LeBron James joining the Philadelphia 76ers has completely upended the East and potentially the New York Knicks' repeat chances. The Sixers have had a dream offseason in which they traded for Jaylen Brown and added LeBron while giving up surprisingly few assets to do so.
Adding those two to a core of Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and VJ Edgecombe seemingly makes them the championship favorites. It also ironically mirrors what the Golden State Warriors did to the Cleveland Cavaliers back in 2016.
The Cavs famously came back from down 3-1 to beat the Warriors in 2016 only to watch as Golden State signed Kevin Durant in free agency that summer. Adding one of the league's best players to a team that won 73 games and went to the NBA Finals was an unfair advantage. It resulted in LeBron and the Cavs losing to the Warriors in 2017 and 2018
LeBron just did to the Knicks what the Warriors did to the Cavs
LeBron joining the Sixers is exactly what Durant did with the Warriors. Of course, the main difference is that the Sixers were the seventh seed in the playoffs last season compared to the juggernaut Warriors that Durant joined.
However, LeBron joined a team that features three All-Stars. There is no guarantee that LeBron will have the same success with Philadelphia that Durant did with the Warriors, but he didn't exactly pick the least talented team to join.
Now, the New York Knicks find themselves in a similar position to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. They may be outgunned and could have to face a super team to even get back to the NBA Finals.
The Philadelphia 76ers may be the team to beat in the East
As things stand right now, the Sixers have more than enough talent to beat the Knicks. That doesn't mean that they will, however. The Sixers have several ball-dominant players, namely LeBron, Maxey, Brown, and Embiid.
There's no guarantee that all four players will be able to mesh together. There's also no guarantee that Embiid will be healthy when it matters most. The same can be said for a 41-year-old LeBron.
Still, their sheer level of talent could give the Knicks a huge run for their money next season. That could lead to a playoff showdown between the two Eastern Conference powerhouses.
Even if the Sixers were to advance to the NBA Finals, they would also have to topple the Oklahoma City Thunder or San Antonio Spurs. That is far from certain.
But LeBron and the Sixers are hoping to jump to the front of the line in the championship race, much like how the Warriors did to the then-defending champion Cavaliers.
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