All the eyes in the basketball world have been firmly directed towards LeBron as we eagerly awaited his decision as to where he’d be playing next season.
He supposedly considered every team in the league, although I’m certain there were some sides he didn’t care for – looking at Boston in particular.
I won’t lie, I genuinely thought my Blazers had a good chance. But then again, I’d said that about Giannis and JB this summer and all we’ve ended up with is Ja Morant. It’s the belief that kills you…
But when it came down to it, it was probably always only the four teams that were talked about the most.
Return to South Beach
Running it back with Miami became a very appealing option after they acquired Giannis. Suddenly, there became the potential for another big three, with the King, the Greek Freak and Mr. 83.
Coupled with the fact that he and his family once called the city their home so they’re familiar with it, the fans still love him, and both coach Spo and Pat Riley are still there, and the charm of the return must’ve seemed rather high.
However, LeBron wanted to go somewhere that could compete and potentially help him win chip number five. And three stars don’t win championships anymore. Depth does.
Miami just traded away basically everything they had to get Giannis and now the team looks rather shallow in terms of quality bench players. Bobby Portis came in the trade who will likely be solid and Andrew Wiggins can be nice, but other than them that team is too weak to properly contend in the postseason.
Finally teaming with Steph
10 years ago if you had said LeBron, Steph and Draymond would be good friends and potentially could be teaming up, I think any basketball fan would be admitted to an institution for hysterically laughing for so long.
But here we are in big ol’ 2026, and not only are all three still doing it, but there was considerable danger of them being teammates.
We saw just how good Bron and Steph work together during the 2024 Olympics so to have a full season of that would have fed fans for years. And the golf content from them two? Link-up for the ages.
I think the issue Bron would’ve identified there is age. The starting lineup would’ve been a collection of all-stars, all-NBA and champions, but of players whose generation is ending.
LeBron is 41, Steph is 38, Dray is 36 and Jimmy Buckets, who will be returning from a major injury that sets back even young players in their prime, is turning 37 shortly before the season starts.
The young core of the team does not have the quality to pick things up if/when the old boys are gassed. Multiple long series in a deep playoff run, which is sure to be guaranteed in the West this season, will kill that team off and with it any chance of a fifth ring for Bron, Steph and Dray.
Going back home
The King’s second homecoming seemed very likely. Ending his career off in his home state, 40 miles from where he was born and raised, playing for the team that he carried for all those years before finally ending their championship drought.
It would have been a fitting end to his legendary career, especially so if he could have won just one more title there.
And they certainly have the roster to do it. It was a surprise to everyone that they got swept in the Conference finals but no surprise that they were there. It’s a strong roster that would’ve only been made infinitely stronger with Bron.
I don’t think there would have been many negatives in the cons pile for Cleveland except the sweep in the Conference finals.
It can’t be stressed enough that one of, if not the main priority for Bron was being able to compete for rings. Yes, Cleveland has the team to compete that would’ve been made a lot better with his addition, but I can only imagine that seeing his beloved Cavs fall so easily made him think twice about returning again.
Sure, you can let them off for the fact that they lost to the eventual champions.
But a competitor like LeBron looks at those as excuses, not as let offs. There’s no two ways about it, it was a failure where they should’ve done better.
He’s not in a position to be able to carry a team to the finals anymore and I wouldn’t be surprised if the seed of doubt in his mind about that Cavs team’s ability to go that step further is what led him to not choose to come home.
Philly too good to pass up
All of that leads to where he has decided to ply his trade. Sixers fans were already hyped to have somehow gotten Jaylen Brown earlier this summer, especially given they barely had to give anything up for him, and now they’ve got the greatest basketball player that’s ever graced this planet as well.
Honestly, their starting lineup scares the hell out of me. Obviously, you have Bron. But alongside him is: one-time MVP Embiid, Finals MVP and overlooked superstar Jaylen Brown, star-on-the-rise and All-NBA talen Tyrese Maxey, and finally future star VJ Edgecombe.
Now sure, I pointed out Cleveland being swept by the Knicks in the playoffs as the negative in Lebron’s head so I should acknowledge the same happened to the Sixers in the Conference semifinals.
I also acknowledge that the depth of the team isn’t sensational, with them having rejigged this summer and now includes a lot of whos-who players. Although saying that, they did pick up Anfernee Simons, who I know well as a very solid player from his time and growth with my Blazers, and Dean Wade.
But it’s the fit that makes it the best option.
In the case of Miami, Golden State and Cleveland, LeBron would have had to step into a role where there’s a fair bit of expectation of him. In Miami especially, they’d be looking to him to run the offense, while the Warriors and the Cavs both would have likely expected a fair amount of offensive output from him.
The Sixers won’t need him to do that. JB just came off a season where he proved himself as the number one option, carrying the Celtics to the second seed on an MVP-calibre statline. He’ll be the primary option.
The secondary will be Maxey, who himself posted very nice numbers last year that earned him an All-NBA third team nod.
Those two alone, with Edgecombe providing another can’t-leave-alone option plus Embiid when healthy dominating inside, put the Sixers high on peoples list to finally make the Conference finals at least.
But now you add Bron, who’s role will likely be similar to the one he played for the Paris Olympics team, will see him be the team’s facilitator. Nick Nurse should be playing him as a point forward at the four in a pass-first role. We’ve seen his playmaking abilities all these years, and the amount of threats the Sixers have on offer will make it a headache for defenders.
Maybe defensively there’s some gaps, but again, with LeBron’s IQ for the game, he’ll be able to orchestrate things to lessen the impact on that front.
Maybe the only thing that’s stopping this team is injuries. Embiid is the biggest liability on that front, but Maxey and Brown aren’t exactly pictures of perfect health. They’ve both had struggles at points during their respective careers.
But ultimately, unless they all come down with a serious case of contagious ACL, this time will be a formidable outfit in the league, adding to what is sure to make for a compelling campaign.
I cannot wait for the season to start.
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