LeBron James announces he will sign with Philadelphia 76ers for record 24th year
LeBron James has found the next stop in his historic NBA career.
The league’s all-time leading scorer has agreed to join the Philadelphia 76ers, he announced Friday on social media, beginning the record 24th season of a career that has already redefined longevity and greatness.
“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 wrote on X.
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Tyrese Maxey and many key figures in Philadelphia’s organization doggedly pursued James over the last few weeks. The Sixers became major players in the James sweepstakes when they traded for Jaylen Brown of the Boston Celtics earlier in the month.
James, who will turn 42 in December, informed the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this summer that he would not return to the franchise, ending an eight-year run that included the 2020 NBA championship, a Western Conference finals appearance and countless milestones that include becoming the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
The move gives the 76ers one of the greatest players in league history, even as James enters the final stage of his career. He averaged 20.9 points, 7.2 assists and 6.1 rebounds last season while adapting to a reduced role alongside Luka Dončić, then guided an injury-depleted Lakers team to the second round of the playoffs. James shot 51.5 percent from the field while extending his streak of averaging at least 20 points per game to all 23 seasons of his career.
“We fell a little short obviously, but I’m not looking at my year as a disappointment, that’s for damn sure,” James said after the Lakers’ season ended. “I was put into some positions I never played in my career. … I’ve never been a third option in my life.”
Last July, James’ agent, Rich Paul, publicly acknowledged that the four-time NBA champion was evaluating the teams that gave him the best chance to compete for another title at this stage of his career.
“He wants to make every season he has left count,” Paul told The Athletic at the time.
James’ decision ends an era that featured a Lakers revival after several poor seasons in the 2010s while beginning another chapter for a player who has spent more than two decades reshaping expectations for NBA longevity.
The 76ers now, at least on paper, have their best team and best chance to win a title since 2001, when Allen Iverson had his MVP season.
James immediately becomes Philadelphia’s power forward, starting opposite Brown. Because Maxey is capable of playing off the ball, James’ playmaking becomes important to the 76ers. With Maxey, Brown and Joel Embiid, James can blend without having to shoulder substantial offensive responsibility.