76ers Pitch LeBron After Blockbuster Jaylen Brown Trade
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- Philadelphia 76ers entered the mix for unrestricted free agent LeBron James on Thursday, one day after trading Paul George, two first-round picks and two second-round picks to the Boston Celtics for Jaylen Brown, per ESPN's Shams Charania.
- Jaylen Brown, 29, finished sixth in MVP voting last season, averaging 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists across 71 games.
- Anfernee Simons agreed to a free-agent deal with the 76ers on Thursday morning, adding another scoring piece to Philadelphia's roster ahead of the LeBron pitch.
- Golden State Warriors remain on James's short list, though Warriors team-side sources don't believe they're at the top; the club has pathways to the $15.1 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception, but cap space is increasingly tight after the signings of Kristaps Porzingis and De'Anthony Melton.
- Cleveland Cavaliers may need to offload Max Strus's and Dennis Schroder's contracts to open money for a James offer, while the Sixers are currently limited to the roughly $3.9 million veteran minimum.
- Miami Heat round out the known suitors, and James is expected to take his time deciding where to continue his 23-year career.
- James has made clear he wants both happiness and a legitimate chance to win at the highest level, the criteria Philadelphia is explicitly trying to satisfy with its two-day roster overhaul.
Why it matters: The Sixers are spending their trade ammunition — Brown plus Simons in 24 hours — to sell LeBron on basketball fit rather than dollars, since Philly can only offer ~$3.9M against Golden State's $15.1M exception path. Philadelphia is betting that two blockbuster roster moves in one day build enough title credibility to overcome an ~$11M salary gap for a player prioritizing both happiness and a championship shot.
