July 25, 2026
Bill Streicher/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
LeBron James and Joel Embiid are now joined at the hip.
The "Chosen One" made his choice, and amazingly, he chose Philly.
It's still all so new, so surreal, and for an organization and fan base that has lived too long by the mantra of "trust the process," it's still at this moment still so very hard to process.
LeBron James, one the five greatest players in NBA history, much closer to No. 1 than No. 5, stunningly announced Friday that he will sign a two-year pact with the Sixers.
A four-time NBA champion and the sport’s all-time leading scorer, a superstar since he graced the cover of Sports Illustrated in high school, ultimately decided that Philadelphia is the city where his career will likely finish up, with one more stab at winning a fifth ring.
LeBron links up with superstars Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown to give the Sixers perhaps their strongest core in team history – just two seasons after the Sixers finished with 24 wins.
But before we even think about trophies, a parade down Broad Street, or the promise of tomorrow, let’s relish in the moment.
Friday was truly a spectacular and wholly unique day in the history of Philly sports, simply by James agreeing to become part of it.
At PhillyVoice, we spent much of the afternoon discussing a comparable free agent or trade acquisition, but couldn’t find one.
A handful of larger-than-life athletes have come to Philly, some who lived up to their reputation, some who didn’t, but none were considered among the two or three very best to ever play their sport all time.
And none shattered the news cycle upon their announcement the way LeBron did.
Within minutes of the news breaking, everything else in Philly stopped on a dime. Every conversation centered on LeBron. The mayor publicly welcomed LeBron to the city. The governor of the state named the day after him.
The Phillies, Eagles and Union all celebrated King James’ arrival on social media. Current Philly athletes got excited about James’ decision. Former ones, too.
SEPTA even joked about renaming one of its line for James.
With Eagles training camp around the corner, the Birds didn’t just take a backseat to LeBron on the airwaves, everything else did, too. LeBron even made it into our Nick Tricome's story projecting Flyers lineups for next season.
Philly has welcomed its share of future Hall of Famers and elites throughout the years, from Chris Pronger and Eric Lindros to Roy Halladay and Bryce Harper, from Terrell Owens and Kyle Schwarber to Pete Rose and Moses Malone, and most recently from Saquon Barkley to Jaylen Brown.
All of them, great. None of them hit Philly like a sonic boom the way LeBron just did. None made us both frenetic at numb simultaneously the way LeBron's latest version of "The Decision" did.
And the most amazing thing about “The Chosen One” choosing Philly isn’t just that he actually did it; it’s why and how he did.
The 41-year-old took weeks to examine a franchise that hasn’t advanced past the second round of the postseason in 25 years, has botched a boatload of personnel decisions along the way, has cycled through coaches and GMs since its infamous rebuilding “Process” that began almost 15 years ago, and decided to hop aboard for the veteran’s minimum, knowing he probably only has one or two more years left to win another ring.
You’d need to have your head examined to make that kind of a decision.
It would’ve been so much easier – and more sensible – for LeBron to head back to South Beach, or ring-chase with the Warriors, or saddle up for one last ride with his hometown Cavs.
But he chose Philly, of all places, against all odds.
Even when the Sixers were rumored to be among LeBron’s destinations, plenty of folks around these parts never really believed he’d actually do it.
But that speaks to the powers of persuasion of the Sixers’ very talented young core of Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, and new Sixers President of Basketball Operations Mike Gansey’s swashbuckling trade to bring in Brown.
In a finger snap, Gansey turned the roster over so artfully that he somehow convinced one of the game’s Mount Rushmore faces to buy in.
Even with the Sixers’ history of botched free agent and trade adds, of postseason self-destruction, of falling way short of expectations, it’s hard to see this new-look superstar starting lineup – along with reserve newcomers Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade and potentially Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – reliving the nightmares of past Sixers letdowns.
This could be one of the great Sixers rosters of all time, at least on paper.
Whether or not it comes to fruition really isn’t relevant at this minute.
The NBA’s greatest player since Michael Jordan, a sure Hall of Famer, a basketball deity, an extreme force multiplier who had enough gas left last year to become an All Star for the 22nd time and someone who can become the first player in the sport’s history to win a championship with four different teams decided that team would be the Sixers.
There’s never been a decision like it in Philly sports.
There might never be one like it again.
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