⭐ LeBron James signs with the Philadelphia 76ers on a reported two-year deal.
➡️ James said he wants one more chance to compete for another NBA championship.
🔵 PA Gov. Josh Shapiro celebrated the move by declaring “LeBron James Day.”
PHILADELPHIA — The city that was the heart of the American Revolution is welcoming a new “King James” with open arms.
The 67ers just netted NBA superstar, LeBron James to play for the Philadelphia team for the next two seasons.
Multiple reports said it was a $8 million, two-year deal, after the NBA’s all-time leading scorer first broke the news on Friday.
LeBron says one more championship is driving his decision
“I believe I can help make the Philadelphia 76ers a championship team and I am so excited to energize a new fan base and start this incredible journey one last time. Thank you LA. Miami I’ll forever love and Northeast Ohio will always home,” the 41-year-old James said in a thread on X.
“I thought I was done when the season ended. I wasn’t ready to announce it, and I knew I needed some time to really decide, but I was pretty sure I played my last game,” James also said in his post, also explaining that he wants to finish his playing career trying to score another championship.
“This is my last decision. I’m not going for money. I’m not going for family. What am I really playing for at this point? I still want to sacrifice. I still want to work. I still want to grind. I still want to compete, to win and to have a chance at the feeling of winning another championship.”
PA Gov. Josh Shapiro celebrates blockbuster move
Among fans gleeful at the news was Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro — who proclaimed it to be LeBron James Day.
“LEBRON IS COMING TO PHILLY. By the power vested in me as the Governor of the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a die-hard Sixers fan… I hereby proclaim today to be LEBRON JAMES DAY. Welcome to the City of Brotherly Love, @KingJames,” Shapiro said on X, minutes after the surprising news was announced.
Along the southern stretch of the Jersey Shore, 6ers fans were also celebrating as shared by NBC 10 Philly reporter John Clark:
LeBron begins a new chapter after two decades in the NBA
James was born in Akron, Ohio, in 1984. He became a basketball phenom while playing in high school, and was then NBA drafted first overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003.
He left his home state in 2010 to play for the Miami Heat, where he won two back-to-back championships in 2012 and 2013
James then returned to Ohio in 2014 — and won a championship with the Cavs in 2016.
LeBron while with the L.A. Lakers in May 2026 (Photo by Luke Hales Getty Images)LeBron James signs with Philadelphia 76ers
Then in 2018, James signed with the Los Angeles Lakers and clinched his fourth NBA championship during the 2020 “bubble” season.
While in L.A., James also broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record, becoming the league’s all-time leading scorer.
His new contract with the Philadelphia 76ers starts with a record-setting 24th NBA season.
The big news comes after a heartbreaking end to last season, as the 76ers made it to the 2026 NBA Playoffs — only to be swept 4-0 and eliminated in the second round by the New York Knicks.
New York went on to win the franchise’s third NBA championship — and the first in 53 years.
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