed him in Philadelphia with a team that will join the Knicks as the early favorites to come out of the East. While LeBron is betting on Embiid’s knees to hold up in the playoffs, the depth of this roster makes the load Embiid needs to carry for the first 82 games that much lighter.
Needless to say, Philadelphia fans are pumped up.
LEBRON IS COMING TO PHILLY.
— Governor Josh Shapiro (@GovernorShapiro) July 24, 2026
By the power vested in me as the Governor of the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a die-hard Sixers fan... I hereby proclaim today to be LEBRON JAMES DAY.
Welcome to the City of Brotherly Love, @KingJames. pic.twitter.com/JHsNkCFyyN
Philly’s ideal starting five is now:
• Tyrese Maxey
• VJ Edgecombe
• Jaylen Brown
• LeBron James
• Joel Embiid
In LeBron, the 76ers get a four-time champ and the league’s all-time leading scorer who is still playing at an All-Star level despite entering his record 24th NBA season at age 41. Last season with the Lakers he averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds a game, playing in 60 games.
LeBron can’t take over a game (or a full playoff series) like he once did, but he can rise to that level for a stretch — a quarter, a half — and will a team to a win. He showed that in the playoffs, when the Lakers were without the injured Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves against Houston, and LeBron took on his familiar role as the primary scorer and shot creator, leading the Lakers to a series win.
With this decision, expect a quick rush of other free agency moves — a lot of deals were held up waiting for LeBron to make his call. Cleveland, Philadelphia and Golden State all had moves on hold, plus players such as DeMar DeRozan and Jonathan Kuminga were waiting for this decision so that the rest of the market to shake out. Also, as Adam Silver noted, now the league can finish its scheduling for next season — 76ers vs. Knicks on opening night and/or Christmas Day seems like a lock.
Philadelphia will have to make one more move before this becomes official. The 76ers are $3.4 million below where they are hard-capped at the first apron, and this veteran minimum contract is for $3.9 million. There will have to be a salary dump, but that should not be a problem.
Mike Gansey may have locked up Executive of the Year with this move. Gansey was brought in to replace Daryl Morey as the president of basketball operations for Philadelphia, and he has dominated the summer. He took advantage of the Celtics salary-dumping Jaylen Brown, then persuaded LeBron to finish his career with a team he had not been on before, which comes with a sense of unfamiliarity. LeBron’s familiarity with Ganesey likely helped, they competed against each other in high school in Ohio, and Gansey was in the Cleveland front office when LeBron was there for his second stint with the team.
Ganesey put together a 76ers team that enters next season as a legit threat to make the NBA Finals.
Ultimately, that’s what LeBron James wanted.
