The Most Likely Paths to LeBron James Landing with Philadelphia 76ers (2024)

When Bronny James hit the NBA radar in the last few years, the debate raged on the sidelines: Would a team draft LeBron James' son in an attempt to lure his father?

Bronny is now staying in the 2024 NBA draft, while LeBron can become a free agent if he declines his $51.4 million player option with the Los Angeles Lakers for the 2024-25 season.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia 76ers will hit the offseason armed with two All-Stars and can create enough cap space to sign James to a max deal in free agency. They also have a team president in Daryl Morey whose fixation on superstars is unsurpassed.

Philadelphia has been long linked to Paul George, but many around the league believe he and the L.A. Clippers will eventually find common ground on a new deal (although the ongoing lack of resolution is notable). The notion of trading for Jimmy Butler isn't new (and was recently explored on B/R), though there's no notion yet that the Miami Heat will part ways with him this offseason.

Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer recently expanded the Sixers' wish list beyond George and Butler to include James and New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram. The Sixers have a brief window to use their financial flexibility this summer and are eager to give Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey the help they need to compete for a title.

If the 76ers decide that James is their win-now target, his son may be the means to an end. They have two picks in the 2024 draft (Nos. 16 and 41) and could use either to select Bronny, who is generally viewed as a legitimate NBA prospect but probably a second-round talent. If the Sixers reach for him in the first round or take him in the second round, the next step would be to convince the elder James to join Embiid and Maxey (a fellow Klutch Sports client) in Philadelphia.

That path could take shape in three ways: free agency, trade or sign-and-trade. The latter two would require help from the Lakers, but the threat of the first may be all the leverage that the Sixers need to get James for marginal compensation.

Free Agency

Should James opt out of his contract to re-sign with the Lakers or join the Sixers, he'll need to take a slight pay cut to just under $50 million for 2024-25 (based on the projected $141 million salary cap). A three-year max deal with the Lakers would be worth $162 million, slightly more than the $157.5 million he can get from Philadelphia. The Over-38 Rule functionally limits James to a three-season contract.

That gap isn't large enough to be significant if James is willing to leave Los Angeles to play with his son. But the Sixers are one of just a few teams that can afford him—the others include the Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic.

Maxey has a $13 million cap hold as a free agent. If the Sixers let go of every other player other than Embiid and Maxey (via waiver, trade or renouncement), they would have about $13.2 million left in cap room to spend in free agency after signing James.

After spending that cap space, they would re-sign Maxey, likely to a max contract starting at $35.3 million, and they would also gain the $8 million room mid-level exception. If the Sixers spent that remaining flexibility on two starters, they would have James, Embiid, Maxey and the players whom they selected at Nos. 16 and 41 (one of which would be be Bronny).

The rest of the roster would be filled with minimum-contract players, which would be a risky formula given Embiid and James' injury history over the last few seasons.

Perhaps Nicolas Batum and Kyle Lowry would return on $3.3 million veteran-minimum deals. A healthy De'Anthony Melton (who missed much of the 2023-24 campaign with a back injury) or even Buddy Hield (if he can't find a better offer) might work on the $8 million room MLE. Oubre would likely command the remaining $13.2 million in cap space unless another team offers more. Or the Sixers can look elsewhere entirely with their remaining spending power.

Trade with the Lakers

The other option is trading with the Lakers. James would pick up his $51.4 million player option, and Philadelphia would absorb his contract into its cap space. That would reduce the Sixers' remaining cap space to $11.8 million, $1.4 million less than if they just signed James as a free agent.

James would be eligible for a two-year extension (as of August 18) starting at approximately $54.3 million for a total of $162.7 million over three years (or $164.3 million if he waits six months to extend). That assumes the 2025-26 salary cap jumps to $155.1 million—the maximum 10 percent it can—thanks to the NBA's new national TV contracts.

The Sixers have no compelling reason to trade for James rather than signing him as a free agent unless he insists on the more lucrative path. The Lakers, facing the prospect of James leaving outright, would presumably prefer to gain a $51.4 million trade exception by sending him to Philadelphia via trade.

Perhaps the trade could grow to include additional Lakers if the Sixers valued players like Jarred Vanderbilt, Gabe Vincent, Christian Wood, Jaxson Hayes, and/or Cam Reddish (assuming the latter two opt in). But the 76ers would need to prefer them over other free-agent targets and would need to be willing to give enough to incentivize the Lakers.

For the Lakers, a James-sized trade exception would be larger than the roughly $30 million in cap space they could create without him. (D'Angelo Russell would also have to decline his $18.7 million player option, among others.) The caveat for the Lakers is that they could only use the exception in a trade. Still, it could be the key to the Lakers luring another team's All-Star (along with future draft considerations), such as Cleveland Cavaliers guards Donovan Mitchell or Darius Garland.

However, none of that would matter to the Sixers unless James pushed for the higher salary. Philadelphia would have slightly more flexibility if it signed James outright as a free agent rather than acquired him via trade, but the league's all-time leading scorer will have a significant say in whatever happens next.

Sign-and-Trade

Technically, there's a third path, but it may not trump the first two. James could opt out and sign with the Lakers at the $50 million max as part of a trade with the 76ers.

The Lakers would get a slightly smaller trade exception. The Sixers would benefit from about $1.4 million of additional cap space instead of James opting in at the higher figure, but then James wouldn't get as large of a contract ($157.5 million, same as the free-agent option).

Philadelphia would be hard-capped the first apron ($178.7 million) after acquiring James via S&T, while the Lakers would be hard-capped at the second apron ($189.5 million). Neither should be significantly restrictive, but it would be extra steps without obvious gain.

Theoretically, Philadelphia could choose to stay over the cap, acquiring James via multiple sign-and-trades with players like Tobias Harris, Robert Covington, Hield, Melton and Batum. But given the complexity of that and the projected market values of those players, that doesn't seem realistic.

Staying with the Lakers

Should James choose to stay in Los Angeles, he can opt in and extend for up to $164.3 million. That's equal to the amount he can get from Philadelphia if he's patient enough. The money alone won't drive his decision, so the Sixers can reasonably take the calculated gamble on Bronny James in the draft.

The only clear advantage to opting out and re-signing with the Lakers in free agency is that James could receive a no-trade clause, which can't be tacked on via extension. Is he willing to give up approximately $2.4 million for that additional power? Regardless, James would not be eligible for a no-trade clause with the Sixers.

The Lakers are widely expected to draft Bronny either with one of their own two picks (Nos. 17 or 55) or by trading up in the second round. The Sixers have the leverage over the Lakers with higher selections in both rounds, though.

While early negotiations are illegal in most cases, that rarely stops teams from tampering behind the scenes. The Sixers should have a good sense of their chances of landing George, Butler or Ingram by the draft. They may or may not get James' blessing before drafting his son.

Still, if any executive is willing to tempt fate, many sources in and around the NBA agree that would be Morey in Philadelphia.