LeBron James is walking into Philadelphia with a couple of old storylines attached to him, and both involve his new teammates.
Joel Embiid once fired off a tweet the day before James officially landed with the Lakers in 2018, writing, “The Lakers are FOREVER gonna be Kobe’s and Magic’s team…. Process that,”
Now, more than eight years later, Embiid and James are set to share a locker room in Philadelphia, turning that post into a strange little relic from another era. The two are now part of what could be one of the NBA’s most dangerous frontcourts.
Embiid’s comments about James didn’t stop there. Before the 2024 Olympics, Embiid spoke to New York Times Magazine about James’ age when asked about Team USA’s gold-medal chances.
“The LeBron now is not the LeBron that was a couple of years ago. So it’s a big difference.
Everybody would also tell you, and you can see for yourself, the athletic LeBron, dominant that he was a couple of years ago, is not the same that he is now,” Embiid said of his teammate, who was 39 during those Olympics. “I think people get fooled by the names on paper.
But those names have been built throughout their career, and now they’re older. They’re not what they used to be.”
James ended up playing a major role as Team USA won gold.
There’s history with Jaylen Brown, too, and it mattered in James’ decision to head to Philadelphia. A source with knowledge of the decision said Brown’s trade to the 76ers earlier this summer was a key reason James chose Philadelphia, speaking on condition of anonymity because the deliberations are ongoing.
But Brown also gave James a reason to remember him. During a Lakers summer league game in 2024, cameras caught Brown courtside saying he didn’t think Bronny James was good enough to be an NBA player.
After the Lakers faced Boston this past season, James brought up that clip when asked about Brown.
“They’re playing great basketball and it’s because of him and the rest of those guys. (Brown’s) taken that next step,” James said.
“Our relationship has been pretty respectful, besides the s- he said about Bronny at summer league. But other than that, other than that, we’ve been all right.”
James added that things were fine between them.
“We’ll be all right. We’ll be all right.
Yeah, we’ll be all right. I think he went on social media and said something about it.
It’s all good, but Bronny’s got a long way to go, but that’s another story. But the kid, I mean, listen, JB is doing [great].
…. He’s playing great basketball, man, and you can’t fault his … I don’t know, this whole MVP thing, I don’t understand why his name is not getting talked about some as well.
Like, nobody gave [Boston] a shot to start the season.”
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 🡒]
Brad Stevens May Have Just Made Bostons Biggest East Threat Even Worse
Philadelphias offseason has already had a Celtics-shaped edge to it, and the latest move only sharpens that storyline. After Boston sent Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia, the 76ers have kept building around a core that now looks far more dangerous on paper, with Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and VJ Edgecombe already in place and the front office clearly betting on a faster climb back into the Easts top tier.
For Boston, the concern is less about one transaction than the way the ripple effects keep stacking up. The 76ers pushed the Celtics to seven games in last seasons first round, and now they have added another layer of star power to a roster that already had plenty of it. If the pieces fit the way Philadelphia hopes, the path back through the Eastern Conference could get a lot steeper for the Celtics. [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 🡒]