The Philadelphia 76ers remain in the running for LeBron James, but they might have just stumbled upon a major roadblock in their chase. As recently reported by Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor, the growing belief is that the superstar is slow-cooking his free agency decision to first see if any of the teams partaking in the sweepstakes can manage to strike a trade for either Anthony Davis or Kyrie Irving –– his two previous co-stars with whom he won a championship.
LeBron James rumor is a dagger to the 76ers' chances of signing him
Well, the problem for the 76ers is threefold. First, neither Davis nor Irving appears to actually be available. Second, Philly does not have a realistic path to even make that kind of trade at this juncture. Third, this seems to imply that LeBron wants familiarity at his next ball club, which effectively puts the 76ers at a disadvantage.
It is quite strange, at least according to this rumor, that Davis and Irving constitute some sort of prerequisites for those teams still in the running for LeBron. Those players are not exactly easy to trade for, and it is not like the Wizards or the Mavericks are even itching to move them.
The 76ers can't afford another major change
Even if they were to be made available, President of Basketball Operations Mike Gansey and the 76ers front office will probably find it nearly impossible to make that kind of trade. They had just made a blockbuster deal for Jaylen Brown earlier this offseason, and neither Joel Embiid nor Tyrese Maxey is available. Second-year star VJ Edgecombe is obviously untouchable.
Perhaps the most worrying implication for the 76ers is that this rumor suggests LeBron is seeking a nexus to his past. Both Davis and Irving were his co-stars when he won a title in Los Angeles and Cleveland. Obviously, the Lakers are out of the running, but the Cavaliers are already deemed the favorites in this race. Going by the spirit of this report, the Heat probably have a good chance as well. The same cannot be said for Philly when applying the same rhetoric.
At this point, no one really knows what LeBron James' main priority is going to end up being. However, this rumor is quite concerning, given that the unfortunate reality is that the 76ers could now be the laggards in this monumental bidding war.
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