Everything you need to know about LeBron James signing with the Sixers: Debut, merch, championship odds, and more

After weeks of speculation, LeBron James made his “last decision” on Friday morning and announced that he would be joining the 76ers on a two-year, $8 million contract. The news comes just one week after an appearance at Fanatics Fest, where the 22-time All-Star said he wanted to play for a team that “trusts the process.”

Read more Philly fans and officials celebrate the reign of King James as the Sixers sign a superstar

James joins a team that acquired All-NBA wing Jaylen Brown roughly three weeks ago. Ahead of James’ arrival in the City of Brotherly Love, here’s everything you need to know — from when he could make his Sixers debut to his current connections to the city:

James’ agent and longtime friend Rich Paul said on his Game Over podcast that “everything changed” when the Sixers traded for Jaylen Brown on July 1, one day after James informed the Lakers that he’d be entering free agency.

The Sixers suddenly found themselves among the reported top three destinations for the future Hall of Famer, but many believed them to be a distant third to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat, two of James’ former homes where he also won NBA titles. But after many twists and turns and hints that may or may not have actually been hints — you can get the full play-by-play here — James ultimately decided to bring his talents to Philly.

We’re currently still waiting for the release of the Sixers’ 2026-27 schedule.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver delayed the release of the schedule with the NBA world on hold, waiting for James’ free agency decision. But on Monday, some of the Sixers preseason schedule was revealed: two games against the Boston Celtics.

On Oct. 10 (8 p.m.), they’ll travel to TD Garden. And on Oct. 16 (7 p.m.), they will host the Celtics at the Xfinity Mobile Arena. James can choose to play in preseason or opt out and wait for the regular season.

The four-time NBA champion has played in preseason in the past but opted out last year when he also missed 14 regular season games with sciatica.

James will join a team that includes former league MVP Joel Embiid, two-time All-Star Tyrese Maxey, rising star V.J. Edgecombe, and five-time All-Star Jaylen Brown, whom the team acquired in a blockbuster trade in July.

Adding the 41-year-old future Hall of Famer, who’s NBA’s all-time leader in points, a four-time MVP, and a four-time NBA champion, makes these Sixers a true title contender.

Here’s a look at the projected depth chart:

Since the decision, the Sixers title odds have improved from +2000, according to Sports Illustrated on July 20, to +900.

Here are the current odds, according to DraftKings.

Fanatics already was selling LeBron James Sixers merch — and they sold out fast.

The No. 23 royal blue Swingman jersey, which was listed at $124.99, was sold out by 1:40 p.m., Philadelphia time. A James royal blue Fast Break jersey, listed for $79.99, also will be available to preorder.

A signed James 2026-27 Topps trading card, which was featured on James’ Instagram after the announcement, also is available to purchase through Fanatics. The cards are selling for between $11.99 for a single card and $169.99 for a 20-pack.

Brandon Williams, Fanatics’ vice president for global communications, said more merchandise will be added. Meanwhile, Rally House was letting customers preorder a royal blue James T-shirt for $37 on Friday afternoon. The shirt will ship Aug. 31.

Throughout roughly three weeks of speculating where King James would land, notable Philly figures did everything in their power to pitch him on Philly — including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, popular streamer iShowSpeed, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, and Eagles defensive back Cooper DeJean.

In the end, it paid off.

Philly may have been the biggest surprise, compared to some of the other teams on the top of James’ free agency list — his former teams in the Miami Heat and hometown Cleveland Cavaliers.

Read more Al Campbell, retired longtime Inquirer copy editor, has died at 74

But James also has ties to Philly that go beyond Phillies star Bryce Harper recreating his famous “Chosen One” Sports Illustrated cover.

He also has ties to some key figures within the Sixers organization, including co-owner David Blitzer.

James has ties to multiple people in the Sixers organization, including Sixers president of basketball operations Mike Gansey. Gansey’s younger brother, Steve, posted a photo of the two Ohio natives standing side by side in high school.

Gansey finished as runner-up to James in the 2001 Mr. Ohio Basketball race.

James also is close to Maxey through agent Rich Paul and Klutch Sports.

“A key factor in any sort of Philadelphia pursuit of LeBron is Tyrese Maxey. That is not only because of his talent, which is awesome, but he’s one of Klutch’s core clients,” said ESPN’s Brian Windhorst. “He’s basically a part of LeBron’s extended family, so you would not only have Jaylen Brown as the addition, you would have Tyrese Maxey as your drawing card.”

Maxey has referred previously to James as his “big brother.” They also train together every summer. In December, James had a lot of high praise for the 25 year old.

“I love the success and the humbleness that Tyrese does it at,” James told NBC Sports Philadelphia in December. “It starts with his family, and, you know, he’s just taking full advantage of the opportunity here. And he’s made the most of it. … Obviously, I love his game. But I love him the person more, than even his game and that’s, you know, that’s tough to do as great as he is on the court.

James has history with other Sixers, too, notably Embiid and Brown. Embiid and James played on the USA Basketball team that competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics. Embiid committed to play for Team USA, turning down the opportunity to play for Cameroon or France, and won gold with the Americans.

Meanwhile, Brown and James have a more controversial history. During a 2024 summer league game, Brown was spotted in the crowd saying, “I don’t think Bronny is a pro.” James later responded to the comments.

The Sixers and James were in talks the last time he was seeking a new team, in 2018. Leading up to his decision, the Sixers went all-out to campaign for the superstar, and even Embiid turned to social media to make his own pitch.

Ultimately, he decided to sign with the Los Angeles Lakers — claiming he chose the Lakers over the Sixers and Houston Rockets to help cement his legacy as a great.

The 2018 tweet wasn’t Embiid’s first time chatting up a fellow star on the platform. In 2014, he also tagged James, who ultimately chose a return to Cleveland.