Philadelphia 76ers president Bob Myers isn’t waiting around to see how the LeBron James sweepstakes plays out. He went straight to the source.
Myers appeared on Rich Paul’s podcast and laid out his pitch for why James should choose the Sixers. No fluff, no dancing around it. He just made the argument straight into the microphone.
“If he was here I’d say ‘I honestly believe this is your best chance to win. You have to decide all the other things that are equally important,'” Myers said on the show. “What I would just say is, if it’s about winning, let’s talk about this team. Because you can win here in Philadelphia.”
The timing is interesting. The Sixers just added Jaylen Brown to a roster that already features Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, plus VJ Edgecombe who had a solid rookie year. That’s a lot of talent. James would fit in as another playmaker rather than the guy who has to carry everything. He could pick his spots, let Embiid and Brown handle the scoring load, and still go get his own when needed.
But let’s be real here. The 76ers aren’t the only team in this thing. The Cavaliers, Heat, Warriors, Timberwolves and Nuggets all made the initial list of six teams that Rich Paul identified as legitimate landing spots. Cleveland has been getting mentioned the most as the frontrunner, which makes sense given James’s history there. But nobody really knows where this is headed.
Myers clearly wants to change that. Going on Paul’s podcast to pitch directly shows he’s not content to just sit back and wait. He wants James to hear it from him, not through intermediaries or league chatter.
The Sixers can offer James a chance to be a piece of something instead of the whole puzzle. That’s appealing for a guy about to turn 41 who has played more minutes than anyone in NBA history. He wouldn’t need to average 30 a night. He could manage his minutes, let the younger guys run, and still be the closer when games get tight.
Whether that’s enough to pull him away from Cleveland or another contender remains the question. But at least Philadelphia is making its case out loud.
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