Why the Sixers Shouldn’t Sign LeBron
With emojis and ‘Happy Birthday’ tweets, offseason NBA social media has birthed dozens of 2017/18 free agency rumors, many of which have been covered by the proprietors of ESPN’s 24-hour news cycle and analyzed to death. As much as I profess my love for the game of basketball and both the regular and postseason, I’d be lying if I said I don’t find the offseason and its rumor-mongering at least as enjoyable. It’s the best kind of reality television. Not only is it actually real, but it also affects our lives — at least in the sense that our teams are our life. As a 76ers fan, I’ve had many reasons to love this offseason.
The most entertaining (and perhaps ridiculous) rumor propagated by the NBA Twitter Machine is clearly that of The King’s desired conquest of Philadelphia. You most likely know what I’m referring to, but if not, here’s an in-depth analysis and background.
Amid all the commotion of trying to determine the legitimacy of the rumors, figuring who the Sixers would have to give up if it came to a sign-and-trade scenario, and daydreaming highlights of Ben Simmons driving on Lonzo Ball and either kicking out to Embiid for 3 or faking a layup and no-look deferring to LeBron for an alley-oop (God, that’s a hell of a thought); we’ve overlooked a massive detail.
It hurts me to say this. I’ve Googled ‘LeBron 76ers rumors’ just about every day over the last few years, and when the story finally broke, I was absolutely ecstatic. It’s not that I’m a LeBron fan at all: I lived around Miami when all the ‘Heat fans’ came out of the woodwork dressed in smug smiles and Big Three shirts, so for a while I despised LBJ. That changed, however, as soon as he chased down and stuffed Andre Iguodala and brought a trophy to Cleveland. For a while, I thought he could bring one to Philly too. The fact of the matter, however, is that Philadelphia never has and never will need a King.
For this article’s purposes, let’s jump to Summer 2018 and simply assume the rumors are true. With Simmons, Embiid, and Fultz all playing 65+ games, the 76ers claim the 8th seed at 42–40, nearly toppling the Cavs before losing a heartbreaker in Game 6 of the first round. With Kyrie Irving still unhappy, the Cavs lose the Eastern crown to a barrage of 3s from the Wizards, who ultimately can’t beat the Rockets in the Finals (it’s my hypothetical, and I’m ready for some new blood).
Kyrie’s still asking for a trade, and LeBron recognizes his time in the Land has come to an end. He shops around in LA and New York but ultimately decides he wants in on the Process.
The widely held assumption is that every team in the league would sell their souls to reel in the best player in the NBA. Frankly, I think that most would. But when you get past the initial gleeful novelty of signing LeBron James — which is admittedly difficult — you realize the flaws in the plan.
For a while, I thought he [Lebron] could bring a trophy to Philly too. The fact of the matter, however, is that Philadelphia never has and never will need a King.
The most obvious problem is money. LeBron James will easily command a max deal, and he probably won’t take any voluntary pay cut like he has in the past. A 4-year max deal for LeBron would run the 76ers a little less than $160 million, averaging about $40 million/year. Even though the 76ers have a tremendous amount of cap space, they also have Joel Embiid and Robert Covington due for new deals in 2017/18 as well as a handful of bench and role players, many of whom they will most likely want to re-sign. With guys like TJ McConnell and Richaun Holmes only a few years away from non-rookie contracts and two probable max players in Embiid and LeBron, the Sixers cap space dries up fast. This proves quite problematic since they’ll most likely need big money for Simmons in 2021/2022 and Markelle Fultz the following year unless they make the wise move of renegotiating their contracts before the threat of free agency hangs over negotiations. If this happens, it means that as soon as 2019/2020 the 76ers could have as many as three non-LeBron max contracts in Embiid, Simmons, and Fultz.
Even if the Sixers only sign LeBron to a two-year deal, they’ll still be forced to drop a few veterans and possibly some of the younger guys (TLC, Furkan, Jonah Bolden) to hold on to LeBron, Embiid, and Covington. The only real way around this would be a sign-and-trade involving one of Philly’s top three guys (probably Fultz or Simmons) in addition to a pricey vet like Jerryd Bayless, a cheap 2nd/3rd team guy like TJ or Holmes, and at least one young potential starter (TLC, Furkan). Since LeBron has a no-trade clause, this is only possible if the Sixers wanted to trade contracts to reduce the salary cap hits and LeBron wanted to give Cleveland a going away present.
Some might still jump at Philly LeBron, but let me first pose a question: would you rather be the 2000s Spurs or the 2010s Cavs? That is, would you rather be a consistent contender, grinding and winning 4 NBA Titles from 1999 to 2009? Or a supernova dynasty, dominating the conference for 3–4 years (picking up a championship in the process) before collapsing magnificently into itself?
When the Cavs re-signed LeBron James, GM David Griffin absolutely blew up his roster. The Cavs had seven first-round picks from 2011–2014, including three overall #1 picks, a haul similar to the Sixers’ current war chest. By the end of the 2014/15 season, however, only one #1 (Kyrie) and one other (Tristan Thompson, picked #4 in the same draft as Kyrie) remained. Over the course of one season, Cleveland sold or traded away not only three 1st round picks from 2011–2014, but also the past two #1 overall picks in Anthony Bennett and Andrew Wiggins, an effort largely forgotten due to Bennett’s overwhelming lack of NBA success. Both because of his clout and the negotiating power he had by signing deals in which he could opt out, LeBron effectively became GM. He sold years’ worth of future draft picks* the Cavs had carefully acquired over the previous few years for the role players — many past their best playing days — he wanted next to him, potentially bankrupting the entire organization by the time he leaves.
* Two of those future 1st rounders? Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Furkan Korkmaz.
It’s hard to fault LeBron and the Cavalier’s decision to play for immediate success; the Eastern Conference was wide-open following LeBron’s exit from Miami. Essentially, whatever team LeBron went to would inherently become the best in the East, and the addition of Kevin Love to the potential James-Irving duo was poised to create a clear frontrunner in the East (it did), a team who could string together a few straight Eastern Conference titles (they have). They opted to go for broke, win a few titles like the late 2000s Lakers, and worry about the consequences (look at the mid-2010s Lakers) later. It’s worked out well for the most part, and though they’ve twice fallen to a Golden State team with more depth and better coaching, they also managed to thwart Golden State’s back-to-back quest and claim a trophy of their own in a series that will forever be used by those who profess to LeBron’s superiority over Jordan. Their reign, however, is clearly coming to an abrupt and bitter end.
The Sixers do not need that kind of destruction. The future is Always Sunny in Philadelphia, even beyond their Simmons-Embiid-Fultz trio. Bryan Colangelo has inherited not only multiple first- and second-round picks in the coming years but also players stashed in Europe to come over when they’re developed. Throwing that potential away for a few years of LeBron would be reckless and horrifically anti-Hinkie.
Would you rather be the 2000s Spurs or the 2010s Cavs?
Money and contracts are easy to discuss because they’re tangible, definite. They can be counted, added, subtracted, dissected. Their analysis is based on numbers, and it’s easier to make data-backed proclamations than it is to pontificate on the ambiguities of team relationships and chemistry. I’ll try, however, to examine those two most important parts of modern Philadelphia 76ers basketball: leadership and culture.
Many outside the Process’ circle criticize the Sixers’ personnel and management, arguing that they’ve built a foundation and a culture on tanking. They say that the 76ers’ culture is one of losing, claiming that a team cannot — or at least doesn’t know how to — win when for so long they’ve lost, often pathetically.
What they don’t realize is that the players on the 76ers never wanted to lose. The 76ers from 2012–2016 were a fierce team not in that they were good, but in that they were tough. They never gave in, and for good reason: many of the players were fighting for a career in the NBA, and the Sixers offered them one last chance to prove themselves. It was a sort of basketball Hunger Games, and playing on the Sixers meant professional killer Cato is staring you down with a Bowie knife. If you can’t whip an arrow onto your bow in the time it takes him to reach you, have fun playing overseas.
This Process chewed up and spat out dozens, but it also produced a few fighters.
In June 2015, TJ McConnell, an eternally underestimated 6 foot nothin’ guard originally out of Duquesne University and later perennial powerhouse Arizona, was disappointed — but not surprised — when, even after he had been named 1st Team All-Pac-12 and led Arizona to a second consecutive Elite Eight appearance, his name was not called on draft night. Luckily for McConnell, a prescient GM named Sam Hinkie was looking for a value like him, and on September 27th, he signed a multi-year deal. This undrafted, undersized, underappreciated guard is now the backup — and a solid backup at that — to #1 pick Markelle Fultz. If he wants to, he’ll hit free agency soon and get at least $7–8 million/year playing 14–20 minutes/game for a guard-shallow playoff team.
Robert Covington, after a few years of grinding following going undrafted in 2013, is not only the most consistent player on the Sixers but also one of the best wing defenders in the league. Covington finished 4th in the Defensive Player of the Year Award behind Draymond Green, Kawhi Leonard, and Rudy Gobert, all defensive superstars. Given the $72 million deal Tim Hardaway, Jr. — arguably an inferior player — signed, Covington’s due for a huge contract in 2017/18, something made possible by his own grit and the competition of the 76ers’ culture over the last four years.
How does this all relate to LeBron? Stay with me. The Process is just that. A Process. It is perhaps the greatest metaphor for Philadelphia and its teams — the Process will take time, drain energy, and it just might drive you nuts. But like the city it calls home, the Process will fight to the death on its own two feet. It will never cede. Some may call it insanity. We call it pride. It is the courage of a 5’10” (I’ve stood next to the legend, and 5’10” is generous) newcomer Allen Iverson crossing up MJ. It’s Joel Embiid draining threes and chasing down LeBron cross-court to stuff a layup . The Process means Philadelphia will fight. And it means that we don’t want a savior to fly in and help us. We will make our own savior.
The culture of the Process is built on fighting for every inch. Yes, the 76ers have had a good — some may even say lucky — offseason, but every move made has been earned. Nothing has been given. We’re all pretty excited about the team, right? Why, just when things are looking up, after years of suffering, would we accept help now? The Sixers are better off learning the path to victory on their own without a world-beater like LBJ to guide them there, so they can win for years to come rather than just the few years the King reigns supreme.
On that note, let’s talk about the 76ers’ culture. Let me first say this — and before you call me blasphemous, read the whole argument — I love every guy on the Sixers, and I’ve had more fun watching them through this 28–54 season than ever before because they’ve got both great, palpable chemistry and endless personality. The fact is, however, that the 76ers do not need any more personality. I think what Joel Embiid has done and will do for the Philly fan base is incredible. But we don’t need another charismatic, lovable giant. The Sixers are at this terrific point where they’re entertaining and enjoyable to watch win or lose almost exclusively because of Embiid and McConnell and Covington and others like them. If, however, you add a little more personality, that entertainment devolves into distraction. And the distractions don’t get any bigger than LeBron.
Look at Cleveland now. Nothing but pure speculation that LeBron will leave — not now, but in a year — has in the few short months since the Finals turned a 3-time straight Eastern Champ into a mountain of turmoil and instability. It wasn’t long ago that the Cavs headed into the offseason with hopes of upgrading to go back at Golden State with full force. They are now scrambling to keep their two best players from totally falling out.
There will most likely come a time in the next few years when some sort of drama will creep into the Sixers’ locker room and GM’s office. It’s inevitable: every team has some issues occasionally. Presently, the Sixers have strong enough chemistry to weather any sort of storm that might come about in Philly. Throwing the game’s biggest star in the mix is too great a variable to ensure the Sixers don’t blow up like the Cavs are now.
The potential addition of LeBron would similarly disrupt the Sixers’ leadership structure. Don’t get me wrong, LeBron is a terrific leader, but the Sixers have a core of 7–8 guys that have been together for a few horrible years — misery begets camaraderie — and the leaders among them have already staked their claim and started stepping up. These guys have experienced losing, and they’re ready to prove their mettle as a cohesive unit with clearly defined leaders. Throwing LeBron into that group would force guys like Embiid and Covington to take the back seat after they’ve grinded for years to create an opportunity and culture like what the Sixers have presently.
You can’t — or shouldn’t — force a leader. A true leader comes organically over time through…a Process.
Philly’s got the leaders. It’s got the supporting cast. It’s got the rejuvenated fan base. It’s got ticket sales through the roof and more ESPN coverage than any non-playoff team outside of Los Angeles. It’s got a potential dynastic feud — Joel Embiid ensured a revival of the 1970s/80s East/West rivalry with those LA Lakers. And with that, it’s got a villain in the form of Lonzo Ball. But more important than any of that: Philadelphia has a spirit. We get to reap the benefits of a man who, according to half of the home-made signs in Wells Fargo Arena, “died for our sins”. And what’s a King to a God?
Ultimately, though, most of this won’t matter come NBA Offseason 2017/18. By then, rumors will be floated indicating LeBron’s impending departure to play for the Philadelphia Eagles or the Harlem Globetrotters. Maybe he takes his talents to Waikiki Beach to launch a Hawaiian franchise. This is not to say that all the rumors about LeBron James are false or outrageous, but instead that in the NBA, anything and everything can change in the course of a single season. No matter the commotion, the 76ers should ensure that one thing doesn’t change: Philadelphia will never need a King.
