LeBron James and Joel Embiid are teaming up again — to go along with Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey.
The 76ers got perhaps the biggest bargain in sports history on Friday, when LeBron James — the NBA’s all-time scoring king — announced he would be finishing his career in Philadelphia.
It is mindboggling to consider that LeBron James (at about $3.9 million) is going to cost the 76ers roughly as much as rookie Labaron Philon (at about $3.6 million) will this coming season, which simultaneously makes no sense and perfect sense.
James, as always, knows exactly what he’s doing. It’s one last chance to do something that nobody else has done. He could win a championship with a fourth different franchise, which would be an NBA first. It might be the only thing left to inspire him.
All the other records that were once within his reach are now in his hands. His scoring record probably isn’t going to get caught. His longevity record — playing 24 or 25 years — probably isn’t going to get caught. He’s not going to catch Bill Russell for the most championships, though one more would give him five and tie Kobe Bryant. But winning four in four different cities, that would be another way for James to stand alone.
“I still want to sacrifice,” James wrote on Friday when he let the world know his decision to join the 76ers. “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.”
James had other good options
It could have been Cleveland. It could have been Miami. Golden State appeared to be in the mix as well, but realistically the decision for James seemed to be between going home to the Cavaliers, going back to the Heat or writing one last chapter on a clean sheet of paper with the 76ers.
Philadelphia already had one of the steals of the summer when it acquired Jaylen Brown in a trade with the Boston Celtics. It has an elite guard in Tyrese Maxey, and Joel Embiid — when healthy — is almost unstoppable.
It has a rising star in VJ Edgecombe, and a coach in Nick Nurse (who turned 59 on Friday, so we can assume his birthday wish has already come true) who already has a championship ring on his finger from his stint in Toronto.
In other words, it more than meets James’ criteria. On paper, if everything went right even before Friday’s news, the 76ers were already primed to be a contender.
Now, with James, anything less than contention would be utter failure. And while some will say he’s ring-chasing, it’s hard for that argument to hold up considering that Philadelphia hasn’t won a title since 1983.
Regardless, this task for James won’t be easy. The Eastern Conference is absolutely loaded.
The NBA champion Knicks play 100 miles away from Philly, and that rivalry will somehow get even hotter now. If the 76ers go to New York for opening night, when the Knicks get their first championship rings in 53 years, those crazy prices for games at Madison Square Garden for the NBA Finals might seem like pocket change.
And the East is much more than just the Knicks. Detroit won 60 games last season. Cleveland will be in the mix. Miami added Giannis Antetokounmpo; the Heat were waiting to see what James would decide and now will look to add more shooting and backcourt help.
And if this past season was any indication, even though trading Brown was puzzling to some, it would be foolish to count Boston out of anything.
“This is my last decision,” James wrote. “I’m not going for money. I’m not going for family. What am I really playing for at this point?”
A serious challenge awaits
There will be growing pains.
Miami started 9-8 in James’ first season with Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. Philadelphia is starting over in many ways; it’s not as simple as it sounds to just plug Brown and James into the starting lineup for Paul George and Kelly Oubre Jr. Brown, James, Embiid and Maxey will have to figure it out, and it will take time.
There will be losses. Trust the process, as they say in Philadelphia. It will be a process.
But if they figure it out …
James could play quarterback and just spread the ball around all day if he wants. He can still fill a stat sheet like almost nobody else. He and Embiid won Olympic gold together. Maxey is just coming into his own. Brown is going to have a chip on his shoulder the size of the Liberty Bell to prove the naysayers from Boston wrong. If this works, it’s going to be spectacular. If it doesn’t, it’ll be a spectacular flameout. There is no in-between.
So, now the NBA schedule can be finished. It was the question — where will LeBron go? — that the whole league was asking, and with all respect to Allen Iverson’s nickname, Philly was The Answer.
