How the Jaylen Brown Trade Brought LeBron to Philadelphia

LeBron James endured an emotional roller coaster before deciding at 1 a.m. to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers, according to his longtime agent Rich Paul.

Paul, the CEO of Klutch Sports Group, said the free agency race came down to Philadelphia, Cleveland, Miami, and Golden State, with every team leading at some point.

The pull of a homecoming to Cleveland and the bond with Pat Riley in Miami made walking away agonizing, while the chance to play with Steph Curry and Draymond Green kept the Warriors alive.

Philadelphia surged ahead after acquiring Jaylen Brown from the Celtics on July 1, pairing him with Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid in a lineup James believes can chase a fifth championship.

James and Maxey have worked out together for five years, and Paul called that friendship priceless in convincing the superstar the transition would be smooth.

Paul added that James went back and forth several times on his final day of deliberation and even kept an eye on Minnesota during the process.

In the end, Paul said, James is happy with his choice and the city of Philly is going to embrace him.

A franchise that has not escaped the second round since 2001 just handed its future to a man who turns 42 in December, AP notes. Philadelphia finished 45 and 37 before the eventual champion Knicks swept it out of the playoffs, yet its title odds collapsed from 20:1 to 10:1 the moment he chose the Sixers. Cleveland watches a third homecoming die, Golden State keeps only Curry, and Los Angeles absorbs life without the league’s career scoring leader. Adam Silver had publicly pressed him to choose while next season’s schedule sat frozen, Reuters recalls; that work resumes now, and the player option in year two returns the whole question to his desk within 12 months.