LeBron James says he seriously considered signing with the Philadelphia 76ers

At the opening of a new school funded by LeBron James, the NBA superstar confirmed that he seriously considered signing with the Philadelphia 76ers.

There was great excitement in Philly when it was announced on July 1 that then free agent LeBron James was going to meet with Philadelphia 76ers executives in Los Angeles. That excitement was tempered when it was announced that LeBron James would not be attending the meeting, just his agent Rich Paul. The excitement was doused completely when just a couple of hours after the meeting it was announced LeBron was taking his talents to Los Angeles.

It turns out James was in L.A. when the 76ers flew cross-country to meet with his agent. But he was there to sign with the Lakers, not seriously consider the Sixers’ sales pitch. It sure made it seem like they never really had a chance, although they still insist they did. The popular narrative now is that LeBron James knew he was going to L.A. all along, and the meeting with the 76ers owners and acting general manager Brett Brown was just a courtesy.

Now, for the first time since signing with the Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James is speaking publicly about his decision. He confirmed to ESPN that he did seriously consider the Philadelphia 76ers and the Houston Rockets.

"“I definitely thought long and hard about the possibilities of lining up alongside Ben [Simmons] and [Joel] Embiid or lining up aside [James] Harden and Chris [Paul],” James said."

James gave his first sit down interview since joining the Lakers at the opening of his new I Promise School in Akron, Ohio. He spoke about the school for the first half of the interview.  The questions about Decision 2.0 come at the 11:26 mark. You’ll notice the first team he mentions is the 76ers:

James also spoke to reporters who showed up to cover the opening of his latest charity venture. Although LeBron made it clear he was there to speak about the kids and his latest philanthropic effort, he did make a comment about his short time in free agency.

"“I did my due diligence after the season on the pros and cons on a lot of different teams, including the Cavs and including Philadelphia, including Houston and Los Angeles,” James said. “So it wasn’t as quick as it may seem. It just wasn’t July 9 like it was before. So after talking to my family more than anybody, I felt like this was the next step in my journey.”"

It is no secret that LeBron James would love to be more involved in Hollywood. James has a production company in Los Angeles. He received rave reviews for his acting in the movie Trainwreck and wants to do more acting. And LeBron is certain to make even more money for commercials and product endorsements now that he is a Laker and living in L.A.

Maybe most importantly, the James family has two homes in the Los Angeles area. Before he announced his decision to go to Los Angeles, there were rumors that his oldest son, LeBron James Jr., made a commitment to play at basketball powerhouse Sierra Canyon High School in nearby Chatsworth, California.

The 76ers, Rockets, Lakers and the Cleveland Cavaliers were all making very public efforts to sign LeBron James, but we never knew if he was seriously considering anyone other than the Lakers until today. He even told the media that he would consider going back to Cleveland to finish his career with the Cavaliers. LeBron just signed a four-year contract with with the Lakers. He will be 37 when it expires and, if he chooses to entertain offers, will be a highly sought after free agent.

Between now and then, we can only hope that the Lakers and 76ers meet in the NBA Finals. If you look at both franchises’ trajectory, it is certainly possible. Now that we know LeBron thought “long and hard” about playing alongside Ben Simmons and Joel Embid in Philadelphia, maybe the Sixers’ duo can make LeBron regret he not giving it a little more thought.