LeBron James will join former Kia MVP center Joel Embiid in the 76ers’ frontcourt in 2026-27.
LeBron James is heading to the Philadelphia 76ers, the NBA superstar announced on social media Friday.
In his posts, James said this will be his “last decision” and that it comes after he strongly considered retirement.
“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,” James said.
A four-time NBA champion, James wrote he was “done” when his 23rd NBA season ended and that it was his last with the Los Angeles Lakers.
“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,” James wrote. “I still truly love this game, and I have more to give.”
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
— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 24, 2026
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
— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 24, 2026
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 James (@KingJames) July 24, 2026
This will mark the fourth team in James’ career after he previously played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and, most recently, the Los Angeles Lakers. He told the Lakers on June 30 he would not be returning to the team and remained the biggest name in free agency until he announced his decision today.
Per reports, James is set to sign a two-year, $8 million deal. He made nearly $53 million in 2025-26.
“I’m not going for money. I’m not going for family,” James wrote. “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.”
James joins a 76ers team that has not won an NBA championship since 1983 and has not advanced out of the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs since 2001. The 76ers should boast one of the top starting fives in the NBA with fellow All-Stars Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown, the 2024 NBA Finals MVP, a five-time All-Star and the league’s fourth-leading scorer this past season acquired in a stunning offseason deal with the Celtics.
James celebrated his decision on Instagram with a career highlight reel set to Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill’s “Dreams and Nightmares,” the adopted sports anthem of city sports teams.
The video ends with the lyric, “hold up, wait a minute. Y’all thought I was finished?” and cuts to a 76ers’ logo.
Fanatics already had his No. 23 jersey on sale for $125 with delivery not expected until the end of August.
Much as James did for Cleveland when he ended a 56-year championship drought for the city by leading the Cavaliers to the title in 2016, he can snap a lengthy title drought for the Sixers.
The Sixers went 45-37 last season and were swept in the second round by the NBA champion New York Knicks.
Most betting sites had the Sixers as 9-1 favorites to win the championship behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks, as of Friday afternoon.
Maxey posted an Instagram story of him celebrating in a gym and yelling “what!? what?!” over the news while Brown wrote on X “#throwtheballup.” Brown wrote that in his introductory note to Philadelphia, and it has already been branded on billboards throughout the city.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro even proclaimed Friday as LeBron James Day in the state.
Turned out with the Brown deal, new 76ers team president Mike Gansey — an Ohio prep basketball star with James — was just getting started with his summer of surprises.
James has made clear many times in recent years that more championships are his motivation.
“I don’t know what the future holds for me, obviously, as it stands right now, tonight,” James said after the Lakers’ 115-110 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals ended their season. “I’ve got a lot of time. I’ll go back and recalibrate with my family and talk with them, and when the time goes, obviously you guys will know what I decide to do.
“I’ve done it all. I’ve seen it all. Just being able to compete and trying to win championships, I think that’s a motivating factor.”
The NBA’s oldest active player, James will turn 42 on Dec. 30. He was the first player in league history to log 23 seasons and will add at least one more to that this season. He also became the first player in the league to have a son as a teammate, with Bronny James playing alongside him with the Lakers.
James started his career in Cleveland in 2003 and spent seven seasons with the Cavaliers before heading to Miami for four seasons — where he won his first two NBA titles. He then returned to Cleveland for four more seasons, including the 2016 title run, and left in 2018 for the Lakers.
The list of James’ accolades to this point is beyond comparison.
He’s a 22-time All-Star, a 21-time All-NBA selection, a four-time Kia Most Valuable Player, a four-time NBA Finals MVP, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, a three-time All-Star Game MVP, and was part of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team. He’s coming off a season where he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game, and for his career, he’s averaged 26.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 7.4 apg in more than 1,600 games.
He has also led a team to the Finals in 10 seasons, including eight straight appearances from 2011-18.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
