Five underrated benefits of adding LeBron James to the Sixers

LeBron James is a member of the 76ers and there are a number of obvious benefits that come with that. While he’s not a prototypical score-first player, James is the NBA’s all-time scoring leader. And while James is not a prototypical point guard, he’s one of the more talented passers to ever pick up a basketball. The same applies for his ability to rebound, defend, and think the game.

These are known commodities and the expectation is that James will bring immediate punch for the Sixers all over the stat sheet. Those tangible qualities have been on display throughout James’ 23-year career and they will likely be present in his time with the Sixers after he signed a two-year, $8 million contract.

But the intangibles are what makes James great. He can elevate teammates, serve as a strategist, and demand greatness from every player on the roster. At 41 years old, James is past his physical prime and might not dominate games at the same level he once did. But that doesn’t mean he won’t bring a host of underrated benefits to a Sixers roster chock full of talent. We took a look at five of them.

This is typically one of James’ biggest assets. The Sixers are technically a veteran team, with Jaylen Brown, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid all boasting ample postseason experience. But remember these Sixers haven’t won a title since 1983 and haven’t advanced past the second round since 2001. Of course, they look great on paper, but it will take a lot of hard work and hard conversations to mesh four ball-dominant scorers and a rookie hoping to make a second-year leap in VJ Edgecombe.

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This is where James’ ability to keep the main thing the main thing, as Jalen Hurts would say, comes into play. James steered and steadied the ship with bigger personalities and more dysfunctional rosters. After successfully leading the Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat to titles, James will now have a chance to become the first player to win a title with four different franchises.

You’ve heard the stories about David Blatt. A rookie coach still soaking up the NBA and American basketball culture, Blatt made the mistake of drawing up a play for J.R. Smith on the 2015 Cavaliers. James famously erased the play, called his own number, and sank a baseline dagger to win Game 4 of their second-round series against the Chicago Bulls.

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James is famously unselfish and has called the number of other players with the game on the line as well. Former Cavs teammates turned media members like Iman Shumpert and Richard Jefferson have touted James’ ability to prepare his teammates and predict moments when he will need them.

And this is also where the Sixers have lacked direction. Look back at their past playoff losses and you’ll see that they have hung tight with some of the league’s best franchises. Prior to this year’s blowout loss to the New York Knicks, they played them close in the opening round of the 2023-24 playoffs. The same goes for the Celtics, Heat, and Hawks in the three years before that. And then the Raptors defeated the Sixers on Kawhi Leonard’s four-bounce buzzer-beater en route to their 2019 title.

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In each of those losses, execution in the closing moments played a large part in deciding the winner of the series. Whether it was Ben Simmons’ ill-timed pass against the Hawks in 2021 or Jayson Tatum’s offensive outburst in 2023, the Sixers found ways to lose. James came to Philly to win a title and he’ll do what he can to help his new team avoid the mental meltdowns that have defined this franchise for the last decade.

James is one of the best passers to ever pick up a basketball. That much was clear when we watched him as a youngster at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. While James is the leading scorer in Ohio high school basketball history, several of James’ most famous highlights as a prep star were passes, which isn’t typical for stars on that level. He’s only sharpened that skill over the last 20 years.

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Few teams could use that mastery more than the Sixers. Edgecombe is learning how to set the table on offense. Maxey is still at his best as a score-first guard. He was fifth in scoring last season at 28.3 points per game. Brown was right above him at 28.7 points. In his last healthy season, Embiid averaged 33.1 points and played 66 games in 2022-23, and his dominance is better suited in the paint and at the free throw line extended. James will allow them all to spend more time off the ball to do what they do best.

Embiid has played more than 50 games only six times in his career. This is year No. 10. The Sixers’ title hopes have always come with one large caveat: Can Embiid stay healthy? The answer was no for the past three seasons, as Embiid’s availability was complicated by chronic knee injuries and bouts with Bell’s palsy and appendicitis.

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That reality was the source of the Sixers’ moves to sign Paul George, then trade George for Brown. Now the grouping of James, Brown, Maxey, and Edgecombe allows the Sixers to finally enter the season with real championship expectations, whether Embiid’s body holds up or not. To his credit, Embiid has fought to play through every injury. He’s also in the middle of his first healthy summer in quite some time. That’s a good start.

Billed as an uber-athletic defensive specialist, Edgecombe was expected to be a project last season. Then head coach Nick Nurse immediately placed Edgecombe in the Sixers starting lineup. Edgecombe stepped up and served as the Sixers’ secondary offensive option when injury and suspension kept Embiid and George sidelined.

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As a result, Edgecombe averaged 35 minutes and trailed only Maxey, who led the NBA at 38. Edgecombe added 16 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists, including a historic 34-point debut against the Boston Celtics. Edgecombe scored 14 points in the first quarter of that game and broke James’ previous record of 12.

As the season wore on, Edgecombe benefited from the tutelage of George, Maxey, Kyle Lowry, and more. He soaked up that information and applied it in real time, finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting. Edgecombe arrived ahead of schedule and took the Sixers’ focus from their three-star system to the young backcourt of the future. Now, after breaking James’ record, Edgecombe will have the opportunity to learn directly from the NBA legend and build on his breakout rookie season.