Jessica Shoulders is a WNBA fanatic, and she has maintained her love for the “W” since 1999. Naturally, she is excited that Philadelphia is getting a team in 2030 — just don’t expect her to root for them.
Before the WNBA All-Star game on Saturday, Shoulders was one of two guests at Marsha’s, a women’s sports bar on South Street, to sink a free throw on a miniature basketball hoop. Her prize? A vintage San Antonio Stars Becky Hammon jersey. Shoulders was excited, but she made sure to quickly clarify to onlookers that she was not a Stars fan or a fan of the Las Vegas Aces — the team Hammon now coaches.
“I’m loyal to the Lynx,” Shoulders said.
And that won’t change for a free jersey, or even a new team coming to town.
“Cheryl Reeve has my heart,” she added, referring to the Minnesota team’s coach and president, who grew up in Gloucester County and graduated from La Salle. “And Olivia Miles — Rookie of the Year — I don’t care what anybody says, she’s been out here balling out. First to be able to get 500 points in 21 games.”
Fans take in the WNBA All-Star Game at Marsha’s, a women’s sports bar on South Street, on Saturday.Conor Smith
In Marsha’s, where a crowd gathered to watch Teresa Weatherspoon’s Team Spoon defeat Cynthia Cooper-Dyke’s Team Coop, 129-120, Shoulders was not the only fan planning to stay loyal to their current team come 2030.
“I could never switch allegiance,” said Em Friedman, a Golden State Valkyries fan who recently moved to Philadelphia. “But I can have a second favorite.”
In April, the NBA and WNBA Board of Governors formally approved a WNBA expansion team in Philadelphia after it was announced in June 2025. Like the 76ers, the franchise will be owned and operated by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment. The team also will share a new South Philadelphia arena with the Sixers and Flyers that is scheduled to open in 2031.
One person who will ditch her WNBA squad for the still-unnamed Philly team is Marsha’s owner Chivonn Anderson, who currently claims the New York Liberty.
“Oh no, they’re done,” Anderson said. “Like, they’re out the door. We got a lot of love to give in a small amount of time, but as soon as we get our own team, I think we will become fierce rivals.”
Before opening Marsha’s, Anderson struggled to find a space to watch and celebrate women’s sports. The tipping point for her came in 2019 when she got into an argument with a Philadelphia bartender over putting the women’s soccer World Cup final on one of the bar’s televisions.
“A couple of years later, I had the opportunity to purchase the building here, the liquor license, and all the business assets to create this space where we highlight professional athletes,” Anderson said. “These women that sacrifice pretty much everything in their lives to get to this ultimate platform. We’re just here to share their story with everybody.”
The bar’s namesake comes from queer civil rights activist Marsha P. Johnson, who is best known for helping lead the 1969 Stonewall uprising. Since opening, Marsha’s has hosted events ranging from a deadlift competition to tarot card readings. Following the free-throw contest, Saturday drew in a crowd that was locked into the All-Star Game from start to finish — for good reason.
Jonquel Jones is the 2026 WNBA All-Star game MVP 🔥
New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones, playing for Team Spoon, won MVP honors in the tightly contested match. Jones logged 22 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists in 22 minutes off the bench. Notably, she became the first player in WNBA history to win league MVP, Commissioner’s Cup MVP, Finals MVP, and All-Star MVP.
“The atmosphere here is amazing,” Marsha’s patron Molly Coulter said. “The All-Star Game is a really exciting moment, and we’re going to be Philly fans when we finally get our team here, but we like seeing the stars. I like seeing the camaraderie on the court, honestly, like everyone having fun together.”
Not everyone packed in Marsha’s for the game was from the area.
Kathleen Bennett, a 16U baseball coach, was visiting Philadelphia for the first time for a tournament. The Syracuse, N.Y., native knew the All-Star Game was on, so she went searching for somewhere to watch it with others.
“I heard that there was a really cool sports bar, a place to go to watch women’s sports,” Bennett said. “I knew that the All-Star Game was tonight, and so I wanted to check it out and be a part of the scene.
“The WNBA is really the first prominent women’s professional sports league. It really had some staying power, and I can remember when it first started. Watching the [Houston] Comets back then. They were the team to beat. It’s really come a long way.”
If you have been following the LeBron James’ free agency saga, you have probably tuned into or read about Game Over — a podcast hosted by James’ agent and Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul.
It was on Game Over that Paul first confirmed the 76ers as a possible destination for the four-time NBA champion. It was on Game Over that Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment president Bob Myers made a direct pitch for James to join the Sixers. Now, it’s on Game Over that Paul — one of the closest people to James — explains James’ rationale for signing with Philadelphia.
Here are four things we learned from Friday’s episode:
How long has it been Philly?
The conversation started with Game Over cohost Max Kellerman asking Paul how long James had known he was signing with the Sixers before the announcement was public.
“He just decided on it, 100%” Paul said, adding that the competition was “pretty layered across the board.”
Later in the episode, Paul commented on the difficulties of the decision and said, “how hard it is to go away from a Miami and go away from a Cleveland, and who wouldn’t want to play with Steph Curry and Draymond Green?”
From Paul’s comments, conspiracy theorists seemingly can rule out James’ previous “trust the process” comments at Fanatics Fest as confirmation that his mind was made up last week.
What were James’ deciding factors?
On Friday, after ESPN first reported James would be signing with the Sixers, the all-time great took to social media to release a statement. James cited the “chance at the feeling of winning another championship” as his main motivation for coming to Philadelphia.
“I believe I can help make the Philadelphia 76ers a championship team and I am so excited to energize a new fan base and start this incredible journey one last time,” James wrote on X.
I thought I was done when the season ended. I wasn't ready to announce it, and I knew I needed some time to really decide, but I was pretty sure I played my last game. I was honest at that last press conference when I said I needed to look at myself and deicide if I still love
Paul expanded on James’ reasoning on Game Over and said it was a “love for the game decision.”
“Nobody at this level is this accomplished, this successful at life, still wanting to play the game. I don’t know what else you can say about it besides someone being very obsessed with the game of basketball,” Paul said.
A big question around James’ decision was whether his family life, rooted solidly in Los Angeles, would play any role in where he landed. Paul also addressed how James’ family factored into him signing with Philadelphia.
“Yeah the distance, that plays a huge role,” Paul said. “I think he talked about it, just being just so far away. I think it’s a testament to what his family has always meant to him and how they supported him in understanding just his love for the game.”
James is expected to slip into the Sixers’ four spot with relative ease. Last season, wing Jaylen Brown (then with the Celtics) and point guard Tyrese Maxey finished fourth and fifth in points per game, respectively. With two ball-dominant players — and a former MVP in Joel Embiid when healthy — James could take on a complementary role at 41 years old.
Paul sees James as the “secondary playmaker” on the team behind Maxey and said that “if he’s your secondary playmaker, you have the best secondary playmaker in the league.” He also sees some potential pick-and-roll action in the future for James and Maxey, similar to how James played alongside All-Star guard Kyrie Irving in Cleveland. Similarly, he feels that James can help elevate sophomore guard VJ Edgecombe’s game.
“When you talk about a guy like VJ Edgecombe, [James] definitely helps him because when you’re so athletic, you tend to lean on that a lot.” he said. “But in VJ.’s case, really honing in and being efficient [is important]. When you add a LeBron, everything changes.”
Klutch Sports CEO Rich Paul believes that LeBron James (left) could be good for VJ Edgecombe’s development.Chris Szagola
Did Joel Embiid’s health play a factor?
Like any decision involving the Sixers, Embiid’s health could be a factor in James’ deliberations in signing with them. Embiid has played just 96 games in the three seasons since raising the MVP trophy. However, Paul seemed optimistic about the big man’s current status.
“I don’t want to be too hard on Embiid, but you have to think about all those things,” Paul said. “And from my understanding, Embiid is doing a hell of a job this summer. It’s the first summer he’s actually been healthy, not having some type of surgery over the summer, which is always good. And, look, anybody knows if Embiid is your best player on the team, you’re a really good team. If he’s your second-best player on the team, you’re an unbelievably good team. If he’s your third-best player on the team, this is basically the U.S. [team].
On Friday, Temple head coach K.C. Keeler took the podium to address members of the media during the American Conference’s media day. Keeler was joined in St. Petersburg, Fla., by the other 13 American head coaches and Tim Pernetti, the conference’s commissioner.
Here are some notable takeaways:
‘Sustainable framework’
During his opening remarks, Pernetti focused heavily on the evolving nature of college sports and how the current landscape is failing athletes.
“We have a responsibility to surround [student-athletes] with a sustainable framework, and right now, that’s not a thing,” Pernetti said. “We need to give them a clear path to earn degrees, become leaders, and win championships. Compensation and all these things we hear about — they need to live inside a broader mission.”
Pernetti expanded on this by endorsing the Protect College Sports Act, a federal bill that would provide an antitrust exemption to the NCAA.
If voted into law, this exemption would allow the NCAA to establish limits on athletes’ compensation, regulate transfers and eligibility, and prohibit coaches from departing from a program midseason, among other changes. More than 20 college conferences have publicly offered support for the bill, but the two wealthiest conferences — the Big Ten and SEC — have opposed it.
“‘I’ve walked the halls in D.C. more than Frank Underwood did in House of Cards,” Pernetti said. “The American has a seat at the table. That’s the great news. We have a nationally respected voice, and I’m really humbled to be part of President Trump’s commission to save college sports. And at times, I’ve been the only non-autonomy commissioner in that room.
“For too long, this industry has lived in this cycle of litigation and temporary fixes and uncertainty, like enough. It’s time for structure in college sports. The Protect College Sports Act is now front and center.”
On Thursday, ESPN reported that the Senate is not expected to vote on the bill prior to Congress’ August recess, making it unlikely that a vote occurs prior to the midterm elections in November.
Owls retain crucial starters
A few hours later, it was Keeler’s turn to field questions from the media. His brief availability was more dedicated to the gridiron than the halls of Congress.
Keeler is entering his second year at the helm. Last season, the Owls (5-7, 3-5 AAC) finished one game short of bowl eligibility. As Keeler pointed out though, the program is returning key players to nearly every position.
“We kept every single one of our starters that was able to go in the portal, which is unheard of at our level,” Keeler said. “We had a number of guys that had major opportunities in the Power Four world, and when guys like [tight end] Peter Clarke and [offensive linemen] Giakoby Hills and Eric King turn down literally hundreds of thousands of dollars to stay at an institution because they love Temple, they love Philly, and they see where we’re going, it speaks volumes to the rest of the locker room.”
One notable position that is not seeing a returning starter may be the most important: quarterback.
Last season, the Owls were led by Evan Simon, who graduated this past spring. Keeler is now presiding over a quarterback battle between Penn State transfer Jaxon Smolik and Ajani Sheppard, who saw stops at Rutgers and Washington State before landing with the Owls this offseason. In the Cherry and White spring game, Smolik looked like the sharper passer.
Another new name to watch is fifth-year senior running back Sam Brown V, who transferred from Rutgers. The La Salle College High alumni was sidelined with injuries during his time with the Scarlet Knights. He was formerly 247Sports’ No. 13 high school recruit in Pennsylvania in the class of 2022.
Despite being approached by other schools, Temple tight end Peter Clarke decided to stay with the Owls.Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
“You keep Sam healthy, Sam’s a Big Ten starting running back,” Keeler said. “I think we have enough depth that we can keep him healthy.”
Temple opens its season against Rhode Island on Sept. 5 at Lincoln Financial Field. Then on Sept. 12, the Owls are slated to host Keystone state rival Penn State. Keeler is looking to make sure his team does not look past its initial opponent.
“And if you worry about what’s beyond you, there’s a good chance that very talented Rhode Island team, that’s ranked No. 4 in the country preseason at FCS, they’re going to beat you,” Keeler said. “I’m going to make sure my players understand nothing else really matters but us playing Rhode Island.”
Last month, John Kruk was inducted into the Hall of Pretty Good, an internet-born honor that recognizes baseball’s fan favorites who weren’t cut out for Cooperstown.
Kruk’s son, Kyle, texted the news to his father, a three-time All-Star with the Phillies in the ’90s.
“I thought it was some people just farting around,” said John Kruk, who now is a broadcaster for the Phillies. “But after I read it, they got some good players in there.”
The Hall of Pretty Good features names from Phillies World Series champion Shane Victorino to longtime Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte. Among other stipulations, no Cy Young or MVP award winners are permitted entry into the hall to ensure its “pretty good” nature. Any would-be inductee needs to receive 65% of an Instagram fan vote to join the hall’s ranks.
Upon hearing this description, Kruk, who is known for his dry humor, had a lingering question.
“Do you need to be under the influence of drugs to vote on this thing?” he asked.
Quips like that, which he readily says on air, surely helped him receive 95% of over 38,500 fan votes to become the 77th member of the hall. A new generation of baseball fans has become familiar with Kruk because of his engaging personality in the booth. He wants to thank some of those fans, who voted him “pretty good,” in person.
“We need to get a Hall of a Pretty Good ceremony,” Kruk said.
What would Kruk’s ideal induction look like? Fittingly, it would not have the prestige of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, which is holding its induction ceremony on Sunday in Cooperstown, N.Y.
“I wouldn’t wear a suit. That [stuff is] out,” Kruk said. “If you’re in the Hall of Pretty Good, wear whatever … you want. Not a stuffy suit. What, in August? People don’t want to sit outside and watch it; we’d have to go inside with air-conditioning, probably a middle school gymnasium.”
“It sounds like [Kruk] totally understands the gist of the account,” Whitlow said, laughing. “It’s meant to be kind of funny, but also it is to seriously honor players like him as well. They do deserve a space to be honored and remembered. I love that he doesn’t want a big museum or a mansion, just a gym. And we can just wear like a polo or a T-shirt. That’s perfect.”
‘Give him flowers’
Whitlow, 24, created the Hall of Pretty Good in 2024. The hall’s Instagram account currently boasts roughly 277,000 followers. Whitlow also hosts a podcast under the same name where he has interviewed past and current players.
“I’ve always been an overly sentimental type of guy,” Whitlow said, “so that trickled down to my love of baseball as well. All the players I grew up loving, they weren’t talked about anymore because they weren’t Derek Jeter or Ryan Howard or Jimmy Rollins — those types of guys. It kind of saddened me a little bit.”
Whitlow also noticed that baseball coverage has become more take-based and even toxic in recent years. He longs for a “positive, nostalgic place” to celebrate former players, so he made one. With the help of his wife, Amanda, Whitlow listed about 1,000 players who fit his “pretty good” standards. One by one, the account’s fans have voted on whether they should be in the hall.
For Whitlow, adding Kruk was a no-brainer. The former first baseman logged 100 home runs (62 with the Phillies) and 592 RBIs (390 with the Phillies) during his 10-year career.
During his days with the Phillies, John Kruk slides into home against the San Diego Padres at the Vet.ALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ / STAFF FILE
“Make no mistake, this guy was a borderline elite player,” Whitlow said. “It was a bit of a shorter curve, but it was amazing. People know how awesome he is in the booth, but just to see how dynamic of a player he was. The guy can hit, so it was cool to give him flowers for more of his baseball play than what he does in the booth.”
Long before the Hall of Pretty Good, Kruk’s career did get the attention of Cooperstown. In 2001, six years after his retirement, Kruk became part of a select group of players who received just one Hall of Fame vote.
“Think of all the people that have ever played, think of all the kids that wish they could have played at that level, and how many people have never gotten one vote,” Kruk said. “But I think [the Hall of Pretty Good] is better, personally. Because I know I’m not getting in that other one. I would never get in that other one. I resigned to that fact after my second year in the big leagues. To be considered by fans means more to me.”
“I always thought making All-Star teams was neat. Back then, it was all fans [voting]. The fact that enough people thought I was deserving, I thought that was great. And this is the same thing to me, except I don’t have to play.”
Full of Phils
Many Hall of Pretty Good players bounced around while in the league. Along with Kruk and Victorino, other notable inductees who saw action as Phillies include infielder Jean Segura, catcher Darren Daulton, relief pitcher Steve Cishek (who was the hall’s first inductee), outfielder Juan Pierre, starting pitcher A.J. Burnett, pitcher Tom Gordon, and shortstop Didi Gregorius.
The uniforms of many St. Joseph’s teams will have a slight change this fall — it will feature a sponsored jersey patch.
On Wednesday, St. Joe’s announced a partnership with Main Line Health to feature the local healthcare company’s logo on the school’s uniforms. The new uniform emblem was made possible after the NCAA Division I Cabinet approved the addition of “commercial logos or patches” on team uniforms in January.
St. Joe’s is the first athletic program in Pennsylvania to publicly announce a jersey sponsorship for the upcoming academic year. The Hawks field 21 teams, but the patch won’t be on all of them.
“We’re going to be a leader amongst all this change,” St. Joe’s athletic director Ashwin Puri told the Inquirer. “We’re going to embrace it. We are going to be uniquely St. Joseph’s in all this legislative change and this … transformation — we’re going to do it our way.”
Jersey patches, although new to college, have become a lucrative endeavor for professional sports teams in the United States. The MLS, MLB, NHL, and NBA all allow its franchises to strike uniform sponsorship deals. Recently, the Golden State Warriors made headlines after partnering with IREN to make the Artificial Intelligence company the team’s primary jersey sponsor. The deal was reported to be worth more than $50 million a year.
Meanwhile, in college, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, reportedly inked a deal with the medicine company Acesso worth $11 million over the next five years.
St. Joe’s did not state how much the deal is worth, but it is expected to bring the school increased financial flexibility. Last year, St. Joe’s opted in to the House v. NCAA settlement, meaning the school is now required to share revenue directly with its student-athletes.
For Puri, the recent changes to college athletics — from the rise of Name, Image, and Likeness deals to the onset of jersey sponsors — are “all related.”
“We are going to prioritize our student-athletes first and obviously the greater university community by finding partnerships that benefit everybody,” Ash said. “It’s holistic.”
Eric Laudano, the Hawks’ executive senior associate athletic director, spearheaded the deal with Main Line Health, alongside Mark Donley and Steven Brown, both hailing from the school’s multimedia rights operator Van Wagner. Main Line Health will now also serve as the exclusive medical provider for St. Joe’s athletics. Puri explained that this was the original goal of the partnership, noting it “wasn’t about the patch” at first.
“The conversation started with, ‘How can we bring everything together under one integrated healthcare system?’” Puri said. “Hospital, orthopedic, primary, physical therapy, athletic training, radiology, all the medical specialists — that was the goal. So the conversation purely started with what’s in the best interest of our student athletes.”
Tague Davis just got the tattoo on his right arm finished.
The tattoo, which took 13 total hours and two sessions to complete, features the initials of his immediate family members with three clovers — which represents the family’s traditional coat of arms from Ireland. A silhouette of Davis and his father, former major league catcher and Phillies color commentator Ben Davis, playing catch is included at the bottom of the design.
Also included in the tattoo is a verse from the Bible, Matthew 6:34. The verse reads, “Do not worry about tomorrow, tomorrow has its own worries.”
In life and in baseball, the West Chester native looks to live by this passage.
“Once you really break it down, you realize that it’s more of the journey to get to where your next destination is,” Tague Davis said. “That’s where you start reaping the rewards.”
The Louisville first baseman is coming off a stellar sophomore season. In May, Davis was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Player of the Year. He led the nation with 34 home runs while driving in 98 runs.
This summer, Davis starred for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League before earning a spot on the USA Baseball collegiate national team. For Team USA, the Malvern Prep alumnus shined in the inaugural World Collegiate Baseball Championship in Taiwan. In a 10-0 win over Korea in the tournament’s semifinals, he logged a game-high three RBIs. Team USA fell short of gold after losing 6-3 to Japan in the final.
Tague Davis competed with USA Baseball’s collegiate national team this summer.Taris Smith / Louisville Athletics
With all this change, Davis has relied on his support system to keep him grounded.
“Luckily and thankfully, there’s always been a role model [in my life] to humble me and show me where I’m supposed to be,” Davis said. “Obviously, faith comes into play with it. Right now at college, coach [Dan McDonnell] is a huge part. He preaches to me every day to be where your feet are, you can’t worry about the next day.”
‘What makes him great’
Louisville baseball coach Dan McDonnell attributes Davis’ success to his worry-free attitude and natural ability to find joy in even strenuous situations.
One story McDonnell loves to tell came during Davis’ freshman campaign. McDonnell opted to pull his pitcher. After he made his way back to the dugout, McDonnell looked back out to the diamond. The infielders were crowded together, discussing how to get out of the inning unscathed. Well, most of them were. Davis was razzing a teammate, flicking the back of his ear.
“As a coach, your first instinct is, ‘Why is this guy not locked in and intense and focused? This is the most crucial part of the game here,’” McDonnell said. “There’s another part that you just kind of [smiles], and you go, ‘That’s what makes him great. He’s a kid. He’s playing the game the way you’re supposed to play it.’”
That was not the only time Davis surprised his coach. During a one-on-one meeting, McDonnell ripped into his star player following a poor two-game stretch. Davis took the criticism “like a champ.” After McDonnell dismissed him, the star player quickly shifted topics — showing the heated conversation was already water under the bridge.
“[Davis] gets off the couch, he gets to my door, and he turns back and smiles,” McDonnell recalled. “He goes, ‘Hey, coach, it’s a great time of the year to go fishing. We need to go fish.’ And he walks out the door.”
Tague Davis says other programs contacted him during the season to see if he had interest in transferring. He rebuffed the offers.Taris Smith / Louisville Athletics
‘Grass ain’t always greener’
Louisville’s 2026 season ended early after an opening-round loss to Pittsburgh in the ACC postseason tournament.
Amid the Cardinals’ disappointing 30-27 season, Davis began receiving attention from other programs — weeks before the season even ended.
“I open my Instagram one day and there was a link,” Davis said. “I clicked on the link and went into my DMs. It was just a list of like four different trucks, like Ford F-350 Lariat — anything you wanted. I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, what school is this from?’
“You see different stuff like that and you think to yourself, ‘Do I really want this?’ Or do I want to stay at home, and ‘home’ is the easiest answer. So there was a bit of tampering, but you know they’re just doing their job. It’s a shame that the game has come to this.”
Although he found the whole ordeal “flattering,” entering the transfer portal was never in the cards for Davis — who noted he “wasn’t raised like that.” He knows, as his tatted arm will remind him, not to worry about what could be.
“Sometimes the grass ain’t always greener,” Davis said.
Added McDonnell: “We never felt or thought like Tague was necessarily leaving, and that just again goes to show just how well grounded he is. He’s like, ‘I don’t need this status. I don’t need these people gushing over me. Yeah, that money is nice, but that’s not necessarily what I’m chasing.’ It’s just very refreshing in a challenging time in this athletic world.”
On Friday, during a live taping of LeBron James’ The Shop talk show at Fanatics Fest, the four-time champion used some choice words while describing what team he would like to join next.
“I want to compete at a high level,” James said on stage at the Javits Center in New York City. “I want to join a franchise that kind of shares the same, you know, model as myself. And that’s like practicing championship habits every day, but trusting the process more than anything. I think you actually trust the process of actually getting to that point.”
Cheers from the festival’s crowd interrupted James’ thought after he said “trust the process” a second time — for good reason. The phrase, popularized by former 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie and later adopted by Sixers star Joel Embiid, has since become synonymous with the team. James, noticing what he said, quickly clarified his comments.
“I’ve been saying ‘to trust the process’ since I was drafted in like 2003,” James said. “I don’t even know if Embiid was even born yet.”
It seems that James’ “trust the process” comment was just a coincidence and not a hint toward his next team. Or was it?
On Thursday, during a live recording of James’ podcast Mind the Game, his co-host and Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton also seemed to not-so-subtly drop the Sixers in conversation. Haliburton asked James, “What are you going on, what is this … Year 76?”
James has not otherwise spoken about his free agency — and shut Haliburton down when he tried to broach the subject.
The idea of James joining the Sixers a few months ago seemed near-impossible. Today, a few weeks after the team’s blockbuster trade for former Celtics star Jaylen Brown, it is a genuine possibility that the all-time great wraps up his career in Philadelphia.
James’ agent and Klutch Sports head Rich Paul has already confirmed that the Sixers are a possible landing spot for his longtime client, and even had Bob Myers on his podcast, where the Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment president made his pitch. The Sixers front office has also made their interest public, with team president of basketball operations Mike Gansey telling The Inquirer on Tuesday that he would “love to have [James] in Philly.” Additionally, Embiid, Brown, and Tyrese Maxey, who has been pointed to as one of the main things attracting James to Philly, have already been in contact with the future Hall of Famer, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.
With James’ “trust the process” comment, Sixers fans have gone full conspiracy mode on social media. Some are even celebrating as if it is confirmation James is headed to Philadelphia.
Friday marks 18 days since NBA free agency began. And James said on CNBC’s Boardroom on Thursday that “that he “won’t hold you guys up too much longer.” But some Sixers and NBA fans are fed up with James for taking so long to make a decision:
— Bracco | Social Sportsbook (@PlayBracco) July 17, 2026
Respect to Lebron for his career and legacy as a baller but it's obvious he is going to drag out this attention-fest as long as possible so I've just completely checked out mentally until the announcement is actually made. https://t.co/Bbdw7TqEqO
A change to Division I men’s soccer looks to be on the horizon.
After years of discussion and debate, the NCAA Men’s Soccer Oversight Committee adopted legislation to shift the sport’s season from the fall to a two-semester schedule. The change was set to go into effect before the 2027 season. But on June 24, the NCAA announced that the Division I Cabinet remanded the proposal for additional review.
Twenty conferences opposed the measure, according to the NCAA’s release, taking issue with “the duration of the season” and “the lack of clarity about related rules.” Additionally, the Cabinet noted issues relating to how the change could impact the “student-athlete academic experience.”
Philadelphia has six Division I men’s soccer programs: Penn, La Salle, Drexel, Villanova, Temple, and St. Joseph’s. The head coaches of each program reacted to the possible change. Some supported it, while others pointed out a variety of flaws.
Player development
Critics of the one-semester season have long lamented that the current setup impacts player development. Villanova head coach Mark Fetrow, who noted his program has been “big supporters” of the new legislation, believes a two-semester format will accelerate development and may be a necessity for college programs.
“When you space the games out, and now you’re saying we’ve got a year of competition, we can now periodize our training in a way where we’re getting more out of our training sessions from a week-to-week basis,” Fetrow said. “We’re really maximizing performance because guys are just healthier on game days. If we want to stay relevant, if we want to evolve, because the game has evolved a lot in the United States in the past 10 years, then we have got to be willing to make some changes as well.”
A main competitor for colleges, in terms of acquiring and developing talent on a path to the professional ranks, has been Major League Soccer Next Pro, MLS’s path to pro league. But a longer season could put college soccer on par with the emerging professional league, says Taylor Thames, La Salle’s head coach.
Oliver Pratt (No. 16) played four years at Penn before signing a pro contract.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
“I think it makes us much more competitive in relation to MLS Next Pro, and some of these USL One contracts that are starting to take some high-level players from the college landscape, and it helps us develop them for longer spells,” Thames said. “There’s a bigger development cycle.”
Oliver Pratt, a 22-year old defender for MLS Next Pro’s Union II, played four years at Penn. He had to graduate a semester early to sign with an MLS team in time for the season. Having now experienced a full year of training in the pros, Pratt better understands the upside to shifting the college format.
“I definitely would have been able to maximize [training] more, and I would say be able to significantly improve within one season,” Pratt said. “It’s a different transition for me now. I’m dealing with a 10-month season, and my body’s definitely taking a toll.”
However, the majority of college players are not going pro, St. Joe’s coach Tim Mulqueen pointed out. He also noted that increased development would benefit the “top 1% or 2%,” but argued “that would happen for the top players anyway.” Mulqueen has seen premier development firsthand. He served in multiple roles with U.S. Soccer, including as an assistant coach for the 2008 U.S. men’s Olympic team.
Meanwhile, Drexel coach David Castellanos believes the current system is yielding strong results and a “drastic change” would not be necessary. He said that the old model has produced “national team guys in the 1990 World Cup” and “MLS head coaches.”
Scheduling games, shifting operations
In a two-semester season, programs would have to adjust how and where games are scheduled.
Under the new format, the maximum match limit for each team would stay at the current cap of 25, meaning no additional games would be added in the 2027 season. With this, programs are required to schedule at least seven games or at most 10 games in the spring season. A team cannot opt to play all of its games in the fall.
Having to schedule games and additional practices in the spring could create issues for teams that share their facilities with other programs. For example, St. Joe’s shares Sean Sweeney Field with both of the school’s lacrosse teams and the women’s soccer program.
Tim Mulqueen has served in multiple roles with U.S. Soccer, including as an assistant coach for the 2008 U.S. men’s Olympic team. St. Joseph's Athletics
“When you’re sharing [facilities] with lacrosse or field hockey, that’s going to stress training times,” Mulqueen said. “It’s going to stress the [operations] people, it’s going to stress our trainers, who in small schools do multiple teams.”
Penn and Villanova are the only two local Division I programs that boast soccer-specific facilities, meaning that intra-program scheduling conflicts are unlikely to occur. Still, Quakers coach Brian Gill expressed concern with how the change may affect the other resources that his program relies on.
“Your infrastructure gets shared, so if that’s the actual facility or some of the people: trainers and strength coaches, sports information,” Gill said. “There’s a lot of shared overlap there, so that’s probably one of the biggest challenges. … How do you make this all feasible when it comes down to that stuff?”
Then, there’s the case of weather. Philadelphia boasts relatively cold Februaries, when spring play is slated to resume. From 1992 to 2021, the city’s average temperature in the month was 36 degrees — a cause of concern for a few of the City 6 coaches.
“It’s going to be brutal,” said Castellanos. “If you take, for example, the winter that we just had this year and then you’re telling me our playing season is going to be in the spring. You need January, February for preseason to ramp these guys up.”
Added Thames: “I think any coach should be concerned about competitive advantages — how to protect their program and fight for their program. That’s one concern that I would imagine for teams that don’t have an [indoor] bubble. [La Salle], for example.”
However, Temple head coach Bryan Green did not feel Philadelphia’s climate was a cause for concern.
“All the leagues in Europe, like Germany, have a pretty similar climate to us,” he said. “They play in December and January. It’s part of the sport to play outdoors and play in different environments and conditions”
David Castellanos believes college soccer’s current system is yielding strong results and a “drastic change” would not be necessary.Drexel Athletics
One way to escape the cold is to schedule early spring matches down South, which is what most of the area’s college baseball teams do. Fetrow noted that he has been in conversation with Villanova to “try to go down to a place like North Carolina” to start the second half of the season. Thames, Mulqueen, and Castellanos all shared similar interest.
Like anything, though, that will come with additional costs.
“Those are going to be travel expenses. I don’t see how you can get around it,” Mulqueen said. “We’ve gotten to the stage where the smaller schools, we have to adapt to what’s being done at an NCAA level that we really don’t have much say in.”
Player health
A leading factor in the new format’s adaption was the idea that spacing out games would result in fewer total matches missed due to injuries. The NCAA, in its formal announcement, wrote that increased recovery time “could support injury prevention and return-to-play protocol.”
For the most part, the area’s coaches agreed with the reasoning.
“Say a kid needs two and a half weeks to get back [from an injury], there’s a good chance that the player missed five or six games through one injury,” Gill said. “Versus [in the new format], the player maybe misses two to three games. You’re sort of giving some space for guys to naturally come back.”
While Castellanos agrees that total games missed will be cut down due to the new format, he believes that a longer season may bring more “wear and tear” injuries.
“When we think about these injuries, we think about some of the major ones, but we’re not talking about the soft tissue ones,” Castellanos said. “Now that you go 10 months, you’re on it every single day, right? I think that you know these things can linger. It’s going to put a lot more pressure on the training staff to maintain these guys to be healthy for 10 months.”
Bryan Green has led the Owls as head coach since 2022.Temple Athletics
Mulqueen is also concerned about new injuries sprouting due to the format.
“In my experiences, when you have more time, you do more things,” Mulqueen said. “No one’s going to sit idly by and say, ‘Right, we have 10 months now, or we’re going to give guys time off.’ Well [if] you get bad results, you’re going to do more.”
Now, Philadelphia’s coaches are in a waiting game to see when the proposal will make its way back to the NCAA’s desk. In the meantime, they will continue to prepare for what feels like the inevitable.
“There’s all kinds of different challenges every season, no matter what,” Green said. “I think that’s the one thing that college athletics does really well, is they’re nimble and adaptable, and this is just one more thing that we can prove that we can do.”
Philadelphia is on pins and needles waiting for LeBron James’ decision. Meanwhile, he seems to be living his best life.
Almost two weeks ago, James’ agent and Klutch Sports head Rich Paul first confirmed the 76ers were a possible landing spot for the four-time MVP. Since Paul’s confirmation, the buzz around James signing with the Sixers has only grown. Soon after, Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment president Bob Myers joined Paul’s Game Over podcast to indirectly pitch the Sixers to James. During his appearance, Myers argued Philadelphia would give James the “best chance to win.”
Sixers president of basketball operations Mike Gansey, who Myers hired, made his position known on Tuesday.
“We’d love to have [James] in Philly,” Gansey told The Inquirer. “I think he’d really, really help us and add to our group. But he’s making a big decision here. It’s wild [that] at his age [41], he’s playing at such a high level. But it’s not surprising.”
On Monday, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reported that Sixers stars Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Jaylen Brown have all communicated directly with James. Maxey, who is also signed to Klutch Sports, “lead the charge.”
With the entire NBA being sent into a frenzy over James’ impending decision, one person has stayed suspiciously quiet through it all — James himself. That could change with James appearing on a live-edition of the “Mind the Game” podcast during Fanatics Fest on Thursday. He will appear alongside Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton, who hyped up James’ upcoming appearance on X.
So what is taking so long? Well, it appears James has been a bit preoccupied. Here’s what the all-time great has been up to:
Golfing with Kevin Hart
On Tuesday, James spent a day on the links with comedian Kevin Hart — a Philadelphia native.
The two played in North Jersey and were joined by Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green. Notably, James has also been linked to Golden State as a possible landing spot. Green previously said he made a “crazy” pitch to James to join the Warriors while on a different golfing trip in Puerto Rico.
During Tuesday’s trip, clips were posted to social media of the trio golfing and razzing each other. From the videos available, it appears that Hart had the worst day on the course:
“You stink, you’re here because you’re Kevin Hart,” Green joked, adding “you’re here to provide jokes.”
Contrary to Green’s assertion, Hart’s ”jokes” might not have been the only reason the comedian made time to golf. Could he have been trying to sell the Sixers to James? Hart has made his Philadelphia fandom known in the past and did help entice Paul George to sign with the franchise in 2024.
Kevin Hart reveals how he pitched the 76ers to Paul George 😂
“It’s just fan energy. I have no alliance to that office,” Hart previously told Taylor Rooks on her podcast. “I’m not in the business. I’m just a diehard Sixers fan. Once I heard it could possibly be, or we could possibly have, that’s just me being a fan, and having a relationship.”
Attending three Jay-Z concerts
A few days before golfing in Jersey, James spent the weekend across the Hudson.
There, James attended all three days of rapper Jay-Z’s consecutive sold-out shows at Yankee Stadium. The two have known each other since James was a sophomore at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio. James was spotted dancing to Jay-Z’s 2003 hit “Public Service Announcement” — which was released just over two weeks after James’ first NBA game.
Lebron James vibing to “PSA” at Hov’s extra innings show at Yankee stadium. 🔥🏆 pic.twitter.com/7v0ihL5xOv
James also was seen hanging with Celtics star Jayson Tatum at the concert. Unlike Philadelphia, Boston has not been floated publicly by James’ camp as a potential landing location. Maybe James asked Tatum about his former co-star Brown, who is now in Philadelphia.
Watching the World Cup
Maybe James — like the rest of us — is just preoccupied with the World Cup?
A vocal soccer fan, James showed love for US Men’s National Team striker Folarin Balogun after his Round of 32 goal against Bosnia. After scoring, Balogun performed the “silencer” celebration — made famous by James during his time with the Miami Heat.
LFG!!!!!! THE 🤫 HAS 🛬 at the World Cup! Helluva goal there Young 🤴🏾! 🫡. GO 🇺🇸 https://t.co/8wb2t2F6oq
NEW YORK —When Jeffrey Lurie purchased the Eagles in 1994, he had two goals.
Goal one, as any owner will say, was to win. Goal two was to make the franchise synonymous with a “global health cause.”
Lurie’s accomplished the former, winning two Super Bowls in the past decade. On Tuesday, he was celebrated for the latter.
At ESPN’s Sports Humanitarian Awards at Gotham Hall in Manhattan, the Eagles owner was presented the Stuart Scott ENSPIRE Award for his work with the Eagles Autism Foundation and the Lurie Autism Institute. The two initiatives have collectively donated more than $100 million toward Autism research and clinical care programs. The award is given annually to someone who uses their position in sports to help disadvantaged groups.
“You know, [winning] was sort of unexpected,” Lurie told The Inquirer. “[We] devote so much time to what we’re trying to do off the field with autism research and spend so much time trying to assure the Eagles are great … It’s a wonderful award. You know, I’ve sort of followed it over the years, and it’s nice to be recognized for humanitarian things.”
The Eagles Autism Foundation was founded in 2019 following the first Eagles Autism Challenge — an annual 5K bike ride to raise research funds for the neurological condition. The latest Eagles Autism Challenge had 6,500 participants and raised $16 million.
The Lurie Autism Institute is a center for autism research at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Penn Medicine. It opened last June after Lurie and his family donated $50 million to the two institutes. It is the largest center for autism-specific research.
Jeffrey Lurie (center) shown with Kylie (left) and Jason Kelce after winning the named Stuart Scott ENSPIRE Award. Jason and Kylie presented Lurie with his award.Courtesy of ESPN
“Autism was natural for me, my family, and millions of others around the world,” said Lurie, whose brother Peter is on the spectrum. “We’re getting there. We want the Eagles to be synonymous with trying to do everything possible that’s innovative with autism research and serving that community. And we’re certainly getting there. And it’s nice to be recognized on a national basis, and hopefully we’ll have a global impact.”
Lurie was supported by his Eagles family at the event. Jason Kelce — who raised $1.26 million for the Eagles Autism Foundation at his “Team 62” event in Sea Isle City earlier this month — presented Lurie’s award along with his wife and Not Gonna Lie podcast host Kylie Kelce.
Other notable figures present at Tuesday’s award show included Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry and his wife, Ayesha Curry; former NBA player Jarron Collins; New York Giants co-owner Laurie Tisch; Buffalo Bills defensive back Damar Hamlin; and former MLB pitcher Jim Abbott.
Moments from the Sports Humanitarian Awards are scheduled to appear during the ESPYs, ESPN’s annual sports awards, on Wednesday (ABC, 8 p.m.).
‘Boo-Yah’
The namesake for the ENSPIRE award belongs to longtime SportsCenter anchor Stuart Scott, who died from appendiceal cancer in 2015. After being diagnosed in 2007, Scott stayed at ESPN while undergoing chemotherapy. Months before his death, Scott delivered a now-famous speech at the ESPYs in which he told the audience to “fight like hell.”
Sydni Scott, one of Stuart’s two daughters, was 14 at the time of her father’s famed speech. She attended Tuesday’s award show.
Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie and Jason Kelce embrace after Lurie was honored for his humanitarian efforts with the Eagles Austim Foundation and Lurie Autism Institute.Ben Solomon
“This is one of my favorite nights of the entire summer,” said Sydni Scott. “I really think of my dad’s ENSPIRE Award as an award for people that are breaking barriers to bring more people into sports. You think back to the 90s, early 2000s, that was my dad. He was bringing Black culture, hip-hop, rap — all of those types of things into a very straight-laced kind of sports journalism and sports broadcasting environment.”
“In the past years you see that there are people who are working to make sure that deaf people are able to enjoy sports and Indigenous people are able to enjoy sports,” she added. “Every year, there is a community that I didn’t even realize.”
While posing on the red carpet on Tuesday, Lurie mouthed “Boo-Yah” — Scott’s famous SportsCenter catchphrase.
“It means a lot to have the award that Stuart Scott epitomized,” Lurie said. “I admired him. You know, he was inspirational. He was authentic, always genuine, and his battle with cancer was something we all were struck by, how he handled it. And having had family members with cancer, it was inspirational. To have the ENSPIRE Award inspired by Stuart is a something I’m proud of.”
