NBA: LeBron James announces he's joining the Philadelphia 76ers

American basketball star LeBron James, the NBA's all-time leading scorer, announced Friday on social media that he was joining the Philadelphia 76ers for a 24th season in the North American league.

"The King," 41, a four-time NBA champion, announced at the end of June his departure from the Los Angeles Lakers, where he had arrived in 2018 and with whom he had won the title in 2020.

The Sixers are James' fourth franchise since the start of his career after Cleveland, Miami and the Lakers.

James led the Miami Heat to NBA titles in 2013 and 2014, gave his beloved Cleveland Cavaliers a title in 2016, and won the championship with the Lakers in 2020.

Rich Paul, James' agent, told ESPN that the star had signed a two-year contract with Philadelphia worth $8 million (approximately €7 million).

"I believe I can help make the Philadelphia 76ers NBA champions," James wrote on X, saying he was "so excited to energize new fans."

The NBA legend considered several destinations but he will join a 76ers team that recruited forward Jaylen Brown from Boston and also fields Cameroonian star Joel Embiid at center, as well as guards Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe.

James averaged 20.9 points per game with the Lakers last season and indicated that he was seriously considering retirement at the end of the campaign. "I thought it was over for me when the season ended. I wasn't ready to announce it, and I knew I needed time to really decide, but I was pretty sure I had played my last game," James wrote on X.

AFP