CAMDEN, NJ — When LeBron James signed with Philadelphia 76ers, one of his reasons was his belief that he could help make the NBA franchise a championship team with its already established stars and new additions to the roster.
He doubled down on that Monday, Sept. 28 in front of a packed room at 76ers media day.
“I didn’t leave my family to lose in the second round,” James said. “I know that for sure. Work needs to be done, and I’m ready to get to work.”
The four-time NBA champion spent more than 18 minutes at the podium inside the 76ers’ training facility on Monday, answering questions before a packed room that included team executives, Mike Gansey, the team’s new president of basketball operations, with whom he had a previous relationship dating back to their Northeast Ohio roots and later their time together with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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The session began with James cracking a joke as he removed his name tag from the table: “You guys know who I am, right?” But as his’ introductory news conference continued, one overarching theme remained: Why Philadelphia?
Why return to the Eastern Conference and pick the 76ers, who got swept by the New York Knicks in the second round of the NBA playoffs last season and haven’t reached the Eastern Conference Finals since 2001 with Allen Iverson?
Simply put, it was Tyrese Maxey.
James has developed a close relationship with the Sixers’ All-Star point guard over the years, as the two share the same agent, Rich Paul, the founder and CEO of Klutch Sports Group, and have frequently worked out together.
“I have a really, really good, great relationship with Tyrese,” James said. ” We talked a lot, and I kind of picked his brain a lot, not only about where he sees his career going, how he sees the franchise here, and how much he believes in the franchise. And if I was to come here, how does he see me fitting in? Do we think it’d be a plus, or do we think it’d be a negative?
“Because I understand my personality and what comes with me. Sometimes it can be a negative.”
But in the end, when James weighed his options, which he said consisted of a group of five teams, Maxey was a main deciding factor in making the City of Brotherly Love the next stop in his Hall of Fame career.
“I was just asking all the questions I could ask him, and it wasn’t just one conversation,” James said. “… When I broke a lot of the teams down, (when) I broke a lot of the franchises down that I could possibly play for, he was one of the main deciding factors.”
Maxey said once the 76ers traded Paul George to the Boston Celtics for Jaylen Brown and then once James wasn’t expected to re-sign with the Los Angeles Lakers, he believed Philadelphia had a legitimate chance to land the NBA’s all-time leading scorer.
“He called me one day, we chopped it up and I think he may be coming,” Maxey said. “But him being here is really cool, really cool. I think it’s going to be really good for our team, good for the organization, good for the city, for our team. He’s someone who’s done it before, who’s won before. … He’s going to just uplift the whole entire team, entire organization.”
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In addition to teaming up with Maxey, James will join a star-studded starting lineup featuring 2023 MVP Joel Embiid, Brown, the 2024 NBA Finals MVP, and VJ Edgecombe., a member of the 2025-26 All-Rookie team.
Maxey is entering his seventh season in Philadelphia, while Edgecombe begins his second NBA campaign after finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting last season. Embiid and Brown bring plenty of experience as established veterans, with the Sixers’ All-Star center still searching for his first NBA title despite an accomplished career.
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The 76ers bench includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, 2026 first-round pick Labaron Philon Jr. and Dean Wade among others.
James hopes his championship pedigree, leadership and postseason experience can help unite Philadelphia’s blend of young talent and veteran stars as the franchise looks to finally break through and make a deep playoff run.
“I have a lot of experience in this game, obviously, so I hope that I could bring that experience, bring that knowledge, bring the blueprint to guys that are trying to accomplish some things that they haven’t done in their career,” James said. “I’ve seen everything that this league has to offer on the floor and off the floor. I hope that every single day with my approach to the game, approach to the work that it can translate to every single guy and even guys that’s being able to win at the highest level.
“Looking forward to that challenge.”
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: LeBron James on 76ers’ title goals: ‘I didn’t leave my family to lose in second round’
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