In case you’ve been living under a rock, it’s official: LeBron James is officially a Philadelphia 76er as of July 26, after signing a 2-year, $8 million contract.
The move was originally announced on Friday, July 24, and the seismic shift in the NBA landscape was immediately felt by all fans across the league for obvious reasons. LeBron James, despite being 41 years old, remains the ultimate floor-and-ceiling raiser, so, unsurprisingly, expectations now put them as title contenders — at the very least.
While many lament that he chose to pass up a reunion in Cleveland and a superstar team-up with Steph Curry in Golden State, the Sixers appear prepped for the challenge.
Before signing Bron, the biggest move Philly made was moving on from Paul George. As shared by Shams Charania, the Sixers traded PG13, two first-round picks, and two-second round picks.
Next, they drafted 6’4” point guard Labaron Philon Jr. at 22nd overall, signed Dean Wade, Ariel Hukporti, and Anfernee Simons to team-friendly deals to replace the production of Kelly Oubre, Quentin Grimes, Kyle Lowry, and Andre Drummond — all of whom they lost to free agency.
Adding LeBron to a core that now features Joel Embiid, Jaylen Brown, Tyrese Maxey, and VJ Edgecombe certainly makes them early favorites.
Roster Fit and Health Concerns
However, the bigger question here is: can they make it work?
Obviously, that’s a question best reserved for when the season already begins, but on paper, it’s a super talented team loaded with a healthy mix of youth and veteran experience in the guard spots, an MVP-caliber center in Embiid, and one of the best wings in the NBA today with Brown.
At the same time, there’s sufficient reason to doubt this team’s ceiling, especially with Embiid’s health on the rocks, so we already know he’s limited to about 60-ish games. Bron’s not expected to play all 82 games as well, since they’ll likely preserve him for the postseason.
The Impact on VJ Edgecombe
The biggest question mark, though, is on VJ Edgecombe.
The 21-year-old is coming off a wondrous rookie season, wherein he chipped in 16 points on 43.8 percent shooting from the field and 35.4 percent from three-point range, 5.6 boards, 4.2 assists, and 1.4 steals in 35 minutes across 75 games.
Those are certainly impressive numbers, but whether he can keep that production up with the new additions to the team (and the added pressure) remains to be seen.
LeBron will likely operate as their point guard, with Maxey slotting in at the two, then Edgecombe at the three and Jaylen Brown at the four, which makes total sense since the NBA’s all-time leading scorer is the best passer on the team now.
Talent-wise, this team can go deep, but how and if they can develop that all-important team chemistry will determine whether they can reach their full potential.
