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LeBron Takes His Talents to Philly; Biggest Challenge to Knicks?

 LeBron James made the final decision of his playing career last week when he came to terms on a two-year deal with the Philadelphia 76ers, as the NBA's All Time scorer will make his return to the East coast after spending the past eight seasons (hard to believe) in Hollywood with the Lakers. 

The 41-year old Superstar, who won championships in Cleveland, Miami and Los Angeles signed with the Sixers saying on his personal Instagram that after considering retirement, he opted to play once more for a team that has a chance to win a championship. 


 This is my last decision. I’m not going for money. I’m not going for family. What am I really playing for at this point?

I still want to sacrifice. I still want to work. I still want to grind. I still want to compete, to win and to have a chance at the feeling of winning another championship.

What makes LeBron's latest decision so surprising is the fact he picked the Sixers over the Miami Heat who just added Giannis Antetokounmpo, and over the Cavs, who made it all the way to the East Finals last season. 

The Sixers were blasted by the Knicks in the East Semifinals, and have been busy trying to retool the team around aging big man Joel Embiid. Adding a shooter like Jaylen Brown via free agency from Boston certainly helped LeBron make this choice. 

The question is what kind of threat do the Sixers pose to the Knicks? The truth is: while they aren't the biggest threat in the East, that honor belongs to the Detroit Pistons, the Cleveland Cavs, and a healthy Boston Celtics squad; the Sixers will be a threat nonetheless. Yes, the Knicks dominated the Sixers in the postseason last Spring, and it feels like whenever they meet in significant games, the Knicks find a way to win. 

But adding a veteran like LeBron, who even at age 41 can still drive through the lane and post up a big shot could be a problem. The Sixers have a lot of fire power now, but even with that, what the Knicks have is continuity on their side and age. Aside from losing Mitchell Robinson this off-season, the Knicks return practically the same team that won the Finals over a month ago.  

As far as age is concerned, Philly has two players who are getting up their in age in James (obviously) and Embiid (32). Embiid has had issues with his legs the last few postseasons. How much longer can he keep it up is a legitimate question. The Knicks meanwhile feature only one player on the roster over the age of 32, and that is Jordan Clarkson who is 34.  

Also add the rumors that LeBron kicked the tires on interest from the Knicks early in this process, before New York refused will certainly play into battles next season. Should be fun.  

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