LEBRON JAMES ON LEAVING LA AND CHOOSING PHILLY

 

LEBRON JAMES, 76ERS VISITS KNICKS AS PART OF NBA OPENING SLATE

May 11, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half in game four of the second round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks will tip off the 2026-27 in style, raising their championship banner on Oct. 20 ahead of their home game against LeBron James and the new-look Philadelphia 76ers.

The star-studded affair that also includes Philadelphia's Jaylen Brown and New York's Jalen Brunson at Madison Square Garden is the middle game of three contests on the opening day of the season. The Boston Celtics will visit the Detroit Pistons at 3 p.m. ET, while Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs will host the Oklahoma City at 9:30 p.m. ET in a rematch of the Western Conference finals.

The NBA also unveiled its Christmas Day schedule with five games on tap, highlighted by James facing his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Spurs and Knicks open the day's slate at noon ET, followed by the Miami Heat at Boston, the 76ers at the Lakers, the Thunder at the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Denver Nuggets tangling with the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco.

--Field Level Media

'LEBRON PUT HIS MONEY WHES MOUTH IS' | SHAMS CHARANIA

 

PERK SAYS LEBRON JAMES AND THE 76ERS CAN WIN THE CHAMPIONSHIP THIS SEASON 👀 | MBA ON ESPN

 

REACTION TO LEBRON JAMES JOINING PHILADELPHIA 76ERS

 

RICK ROSS TO LEBRON JAMES DITCH THE DUNKS ... Come Chase Billions In MIA!

Rick Ross is putting on his boss hat -- and dropping some straight-up career advice on LeBron James!

The Miami rap legend and die-hard Heat fan sat down with TMZ Sports in NYC this week and made it crystal clear where King James should take his talents next ... a return trip to South Beach.

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And, not necessarily for rings or highlights (not only, at least) ... but for the bag.

"I'm talking from a boss's perspective," Ross told us. "The boss move is for LeBron to come to Miami where the most billionaires are at. Because of his brand. You got to feed the other 30 businesses that Bron has created."

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Rozay makes it clear he isn't shading Cleveland -- one of the favorite landing spots for LBJ -- in fact, he likes The Land a lot ... but it doesn't quite live up to South Beach.

"Cleveland, I just left Cleveland two days ago. Amazing city. We had an amazing pool party. But it ain't nothing like Miami," Ross said.

"This is about business, guys. I know you guys who are still fascinated, who want to see him jump from the free throw line and dunk. No, I want to see him make some of the biggest empires and put his logos on some of those new big buildings downtown in Miami. And do more business with the billionaires that's down there."

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In other words, the math's simple, the way Rick sees it.

"I'm sure there's more billionaires in Miami than it is in Cleveland. So it's a lot of money to get. And what y'all want to do? Watch Brian get more money on, right? Right?"

LeBron's future is without any debate one of the biggest storylines in the NBA right now, and if Ross has his way, the Heat -- who just traded for Giannis Antetokounmpo -- would be bringing in one of the G.O.A.T.S. to fill up the stat sheet.

Oh, and to back up the Brinks truck!

- TMZ Sports 

LEBRON JAMES ACCUSED OF USING WARRIORS FOR LEVERAGE

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Popular NBA pundit Bill Simmons made a claim that LeBron James never viewed the Golden State Warriors as a legitimate option and used them for leverage. Golden State appeared to be the favorite when LeBron announced that he was leaving the Los Angeles Lakers to join another team in free agency. Things have quickly changed with the Cleveland Cavaliers now emerging as the strong favorites.

Simmons vowed that James to Cleveland was a done deal and referenced the Warriors being used for leverage:

“Another thing that happened to Golden State – I think they thought they were getting LeBron and potentially Anthony Davis. And now it’s pretty clear now they were being used as leverage as LeBron goes back to Cleveland. The Cleveland thing’s done.”

Golden State had confidence during the first few days of free agency and still are operating under the belief that they have a serious chance to land LeBron. Unfortunately for Warriors fans, one thing to back up Simmons’ is new reports that Golden State doesn’t have any confidence as it currently stands.

Most people and teams around the league are fully expecting James to sign with Cleveland. Simmons has a lot of things working in his favor to back up his otherwise bold claims about LeBron.

Why LeBron James “Used” Golden State Warriors

Simmons’ co-host Zach Lowe questioned why exactly LeBron would use another team for leverage during this conversation. No answer was formally given by Simmons, but he made sure to state that he doesn’t believe Golden State ever had a realistic chance.

LeBron could have used the Warriors interest to make himself the top story of the NBA landscape again. Earlier offseason stories saw names like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard bigger stories since they were fully expected to get traded, while James was originally expected to stay with the Lakers.

Everything became about LeBron when the rumors started circulating about Golden State being the favorites. Simmons even stated that he felt bad for Warriors fans since the James hubbub led to them believing they could add both LeBron and Davis just a few weeks ago. Now it seems like they may not be able to add any new players to the roster after most names were already acquired.

Golden State Warriors Went All In On LeBron

Golden State deserves more blame than LeBron if Simmons is indeed telling the truth. The Warriors have treated this offseason as if they have no real backup plans if James doesn’t sign there.

Trey Murphy has been considered one of the few other names that Golden State wanted to trade for, but it has become impossible. The New Orleans Pelicans wanted four first round draft picks at the height of trades, and they now appear to want to keep him for next season.

General Manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. failed to go after any realistic names and put all his faith in a 41-year-old looking to end his career in the ideal situation. Warriors fans expected big moves especially since the team is expected to miss injured Jimmy Butler for at least half of the season.

- Joey Haverford

THE MOST INTRIGUING DESTINATION FOR LEBRON JAMES | GAME HIGHLIGHTS

 

LAKERS COULD TRADE FOR $90 MILLION FORMER LUKA DONCIC TEAMMATE LEBRON JAMES

 

The Los Angeles Lakers and LeBron James have officially broken up after eight seasons.

According to ESPN's Shams Charania, James informed Los Angeles that he will not return to the team in 2026 and will sign somewhere else. The free agency tampering period is set to open at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

"BREAKING: LeBron James will continue his NBA career for the 2026-27 season and has informed the Los Angeles Lakers that the franchise can move on without him because he will play elsewhere, Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul tells ESPN," Charania wrote.

Losing James may seem like a big blow for the Lakers. However, the future Hall of Famer's departure from Los Angeles has been expected for months, and now the Lakers can move on and begin truly building the team around the face of the franchise, Luka Doncic.

Replacing LeBron will be no easy task, but if Los Angeles is serious about building around Doncic, President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka should explore a trade for one of Luka's former teammates.

Lakers could trade for P.J. Washington to replace LeBron James

Obviously, P.J. Washington isn't a better basketball player than James and would be a downgrade on the wing. However, what Washington brings to the table is solid three-point shooting, defensive versatility, and experience playing with Doncic.

Washington is under contract with the Dallas Mavericks for a few more seasons, but with Masai Ujiri taking over as President of Basketball Operations, he could look to retool the roster around Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving.

Trading Washington could emerge as a possibility, and the Lakers make sense as a landing spot. Washington had a ton of success playing with Doncic in their short time together in Dallas, especially during the Mavericks' run to the Finals in 2024.

Though Washington did struggle a bit from behind the arc this past season, the 27-year-old is usually a nice floor stretcher, and his ability to guard four positions on the court at any time makes him a valuable defensive chess piece.

Los Angeles could trade for Washington and immediately insert him into the starting lineup next to Doncic. If the team is also able to retain Rui Hachimura in free agency, a wing duo of Washington and Hachimura would provide the perfect blend of shooting and high-level perimeter defense.

Seeing James walk does hurt the Lakers, but the franchise now has the financial flexibility to construct this roster in a way that fits Doncic. Acquiring Washington in a deal with Dallas would be a nice first step towards replacing LeBron and appeasing Doncic, who is reportedly keeping his options open if the Lakers fail to deliver on their promises. 

- DHARYA SHARMA

BILLIONAIRE ATHLETES

 

David Beckham is a billionaire, worth $1 billion by our count—one of just seven living pro athletes (Jordan, Magic, Tiger, LeBron, Federer and retired Romanian tennis ace Ion Tiriac) to manage the feat.

Read more about how Beckham became a billionaire: https://www.forbes.com/sites/maneetahuja/2026/05/20/new-billionaire-david-beckham-on-his-family-team-and-legacy/?utm_source=ForbesMainFacebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ForbesMainFB

- Forbes

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LEBRON JAMES POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE | GAME 4

 

LEBRON JAMES OFFERS BLUNT RESPONSE AFTER JJ REDICK'S VIRAL TAKE

 

Credit IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect - Scanpix

LeBron James kept his comments brief after the Lakers fell 0-2 against the Oklahoma City Thunder, refusing to discuss the officiating drama despite JJ Redick’s strong postgame remarks.

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James was seemingly upset after their 125-107 loss on Thursday, which put them down 0-2 in the second-round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

There was plenty of drama with the referees during and after the game, from Austin Reaves' confrontation with one of the officials to head coach JJ Redick's postgame comment, where he stated that LeBron gets the worst whistle of any star player he has ever seen.

LeBron, meanwhile, who finished Game 2 with 23 points and 6 assists, didn't engage in any talks about the refs and gave a short and blunt response after the loss.

"We're down 2-0," LeBron said while talking to the media postgame, via Dave McMenamin.

He was also asked about the viral JJ Redick take, to which he gave another short response.

"I don't know," he stated.

The series is now heading to Los Angeles, where the Lakers will try to protect their home court.

Game 3 will be played at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.

- Basket News

DETAILS BEHIND LEBRON OPENING UP ON MJ GOAT DEBATE

 

THE FIRST FATHER & SON ASSIST IN NBA HISTORY!

 

DR. J CALLS ON STARS TO SAVE DUNK CONTEST Respect The History!!!

The NBA Dunk Contest is on relevancy life support ... but Julius Erving, the first-ever winner in the event, has a way to save it -- telling TMZ Sports it's time for the league's biggest stars to brush up on their history.

We caught up with the Hall of Famer in NYC this week ... and considering he has countless iconic slams to his name, we had to ask about the state of the All-Star Weekend staple.

It's no secret fans are starting to roll their eyes at it ... with randos competing against each other instead of franchise players. Zach LaVine, Aaron Gordon and G League star Mac McClung have certainly helped the cause ... but overall, it's been a dud for quite some time.

A big criticism is the fact that LeBron James never took part at any point in his career ... and the same can be said for other superstars.

Dr. J shut down the idea of making it mandatory to participate ... but he did encourage the household names to step up.

Erving suggested they educate themselves on the contest ... and he feels if they do, they'll change their stance on sitting out.

He added the players make too much money to be required to do anything nowadays -- that includes suiting up for games (spicy!!)

So, will the best of the best strove for slam dunk greatness moving forward?? If they do, we have Erving to thank.

There's more -- we also asked about Philly's chances against the Boston Celtics ... and let's just say he's quite optimistic!!

- TMZ