Brad Stevens may have done more than reshape the Philadelphia 76ers. After sending Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia, the Boston Celtics GM may have helped build the league’s next superteam.
Less than a month after adding Brown, the 76ers have landed another massive piece: LeBron James. Philadelphia signed James to a two-year, $8 million deal, pairing the four-time MVP with Brown, Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe. On paper, that gives the Sixers what could be the most star-heavy starting five in the Eastern Conference, and maybe the whole NBA.
James announced the move with a message that made his intentions clear.
"another championship.
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 76ers already showed they can go toe-to-toe with Boston, beating the Celtics in seven games in the first round of last season’s playoffs. Now they’ve taken Brown away from them and added James on top of it, putting themselves in a stronger spot than the Celtics heading into next season.
There are real questions about how it all fits. Philadelphia’s projected starting group is loaded with players who thrive in the midrange or around the rim, but not many who are natural off-ball movers. The bench depth is also thin, and Nick Nurse still has to prove he’s the right coach for this group.
Still, the talent level is impossible to ignore.
James also brings a different kind of value. Last season with the Los Angeles Lakers, he spent plenty of time as more of a connector and third option alongside Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. That version of James could be exactly what helps this Philadelphia core unlock another level.
For Boston, the bigger problem may not just be Philadelphia. The Celtics’ place in the East looks shaky overall, and the 76ers are only part of that picture.
As it stands, it’s difficult to say the Celtics are clearly better than Philadelphia, the New York Knicks, the Toronto Raptors, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Indiana Pacers, and maybe even the Detroit Pistons.
Boston still has reasons for optimism, but the title window, in this view, has closed. With the way the league keeps shifting, it’s hard to argue otherwise.
In Other News...
Celtics Just Lost A Summer Standout In A Brutal Two-Way Twist
John Tonjes summer with Boston had been one of the more encouraging subplots of the Celtics offseason, enough to keep his name in the mix as the team sorted through its two-way picture. The guard, who played in six games for Boston last season after arriving as a second-round pick by the Utah Jazz, also turned heads with a strong showing in summer league and gave the staff a reason to think he might stick around longer.
Instead, his next stop changes the Celtics calculus in a hurry. With Tonje no longer part of the equation, Bostons two-way situation becomes a little less crowded as the front office weighs its remaining options and looks at players such as Amari Williams, Dillon Mitchell and Milos Uzan for the spots still available. [Read more 🡒]
Celtics Fans Just Got The Rival Scenario They Feared Most
The Eastern Conference just got a lot more complicated for Boston, with Philadelphia reshaping itself around a move that instantly changes the balance of power. However the rest of the season plays out, the Celtics now have to prepare for a rival that looks very different from the one they expected when the schedule was set, and the ripple effects go well beyond one marquee addition.
For Boston, the real unease is in what comes next. The Celtics will see this new version of the 76ers often enough to get a close look, and the possibility of a postseason collision adds another layer of pressure to every meeting. What had been a familiar rivalry suddenly carries a far more uncomfortable edge, and that is exactly the kind of scenario Celtics fans were hoping to avoid. [Read more 🡒]