It turns out the Heat’s YouTube blunder was just someone trying to go on vacation.
During the height of the LeBron James drama, NBA fans noticed the Heat had a livestream scheduled for July 27 titled “LeBron James Introductory Press Conference.”
According to ESPN, the Heat staffer who posted the press conference, “had scheduled vacation for this week and was trying to get ahead of work that could come up if James indeed chose the Heat.”
LeBron James talks on stage while at Fanatics Fest 2026. BACKGRID
Miami took down the mistake quickly and released a statement calling it a mistake, but that didn’t stop fans from believing James had made his decision and was returning to the Heat.
In fact, a number of factors leading up to James signing with the 76ers pointed to a second stint in Miami, including ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter and former NBA player Gilbert Arenas saying it was most likely.
Heat president Pat Riley recently said on the “Dan Le Batard Show” that his relationship with James had “thawed.”
The odds followed the trends and DraftKings sportsbook dropped the Heat as the final destination of the NBA’s all-time leading scorer to -200 from the +1000 odds they had at the start of free agency.
Rich Paul was seen at Justin Bieber and SKYLRKs exclusive FIFA World Cup after-party. BlayzenPhotos / BACKGRID
While James’ agent Rich Paul said he thought Miami would end up as “the spot,” he was amused by the YouTube debacle because at the time, James had not made his decision.
Another league source close to the decision told ESPN he questioned why people thought James would even do a press conference.
When he signed with the Lakers in 2018, he didn’t make his first appearance to the media until training camp in the fall.
James used up all 24 days to process every factor imaginable, admitting he had thought about retirement after last season.
In the end, Paul said James signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the 76ers at 1 a.m. on Friday, just a few hours before ESPN’s Shams Charania reported the deal.
He will join the likes of Joel Embiid, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey in the pursuit of one last championship.
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