The Philadelphia 76ers already made one surprise star addition this summer, so why not a second?
On Friday, LeBron James announced his intention not to return to Cleveland or Miami, but instead to "energize a new fan base and start this incredible journey one last time." He'll do so in Philadelphia, where he'll reportedly sign a two-year, $8 million veteran's minimum deal with a second-year player option, and where the 76ers have rocketed from play-in team to championship contender in the span of a single month.
ESPN insiders Zach Kram and Ben Golliver are examining the signing from every angle, grading Philadelphia's latest player acquisition coup and analyzing James' fit with his newest team, and earmarking the top winners and losers from James' self-proclaimed "last decision."
Jump to a section: Grading the deal Winners and losers
LeBron James signs two-year, $8M deal
Grade: A+
Lakers officials engaged in an unusual thought experiment last season. As ESPN's Dave McMenamin reported, "An onlooker was asked to observe [LeBron] James play for a stretch, disregard his name and age and evaluate his play to come up with a salary number that 'anonymous' player would deserve next season."
So let's play that game ourselves, using advanced stats to help. According to the DARKO projection system, here are some star-level forwards whose current per-possession impact is in roughly the same range as James', along with each of their 2026-27 salaries:
Two key takeaways stand out from this chart. The first is that, while James is by far the best old player in NBA history, he has still clearly declined as he has aged. The rough comps here are generally second and third options, rather than the best players on championship-level teams, and that's the role best suited for 41-year-old LeBron, too.
The second is that even as a supplementary star rather than a No. 1 option, James will be ludicrously, ridiculously underpaid in Philadelphia. All but one of these forwards will earn at least $40 million next season. And LeBron will make the veteran's minimum of $3.9 million, which is less than one-tenth the amount that most of the other forwards in his talent range will earn.
Philadelphia registers an A-plus grade for that value alone. James -- who doesn't need the money, given that he was the first active NBA player to become a billionaire in 2022 -- is still close to an All-NBA level, and he'll be only his team's seventh-highest-paid player.