The 76ers will be one of the NBA’s highest-profile teams this season after adding LeBron James and Jaylen Brown to a roster that already included Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe.
And they’re being treated as such as the league announces its schedule. That started with the opening week slate and marquee meetings on Tuesday, including opening night and Christmas Day. The Sixers will travel to face the Knicks in the season-opener on Oct. 20, returning home two nights later to host the Cavaliers in the home Philly debut for James and Brown.
OPENING WEEK IS MUST-SEE 🍿
NBA Champions raise a banner. Superstars debut with new teams. Rivalries pick up where they left off.
The 2026-27 NBA season tips off Tuesday, October 20. Watch all the action on NBC/Peacock, ESPN and Prime.
The Sixers will reportedly play in 30 national TV games in the 2026-27 regular season, starting on opening night against the defending champion Knicks.
The marquee matchups keep coming on Christmas Day as the Sixers are slated to face a Los Angeles Lakers team James decided to leave this offseason.
A LOADED CHRISTMAS DAY on ABC & ESPN! 🎄
🎁 Wemby, Spurs visit Brunson and the defending champion Knicks in a rematch of last season’s NBA Finals 🎁 Tatum, Celtics host Giannis and the Heat in Beantown 🎁 LeBron returns to LA to face Luka and the Lakers 🎁 Shai and Ant go… pic.twitter.com/njuWV146ym
The matchup against the Knicks speaks to the outsized expectations for this new iteration of the Sixers. While the Sixers and Knicks have shared recent history, including a 2026 second-round sweep as the Knicks marched to a title, New York has gotten the better of that rivalry. But the Sixers have since fired former president of basketball operations Daryl Morey and hired Mike Gansey, traded for Brown and signed James to a two-year, $8 million deal. They also added depth in the offseason, with Anfernee Simons, Dean Wade, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Labaron Philon Jr. all figured to feature heavily in the rotation.
The prominent scheduling of the matchup against the Lakers was almost a foregone conclusion. Christmas Day, which some consider the unofficial open of the NBA season, is as good a day as any. James decided to leave Los Angeles as the franchise prioritized younger players in the offseason, with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves both playing on max deals.
More games against rivals come early as the Sixers will see the Boston Celtics twice in the NBA preseason. That means we will get an early preview of Brown against his former team and running mate Jayson Tatum in some form, with the real games coming later. The Sixers’ three preseason games will be played at the Brooklyn Nets on Oct. 8 and in a back-to-back against the Celtics on Oct. 10 and 16.
James spent the previous eight seasons as a member of the Lakers, delivering a title in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. He kept the Lakers in contention for the rest of his tenure, including last season when he averaged 20.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists in his 23rd season. James also served as the offensive engine in the postseason at age 41, delivering a surprising first-round defeat of the Houston Rockets with Doncic and Reaves dealing with injuries. The 2025 champion Thunder ended the Lakers’ run in the second round.
Brown played his entire 10-year career with the Celtics, winning Eastern Conference finals MVP and NBA Finals MVP as he helped lead the franchise to a title in 2024. An All-NBA performer in 2025-26, Brown is fresh off one of his best individual seasons. He averaged 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists as the Celtics outperformed expectations and landed the second seed before falling in seven games to Embiid, Maxey and the Sixers.
James and Brown will join a Sixers franchise big on talent. Maxey has blossomed into an All-NBA performer, Embiid is a former MVP and Edgecombe finished third in a competitive Rookie of the Year race last season.
The Sixers’ opening night matchup against the Knicks is part of a tripleheader that starts with a matchup between the Boston Celtics and Detroit Pistons, followed by Sixers-Knicks and Spurs-Thunder. The week continues with Oct. 21 meetings between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Miami Heat, followed by a meeting between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers. The next night, which is headlined by Sixers-Cavs, will also feature the Thunder against the Denver Nuggets.
Christmas Day, the league’s vaunted quintet of games will start at noon with an NBA Finals rematch between the Knicks and Spurs and run deep into the night, with the final showing, a West Coast game between the Nuggets and Warriors, kicking off at 10:30 p.m. ET. Heat-Celtics, Sixers-Lakers and Thunder-Timberwolves will fit in between those games.
Inquirer Sixers beat reporter Gina Mizell contributed to this report.
Hours before Mohamed Coulibaly was found dead in his Gloucester County home, one of his alleged victims said, the 23-year-old entrepreneur had been desperately seeking a $75,000 loan.
A recent Barron’s investigation alleged Coulibaly defrauded three former NFL players out of $1 million in an e-commerce scheme involving fake Shopify stores. Now others who invested in the venture or lent Coulibaly money were blowing up his phone. They wanted to know if Jalen Carter and several former members of the Eagles, including Nakobe Dean and Terrell Edmunds, were even real clients, a claim Coulibaly made on promotional materials.
Above all, these people wanted their money back.
The morning of his death, July 31, Coulibaly solicited money from a New York man, who agreed to speak with The Inquirer on the condition of anonymity to protect his family’s privacy. He is one of at least 10 people, including the three former NFL players, alleging Coulibaly scammed them out of more than $5 million through phony investments over the last year.
Coulibaly, who lived in Mullica Hill, a section of Harrison Township, promised to send a Lamborghini, two gold Rolexes, and a signed Lionel Messi cleat as collateral for what was to be a weeklong loan.
Coulibaly still owed the man $1 million for a bridge loan due in March. Yet he insisted the additional loan somehow would make it possible to return the initial money owed. His alleged victim said he figured he could only gain from the arrangement — if the collateral proved to be real.
But a driver — not in a Lamborghini — arrived at his doorstep with two fake watches, an unauthenticated signed cleat, along with an insurance card and a bill of sale for the promised luxe car, according to the man.
The man called off the loan.
“[Coulibaly] then started to cry hysterical on the phone,” the victim said. “He said, ‘I’ve lost it all, please help me here, please help me here.’”
Coulibaly was found dead later that day.
Mohamed Coulibaly attends Milan Fashion Week on Jan. 19 in Milan, Italy.Dave Benett/Getty Images
The Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office is leading the investigation into Coulibaly’s death and declined to comment. No charges have been filed in connection to the alleged scams Coulibaly is accused of spearheading.
Coulibaly’s death has only added a layer of uncertainty for his allegedly defrauded clients, who now believe they were unwitting participants in a Ponzi scheme. New so-called investments went toward paying off other clients. But the chain could not be sustained.
“In terms of his death, it sounds rather brash or harsh, but the only reason I’m upset for his passing is that he’s not able to go to jail and suffer,” the bridge loan investor said.
The Inquirer spoke with four victims, all but one of whom asked to remain anonymous citing lingering shame, privacy concerns, and, in one case, safety considerations. They provided alleged contracts Coulibaly gave them, text messages, screenshots of their purported Shopify store sales, and a whistleblower report sent to federal and Pennsylvania financial regulators.
In hindsight, the business always seemed too good to be true. The young entrepreneur convinced them they could rake in millions each month selling vacuums, printers, desktop humidifiers, and silicone trays on Shopify, an e-commerce platform similar to Amazon.
At first, investors said they had no reason to question Vent Motion LLC, also known as Motion Venture. Shopify alerted the victims to a steady stream of sales through their phone apps.
But at least two Shopify stores victims bought into were fake, full of transactions a Barron’s analysis suggests are also a sham. Shopify did not respond to requests for comment.
The alleged victims say Coulibaly lured them in by highlighting purported investor relationships with wealthy and connected people. His pitch deck listed several former members of the Eagles and the NBA as clients. Representatives for the current and former Eagles declined to comment or could not be reached.
“A selling point [Coulibaly] gave me was, ‘Hey, we only have about 90 to 100 people in this,’ insinuating you can make it behind the velvet rope because everybody involved is celebrities or athletes, and this is just a venture they do,” said another of the defrauded investors, requesting anonymity because family and friends do not know about the scam.
Yet as more victims have found one another in the wake of Coulibaly’s death, it has become clearer the scheme was not limited to targeting NFL players.
It involved everyday investors from Arizona, Pennsylvania, and New York who now want to know if any of it was real.
A ‘magnetic’ man with the digital footprint of a business phenom
Coulibaly knew how to sell the image of a successful entrepreneur.
His story always hit the same beats: Coulibaly was a professional soccer player. He made $4 million reselling rare sneakers before he turned 21. His success was largely attributed to “building connections” with athletes and influencers. Grinding was the key to success.
But much of that was embellished.
A database for American high school sports coverage noted Coulibaly played soccer for Roxborough High School.
Coulibaly said he began his professional career with the New York Red Bulls soccer team, but a spokesperson said Coulibaly never had a contract.
A friend from Coulibaly’s days at Temple University said the sneaker venture Heatkickcity was also a scam that swindled students out of thousands. He asked not to be named out of safety concerns, saying Coulibaly often touted relationships with gang-affiliated people.
While Coulibaly told publications he was born in Mali, West Africa, and immigrated to the United States at a young age, while in college, he often intimated that he was a trust fund child and that his parents worked for the French government, the Temple friend said.
He added that may have helped induce so many of their peers to pay a $1,200 membership for monthly access to rare sneakers that ultimately never came.
“He’d be like, ‘It’s stuck in shipping,’ or ‘my assistant forgot to order them,’ or ‘my assistant’s slacking,’ and then he would just keep on extending it, extending it,” said the friend. “If you questioned him in any way, shape, or form about the product that you paid for, then he would switch to angry mode.”
The friend eventually got his money back after pressuring him for weeks but said Coulibaly continued his self-proclaimed pursuit of becoming a billionaire.
“He scammed his best friends,” the friend said. “Nobody was off-limits.”
Coulibaly’s next venture was fashion line Motion Apparelz. It was profiled in Forbes last year, where the author describes Coulibaly’s energy as “magnetic.” In the piece, Coulibaly name-drops artist friends, including rapper YG, who was later listed as an investor in Motion Venture promotional materials.
Rapper YG performs at the Coachella Music & Arts Festival in 2019.Amy Harris
YG’s agent could not be reached for comment.
Outside of the glowing profiles, a now-defunct Instagram account also detailed a lavish lifestyle full of run-ins with celebrities, boat jaunts on luxury yachts with city skylines in the background, and snapshots of Coulibaly in or in front of private planes. Often, Coulibaly could be seen wearing gold watches, what appear to be Van Cleef & Arpels bracelets, and diamond-studded chains.
Coulibaly’s digital footprint set the stage for an even bigger business pitch.
A business promising exorbitant returns
When it came to Vent Motion LLC, Coulibaly told clients he operated “factories in China and India with a combined team of 125 full-time employees,” according to a pitch deck he showed investors that was obtained by The Inquirer.
This allowed stores to operate without keeping any inventory and reducing overhead — a model known as drop-shipping.
The savings from eliminating the middlemen, he said, could then be reinvested into artificial intelligence-driven ads and “influencer amplification” to drum up more customers. Coulibaly’s company would set up and manage the Shopify stores on behalf of investors, pushing out additional advertising or swapping out products if sales slowed.
Clients would be charged a 20% to 25% service fee for that work, and even so, Coulibaly dangled extraordinary returns for those who joined the venture.
One Shopify store that began with a $550,000 investment in January 2024 had allegedly generated $2 million in revenue in April and a whopping $23 million in July of that year. By August, this particular store had generated a total of $84 million in revenue, according to the company’s unsubstantiated pitch deck.
Further sweetening the deal was an initial investment “protection” guarantee if their store did not generate profit within six months.
Former Arizona Cardinals General Manager Steve Keim says he was just as much of victim of Mohammed Coulibaly’s alleged scam.Darryl Webb
It’s what got Steve Keim, former general manager of the Arizona Cardinals, into the business.
Keim said he met Coulibaly through mutual Eagles acquaintances and by August 2025 he had bought his first Shopify store, which was recording sales at a pace that had him on track totriple his investment over six months. Keim bought into six more stores the following month, he said. His son and ex-wife would also buy into the business for at least a $1 million investment between all three.
Keim said he was soon offered the role of chief operating officer/chief growth officer, which he now sees as a way for Coulibaly to “legitimize his business.”
“I introduced him to people to sell stores to and that sort of thing,” said Keim, who describes fulfilling a figurehead role with no decision-making power. “He called me the COO but he also made promises to give me health insurance and to have some kind of bonus structure.”
The health insurance, bonuses, and exorbitant returns never materialized. Keim said he never had access to bank records and was never made aware of how many people gave money to Motion Venture. But by the start of the year, Keim claims, a flood of disgruntled investors were asking him for help getting their money back. Around this time, Keim said, he asked Coulibaly to stop using his name in promotional materials and told him he no longer wanted to be COO.
Keim contended he was as much of a victim as anyone else, holding onto hope that he could recover his money until Coulibaly’s death.
“This went downhill fast,” he said. “Not only did I get my name drug through the mud, I lost a lot of money since I was an investor.”
A Dubai deal
As more investors were demanding access to their Shopify funds in the fall, Coulibaly was telling them that the Dubai firm Middle East Venture Partners was interested in buying the operation for $215 million.
All they had to do was reach 175 online stores and meet other benchmarks by Aug. 1.
To back his claim Coulibaly produced a letter of intent dated Aug. 14, 2024.
Troubling for investors: The letter was dated more than a month before the company was registered in Pennsylvania.
The discrepancy was the biggest red flag for Barry Minkow, a convicted fraudster who now investigates scams on behalf of fraud victims. He started poking around the company at the start of the year for an investor who had put up $150,000.
“So here you are looking at a private equity company saying they’re going to buy up this company that doesn’t even exist for $200 million?” Minkow said in disbelief.
Middle East Venture Partners did not respond to an email to asking if a relationship existed with Coulibaly’s Vent Motion LLC.
With the permission of three of the alleged victims, Minkow submitted a 23-page whistleblower report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, FBI, and Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities. The report laid out victim accounts and flagged glaring issues with Motion Venture’s business model.
Minkow warned regulators in February thatintervention was essential to “halt ongoing solicitations, trace misallocated funds,” and stressed the importance of doing so “before the scheme inflicts further, irreparable harm.”
Minkow would prove to be right. Motion Venture was still actively recruiting new investors that month.
Picking up the pieces
Coulibaly’s college friend thinks he might have been one of the first victims of the Shopify sometime about three years ago. It involved less paperwork back then, more of a handshake deal. The friend put in $5,000 in a store with an investment protection promise in place, he said. Unlike that time in college, however, the friend only got half his money back.
The friendship with Coulibaly cooled after that.
“People just keep on saying he scammed NFL players,” said Coulibaly’s college friend. “No, anybody with money could be scammed, no matter how small.”
Coulibaly would insist money issues were the Dubai firm’s fault until his death, according to his alleged victims who shared screenshots and voice memos of conversations.
He ricocheted from distraught, lamenting the financial ruin that awaited him if he did not acquire more investors, to defiant, celebrating the Philadelphia 76ers’ LeBron James trade on X as he dodged investors.
When Keim and another investor flew into Philadelphia to meet with Coulibaly in late July, they spent a day and a half trying to figure out how much money was left, to no avail.
It was around that time that Coulibaly was soliciting the New York man for the $75,000 loan.
Coulibaly’s last post on X was a reshare a day before his death. “Trying to be everyone’s friend is a foolish behavior,” it read.
Whether any investor money remains is unclear. A now-defunct GoFundMe page put together by a man claiming to be Coulibaly’s brother raised more than $12,000 for the body’s “international transportation arrangements.”
Investors are also trying to figure out what legal recourse they might have, if any.
Coulibaly’s death has shattered any last remaining hope some victims had that a Dubai firm was to blame for cash-flow issues, and they are now seeking legal help.
It also left them feeling cheated one last time.
Staff writer Ryan W. Briggs contributed to this article.
The trolleys stopped running at midnight, so Tom Hoover waited outside the Philadelphia Warriors locker room for a lift back to Villanova. He was a teenage college student and his ride after sitting in the stands at Convention Hall was the passenger seat of Wilt Chamberlain’s purple Cadillac El Dorado.
A 40-minute drive, Hoover said, became a 10-minute sprint as Chamberlain burned rubber before dropping his buddy off at the dorm.
“Dippy had a heavy foot,” Hoover said. “Back then, you didn’t pay attention. You were just talking and riding. But you would be like ‘Damn, how’d we get here so fast?’ It was one of those kinds of things.”
Chamberlain then jumped on the turnpike and headed for New York, as he lived in the 1960s in an apartment overlooking Central Park while playing in Philadelphia.
He maintained a residence in Philly but spent most nights in New York, from which he’d commute for games and practices while owning a popular club in Harlem. Chamberlain even hitched a ride from Hershey back to New York in 1962 with Knicks players after his 100-point game.
“He would do 90 to 100 [mph] all the way up the turnpike,” Hoover said of Chamberlain, who died in 1999. “And if he got stopped. ‘Oh, it’s Wilt Chamberlain. Can I get your autograph?’ Back then it was a different time. It was really different.”
Fans and teammates rush onto the court to congratulate Wilt Chamberlain after his 100-point game in 1962 in Hershey, Pa. He hitched a ride back to New York with Knicks players after the game.PAUL VATHIS / AP
Chamberlain’s commute could be copied this season as several NBA insiders reported last month about the possibility of LeBron James living in New York while playing for the Sixers. James, one report suggested, could use a helicopter to get to games and practices. Not even Chamberlain’s heavy foot could keep pace with that.
“I was thinking LeBron might do the same thing,” said Hoover, who played for the Knicks after leaving Villanova and now lives in Manhattan. “Philly is not his kind of town. And that’s not a knock against Philadelphia. But I just think he’s a New York City kind of guy after living in L.A. That kind of lifestyle. So I can see him living in New York and making that trip back and forth.”
A New York ‘magnet’
Chamberlain purchased Smalls Paradise in 1959, spent $200,000 to renovate the club on Seventh Avenue and 135th Street, and renamed it Big Wilt’s Smalls Paradise. It became the spot.
“Oh, that was jumping, man. You kidding me?” Hoover said. “That was just a wonderful time in my life and a wonderful time to be growing up as 20-some years old, living in New York, and hanging in that place.”
Chamberlain told Ebony magazine that he spent 18 hours a day at Smalls to learn everything about owning a bar. Sammy Davis Jr. played Smalls, as did King Curtis, Jerry Butler, The Coasters, and Willis “Gator” Jackson. James Brown would perform at the Apollo Theater and then stop by Smalls.
“Dip was a magnet for everyone,” Hoover said. “People just wanted to be around him. They would come in there and just look at him. They had never seen a guy who could dress like that and looked like that. He was a 7-foot athlete who wasn’t gangly and uncoordinated. Plus, that big diamond he wore on his finger. They never saw anything like that.”
The club was a hub for Black entertainers, drawing “everybody who was anybody.”
Wilt Chamberlain “was a magnet for everyone,” said his friend Tom Hoover. “They had never seen a guy who could dress like that and looked like that.”Harry Benson/Express/Hulton Arch
“My mother always tells the story that she met Sidney Poitier at the club,” said Gloria Miller, whose father, Vince, was Chamberlain’s childhood best friend and often drove with him back to Philly.
Chamberlain’s Manhattan apartment was on the top floor of Park West Village, then a ritzy high-rise near Central Park. The apartment had a terrace and windows that overlooked the park with a view downtown of the Empire State Building.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — who hung there as a high schooler still named Lew Alcindor — described the apartment as “the ultimate bachelor pad.”
“A two-bedroom place done up in antique gold finish with a big couch in the living room, paintings on the walls, good stereo, great record collection,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote in his autobiography Giant Steps. “Wilt was known for his expensive taste, and the place showed it. I walked in and I clammed right up tight. I didn’t know what cool was, but I knew very strongly that I didn’t want to be uncool.”
Abdul-Jabbar played “Dirty Hearts” at Chamberlain’s dining room table with Chamberlain, Hoover, and Cal Ramsey. Chamberlain’s crew used to close Smalls at 4 a.m. and then play cards at the apartment. Abdul-Jabbar called them “hearts junkies.”
They ate sandwiches and swapped stories: What did Bill Russell say? What was Elgin Baylor complaining about? What’s up with Oscar Robertson? The loser of the card game had to chug a quart of water.
“But he would never drink,” Hoover said. “So it was like a wrestling match with that big guy.”
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (left) is congratulated by Wilt Chamberlain in 1984 after Abdul-Jabbar passed Chamberlain’s NBA all-time scoring record. LeBron James has since passed Abdul-Jabbar’s record.Mark Avery
Living in Elkins Park
The Sixers traded for Chamberlain in February 1965, bringing him back to Philadelphia after the Warriors had moved three years earlier to San Francisco. There were a few weeks left in the regular season, and Sixers owner Ike Richman didn’t want Chamberlain spending nights in New York.
“He had a driver who he used to pay to take him up to New York,” said Richman’s son, David. “My father used to pay him under the table to not drive him to New York.”
Richman instructed Chamberlain to live at his home in Elkins Park for the rest of the season.
“I came home from Cheltenham High School and my mother, with our domestic helper, was putting my twin beds together and doing all this stuff to my room,” Michael Richman said. “I said, ‘What are you doing?’ She said, ‘Wilt’s moving in. Daddy’s making him.’”
Chamberlain shot baskets in Richman’s driveway, hung out with the kids, and ate dinner with the family. Richman and Chamberlain usually drove together to Convention Hall, but once Richman had to be there early for a playoff game against Cincinnati. So he asked David — who had just earned his driver’s license — to drive Chamberlain.
The 16-year-old usually drove a 1959 Austin-Healey Sprite, but that wouldn’t be big enough for Chamberlain. Neither would the Pontiac Tempest. So the teenager drove his dad’s Cadillac.
“He used to sit in the back seat of the car and hang his body over the front seat,” Richman said. “It was like having a cobra in the car. He was in the back, but his head and body was in the front seat.”
Gloria Miller as a child standing in front of Wilt Chamberlain’s powder blue Bentley.Gloria Miller
The season ended that April when the Sixers lost to Boston in seven games. Chamberlain shared an apartment the next season with Miller on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway but spent most of his time in New York. He often commuted by train or driving to Philly with Miller in a powder blue Bentley that was delivered to his Manhattan apartment.
The press ripped Chamberlain every time he missed a practice and chided him for living in another city. He once shoved a reporter into a locker after the writer kept asking him after a playoff defeat — in which Chamberlain scored 46 points — if he would have made more free throws had he not missed practice that week.
“He wasn’t kidding when he played. He really meant it,” said Richman. “Whether he was going up to New York to party or whatever, when it came to game time, he was never half-hearted about it. He was really into it. When it was time to play ball, this wasn’t a game to him. It was a war.”
Family in Philly
Chamberlain drove after each season to Los Angeles, where he had built a beautiful house off Mulholland Drive in Bel Air.
“He used to jump in his Bentley and drive for three days straight without stopping,” Richman said. “He didn’t need to sleep. Then he would get there. He was basically an insomniac.”
The powder blue Bentley was there in the 1970s when the Millers — who lived in South Jersey — visited Chamberlain.
“He called my father ‘Miller’ so he would call me ‘Little Miller’,” said Miller, whose father worked as a scout for the Sixers. “My mom was going to make dinner so we had to go to the store. He said, ‘Come on, Little Miller. Come to the store with me.’ I was getting my shoes on and he had no patience. He said, ‘You don’t need shoes. Come on.’ We got in the Bentley and we’re riding down the freeway and I’m like, ‘Why are they all looking at us?’ I didn’t realize I’m in a beautiful Bentley with Wilt Chamberlain. But it fit him.”
Chamberlain retired in 1973 and spent most of his time in L.A. but still kept close ties to Philly. He was the best man in Miller’s wedding and became Gloria Miller’s godfather. The basketball icon kept a tight circle of friends from his childhood. Chamberlain, just like when he lived in New York, was always close to Philadelphia.
“He was family,” Miller said. “He never forgot where he came from. Whenever Wilt came to town, he would come to my parents’ house and my mother would make him fried chicken and cobbler. Wilt and I would pick up the cobbler pieces together. It was just home. It was family.”
Wilt Chamberlain visiting the Miller family in Philadelphia in the 1970s.Gloria Miller
Hoover said he never thought much about Chamberlain living in New York while playing in Philly. The 7-footer belonged in the big city. And Hoover wouldn’t blame James for thinking the same.
Hoover met Chamberlain when he was playing a summer game in New York — “Wilt Chamberlain knows my name,” Hoover thought after Chamberlain watched him play — and they soon became friends. Chamberlain dropped him off at his dorm and sped to New York. Hoover said no one even noticed the basketball superstar dropping off the college kid. It was normal.
“Nobody saw me. It wasn’t necessary,” Hoover said. “The key to having relationships with guys is just having relationships. Not taking pictures, getting autographs, and jumping out saying, ‘Look who I’m with.’ That kind of thing makes you have lasting relationships with guys. If you’re always in front and always going to be out front with them, then that relationship is not going to last at all.”
For Miller, managing partner at Wapner Newman law firm, it sparked an idea.
Heconnected with NBC Sports Philadelphia and made his pitch: Wapner Newman could pay to sponsor the closer’s walk-out and get the firm’s branding on a viral moment. And fans at home would be able to experience Duran’s intro — complete with images of spiders crawling through fire on the outfield walls — during every home game.
The lawyers figured “it’d be a fun thing for everybody that’s watching the game,” Miller recalled during a recent interview in his Center City office. And “we can help make this happen.”
A deal was inked, with terms Miller declined to disclose, and for nearly a year, Wapner Newman has enjoyed greater name recognition.
Potential clients sometimes mention the ads when they call the firm, Miller said, and occasionally, strangers on the street recognize him from the company’s midgame commercials. Miller said he is most heartened by the fact that more Philly fans now know about the personal-injury firm if they ever need legal help.
Robert Miller, managing partner at Wapner Newman, appears in the law firm’s ads that run on NBC Sports Philadelphia during Phillies games.Courtesy Wapner Newman
Brands “want moments of exclusivity, and that was the highest-profile opportunity,” said Bo Koelle, vice president of sales for NBCUniversal Local, which includes NBC Sports Philadelphia. “Everybody’s looking at when [Duran] is coming out” — and seeing Wapner Newman’s name on the screen next to him.
For dozens of local companies, advertising with the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park or with NBC Sports Philadelphia provides almost-unparalleled visibility in a rabid sports town like Philadelphia.
Phillies fans arrive at Citizens Bank Park for opening day in March.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
So how much does this visibility cost? Anywhere from $100,000 to several million dollars, according to executives from the Phillies and NBC Sports Philadelphia.
That range includes advertising in the ballpark,on social media, or on TV, where hundreds of thousands of fans tune into each game. All Phillies sponsors with whom The Inquirer spoke declined to discuss how much they paid for their advertisements, citing the terms of their contracts.
The MLB All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park drew 8.7 million viewers.Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
But even in a normal year, the Phillies play many more home games than the city’s otherpro sports teams.
“We’ve concentrated on the Phillies because they have 81 home games and for our in-park advertising we thought we’d rather be seen more frequently,” said Bob Mongeluzzi, founding partner at Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky, which has several stadium ads including at the top of the scoreboard.
“I don’t think someone particularly chose us over any other lawyer just because we had an ad on the scoreboard,” Mongeluzzi said, “but it clearly reinforces our brand and keeps our name out there.”
Another Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky ad is pictured in right field at a July game.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
Unique Phillies sponsorships drive revenue
Each season, the Phillies have between 75 and 100 sponsors who advertise everywhere — the ballpark’s giant scoreboard, the outfield walls, the premium seating sections — according to Brian Fling, the Phillies’ vice president of corporate partnerships. He said ad sponsors serve as a major revenue driver, supporting player payroll and ballpark upgrades.
The blue Independence Blue Cross (IBX) sponsorship patch is seen on the arm of Kyle Schwarber during a June game.Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
One recent ad deal stood out due to controversy. In March, Eileen Kalas, widow of legendary Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas, said the organization “betrayed” her husband by selling the naming rights of Harry The K’s to Ghost Energy. The eatery under the scoreboard had been named for her husband since the ballpark opened in 2004.
At the time, Ghost Energy founder and West Chester native Ryan Hughes responded to fan criticism, saying, “We’re hoping to bring some new energy to the space while also never forgetting Harry Kalas and the legacy that he left.”
Ghost Energy did not return a request for comment for this article.
Fans at the Ghost Energy Deck, formerly Harry The K’s, during a March Phillies gameYong Kim / Staff Photographer
Whether a Phillies advertiser is a longtime sponsor dating to the Veterans Stadium days or a newer partner, they “align with the team’s goal — championship-level baseball in a first-class ballpark where everyone feels welcome,” Fling said.
An ad for Doc Bresler’s Cavity Busters and the Xfinity pitch speed clock light up the ballpark behind Phillies closer Jhoan Duran.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
“Pitch speed is one of the most closely watched real-time statistics in baseball, making it a strong fit for Xfinity’s focus on delivering fast, reliable connectivity for our customers,” Matt Lederer, Comcast’s vice president of brand partnership, said in a statement.
Executives with several Phillies advertisers said the goal is not necessarily to gain customers on the spot. Instead, they said, they want to increase brand awareness and get fans to associate their company with a beloved hometown franchise.
Some have seen tangible signs that this is happening. Philadelphia Insurance recorded a nearly 50% increase in website traffic since it started sponsoring the premium seating club, formerly known as the diamond club, earlier this season, said Brian O’Reilly, chief marketing officer for Philadelphia Insurance Cos. (PHLY).
As part of the partnership, the company’s name and Liberty Bell logo are emblazoned on the blue headrests behind home plate.
“It was amazing how many people texted and called me and said, ‘I saw Philadelphia Insurance during the Home Run Derby or All-Star Game,’” O’Reilly said.
The headrests in the Philadelphia Insurance Club behind home plate bear the company’s logo and the name of its website. Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
Philly sports ads create consumer ‘trust’
Some Philly companies sponsor multiple local pro teams.
Independence Blue Cross (IBX), the locally based health insurer, has been advertising with the Phillies for decades and has partnerships with all of the city’s major pro sports teams, many of the college teams, and NBC Sports Philadelphia, said IBX chief marketing officer Koleen Cavanaugh.
In addition to advertising, this also gets IBX the ability to host events at stadiums, offer ticket and merchandise discounts to IBX members, and collaborate on philanthropic partnerships, such as a back-to-school supply drive with the Jesús Luzardo Family Foundation last week.
The team “already reached out to us about season tickets and advertising,” said O’Reilly, of Philadelphia Insurance. “We were doing some business with them anyway, but maybe we’ll even do some more.”
At NBC Sports Philadelphia, conversations about Sixers ad partnerships are now underway, earlier than usual, Koelle said. As soon as James news broke, the value of SixersTV ads increased exponentially, Koelle said.
A challenge for the sports network now, Koelle said: Remaining loyal to companies who’ve sponsored Sixers broadcasts since the team’s rebuilding years — and not jack up those partners’ advertising rates.
”But for those that are new, they’ll certainly have to pay the new value,” Koelle said.
Usually, it’s not hard to convince local companies of the value of advertising with any Philly team, he said.
“If [advertisers] want to truly reach people — and reach them in a pipeline that is direct and meaningful — it’s professional sports in Philadelphia,” Koelle said. “If you want people to trust your brand immediately, it’s a great way of doing it.”
Nobody throws a premature party like the 76ers. From the 2012 blowout to welcome Andrew Bynum to a 2016 rally at the Art Museum after going 10-72 and getting the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft — a pick that turned out to be Ben Simmons — to the parade of big-name free agents and trade pieces who have come and gone since, this franchise has forever reveled in the shock and awe of a stunning acquisition.
Its introduction of Jaylen Brown on Thursday — at a recreation center in Southwest Philadelphia, per Brown’s request — featured cheerleaders, neighborhood children, dozens of boosters, members of the organization, and music with a dance-party feel.
The affair had the Sixers’ customary pomp. Maybe this time, the circumstances are different. There’s actually reason to think they might be.
The Sixers pulled out all the stops, including their mascot, Franklin, for the introductory press conference of Jaylen Brown on Thursday. Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
The trade for Brown and LeBron James’s decision to sign here give the Sixers more than just two outstanding players — one still in his prime, one still capable of being great, even at age 41. They now have two players who have shown they can handle, and even thrive amid, the highest of expectations and the heaviest of pressure. The most promising Sixers teams of the last 10 years tended to shrivel up in those situations. The 2019 team had a two-games-to-one lead on the Toronto Raptors, with Game 4 at home … and lost the game and, eventually, the series.
The 2021 club also was up, 2-1, this time against an inferior team in the Atlanta Hawks, this time squandering an 18-point lead in Game 4 and a 26-point lead in Game 5 and losing Game 7 … at home. The 2023 club was up, 3-2, on Brown’s Boston Celtics and … well … you remember.
Have Brown and James been in similar scenarios? Have they had opportunities to close out playoff series and failed? Of course. They also have five championships and 12 Finals appearances between them, and they’ve met the measure of those moments, too, more often than anyone else on the Sixers’ roster.
A bonus of LeBron James joining the Sixers roster is the level of reserve both he and Jaylen Brown bring when it comes to aspirations of an NBA title.Mark J. Terrill
Few players in NBA history had as much on the line as James did in the 2012 Eastern Conference finals, when his Miami Heat — one season after losing in the 2011 Finals to the Dallas Mavericks, James still without a championship ring at the time — were down, 3-2, to the Celtics and facing a Game 6 in Boston.
He delivered perhaps the best performance of his career that night: 45 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists in a 98-79 Heat victory, then another 31 points and 12 boards in Miami’s Game 7 win.
A comparable comeback against the San Antonio Spurs in the 2013 Finals, the Cavaliers’ charge back to beat the Golden State Warriors in 2016. These transcendent performances have to remain in James’ past and would be too much to ask of him now, but they at least dispel any ridiculous notions that any important game would be too much for him, even at his advanced age.
LeBron James performance in 2012 and 2013 with the Miami Heat proves that, mentally, he can guide a young, talented Sixers team to handle the big moments.J Pat Carter
He’ll be calm. He’ll be cool. It doesn’t mean the Sixers are assured of winning such games, only that no one is likely to see the same sad scenes that played out here with Simmons and James Harden. No one is likely to see a Sixers star choke.
“James doesn’t need to work himself into a frenzy, into an angry, unnatural lather,” Adrian Wojnarowski, who covered that Heat-Celtics series for Yahoo! Sports, wrote after Game 6.
“He’s too good, and his talent will carry him if he comes to these pressure games with something far more lasting, with far more staying power than responding to the hellacious firestorm that surrounds his successes and failures.
“His personality is different than a Kobe Bryant, a Michael Jordan, and allowing for that has been a wise plan of action. There was a rage within James for this Game 6, a resolve, but it was contained within the context of the surgical way in which he took apart the Celtics.”
As for Brown, he’s spent a decade in a market as demanding as Philadelphia’s. He was the NBA Finals MVP in 2024. He has played 142 postseason games in his career and has won 58% of them. His playoff statistics are comparable to, if not better than, his regular-season stats.
New Sixers forward Jaylen Brown arrives for his introductory press conference at the Francis Myers Recreation Center on Thursday.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
“At this point in my career, how I would handle pressure would probably look different,” Brown said. “At this point now, I would probably ignore a lot of it or let it just be water under the bridge. …
“I played in Boston for the last 10 years. The pressure is high there. It’s Titletown. They expect to win every single year, and they’re always looking for someone to blame. Some of those years, it was me, so I’ve been through that. All I come with is my work ethic, my mentality, my impact on winning. That’s just my approach. Nothing else matters — just, how do we win games?”
It’s why he and James are here. It’s the only thing anyone cares about anymore with this team. Too many premature celebrations in the past. So much cynicism for so many years. It’s long past time for the Sixers to prove to everyone that they’re made of stronger stuff.
Jaylen Brown could not hold back the chuckle when asked about the 76ers’ offseason.
“Um, I think they did a great job,” Brown said at his introductory news conference Thursday afternoon.
Probably the correct response from Brown with Mike Gansey — the Sixers’ new president of basketball operations who traded for the All-NBA wing in a shocking blockbuster with the Boston Celtics last month — sitting in the front row alongside other front-office personnel and owner Josh Harris. It also is the overwhelming consensus, after the Sixers acquired Brown and then signed all-timer LeBron James to add to the core of All-NBA guard Tyrese Maxey, former NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid, and explosive young guard VJ Edgecombe.
Brown was quick to point out that the Sixers’ “excellent” on-paper roster does not guarantee they will fulfill their expectations to immediately compete for a championship. A few minutes later, Gansey echoed that sentiment while meeting with local media for the first time since his team landed James.
But Gansey did concede that he “would have never thought our offseason would turn out like the way it [did].”
“We’ve got to figure it out and gel,” Gansey added from Francis J. Myers Recreation Center. “But it definitely makes me pinch myself a little bit, like, ‘Man, we really have a lot of talent.’”
It was difficult to fathom all of this when Gansey — who previously worked his way up to general manager in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ front office — was first introduced as the Sixers’ new lead executive at the team’s practice facility in early June.
Sixers president of basketball operations Mike Gansey (left), All-NBA star Jaylen Brown and owner Josh Harris pose for a photo during Brown’s introductory press conference.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
The Sixers appeared locked into the max contracts of the aging and oft-injured Embiid and Paul George, with little maneuverability to make sweeping changes to the roster. And back then, it was unclear if James was even considering leaving the Los Angeles Lakers in free agency, much less would consider signing a far-below-market veteran’s minimum contract with the Sixers.
Yet Gansey on Thursday reiterated what he told The Inquirer last month at Las Vegas Summer League, that he and Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens talked for “days” (and kept quiet) about a potential deal to swap Brown for George and four draft picks. After that move popped July 1, Gansey believed the Sixers suddenly “had a chance to be in the mix” for James, who on July 24 announced his decision to come to Philly. The Sixers also recently signed veteran 3-and-D wing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope — a former James teammate with the Lakers — to add more championship experience to a franchise that has not advanced past the playoffs’ second round since 2001 or won a title since 1983.
“Just having that presence,” Gansey said, “that everyday leadership that we’re going to have is going to be invaluable for everybody.”
Gansey quipped the Sixers now “kind of have a Big 5” in their starting lineup, plus helpful bench contributors in defensive wing Dean Wade and sharpshooter Anfernee Simons. He compared coach Nick Nurse to “a kid in a candy store” while already thinking about the various lineup configurations. Though the Sixers technically still have one full-time roster spot open, unless they waive reserve forward Jabari Walker (whose contract is partially guaranteed at $250,000 until Jan. 10), they must wait until December to sign another player because they are hard-capped at the first apron. They do have one two-way contract slot remaining, after signing Caleb Love and Rayan Rupert to such deals.
Throughout this week, Gansey said there were eight players working out at the Sixers’ facility — including a visibly slimmed-down Embiid, who Gansey described as “doing all the right things” and “super motivated.” James and Maxey, who are longtime offseason workout buddies, have been photographed training together in Los Angeles. Brown has been making the rounds in Philly, throwing out the first pitch at Thursday’s Phillies-Nationals game and visiting Eagles training camp Friday. Gansey said he is unsure when James will stop by Camden, though teams typically reconvene after Labor Day for informal pickup games before training camp begins in late September.
That is when the Sixers will begin blending a talented and revamped roster on the floor. But in the aftermath of the Sixers’ stunning offseason, Gansey is metaphorically pinching himself.
“The vibes are high,” Gansey said. “Everyone’s excited. Once we get together, I’m excited to see what the journey’s going to look like.”
There are two sets of questions for these 76ers. Maybe it feels like that’s always been the case. Except that it hasn’t.
The questions used to be: Will Joel Embiid be healthy? How often? To what extent? At what level of effectiveness? Nothing beyond these things mattered. Without Embiid, the Sixers weren’t a team you could even pretend to take seriously.
Things aren’t what they used to be. With or without Embiid, the Sixers feel like they have a team that will have an identity. More than that, they feel like they have a team that will have a chance. If they didn’t make that clear when it traded for Jaylen Brown, they certainly did when they formally introduced him.
The only things missing from Thursday’s press conference at Francis J. Myers Recreation Center in Southwest Philly were a marching band and a vice-presidential nominee. Upward of 100 people packed into the rows of plastic folding chairs that covered most of the width of the rec center’s indoor court and three-quarters of its length.
In addition to the ownership group and most of the front office and Brown’s family and reporters from both Philly and Boston, there were cheerleaders and game day event staffers and security guards and a DJ and a gaggle of youth from the local community.
New Sixer Jaylen Brown arrives for his introductory press conference at the Francis Myers Recreation Center on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026 in Philadelphia.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
While it was Brown who keenly requested that the event be held at a local rec center, the proceedings were just as much a show of force from the Sixers that left little room for doubt about the gravity they expect their newly acquired superstar to impart on the organization.
“What an event,” Sixers first-year president of basketball operations Mike Gansey said. “It’s a special, special day to be a 76er.”
While it would be easy to sit here and wonder about Embiid’s thoughts on all of the hoopla surrounding Brown, the much more relevant question concerns their coexistence on the court. Feelings? Sure. Everyone has them. But they require political capital to matter. For much of his tenure, the Sixers adhered to a doctrine of appeasement. Several different front offices and coaching staffs operated as if they lived in fear of a trade demand. Now, the Sixers couldn’t trade Embiid if they wanted. Both sides are surely aware of that.
Besides, we’ve seen and heard plenty to suggest that Embiid is at the very least receptive to having another superstar on board. On Thursday, Brown said that the Sixers center reached out to him shortly after the trade went down. The team has an active group chat. Yes, LeBron James is a part of it.
“Me and Joel have been friends throughout the years,” Brown said. “I love soccer, so we talk about that a lot. He reached out, too, when I got traded. He reached out the same day. I talked to him on the phone. I’m looking forward to earning everybody’s trust and respect and grinding and impacting winning. That’s what I’ve done my whole career, and that’s what I plan on doing here.”
That’s all that counts in the chemistry department, for the time being. Even if Brown and Embiid have some aspects of their personalities that make you wonder about the occasional friction, the decade of close quarters competition between the two has generally revealed a healthy mutual respect. The two players shared a long one-on-one moment near midcourt in the aftermath of the Sixers’ win over the Celtics in Game 7 of April’s first-round playoff series. The two most important personality traits in any professional relationship are to mean well and to want to win the task at hand. Both Brown and Embiid have those fundamentals. That’s enough for now.
The success and failure of the Brown-Embiid partnership will be determined by how well it works on the court. That, in turn, will determine whether the Sixers have the potential to become a truly great team. Brown and Embiid are both the ceiling and the floor. Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe both have the skill profile and willingness to adapt their roles to those around him. James did it even in his prime. Now, he is at an age where one generally accepts who he needs to be. The big question marks are Brown and Embiid.
This isn’t a question of personality as much as it is a question of technical fit. There are a lot of parallels between Brown and Embiid, at least from a critical perspective. Shot selection, tunnel vision, decision-making, possession time, efficiency, pace in the half court, all have offered ample fodder for skeptics. Of the 20 players with a usage rate of at least 29% over the last eight seasons, only two have averaged fewer than four assists per game. You guessed it. Embiid and Brown.
Whether or not these criticisms are prescient or fair, Brown and Embiid are clearly the two players who have the potential to clunk the operation up to a point of dysfunction. Don’t interpret that as a disservice to either. It’s just the style of their games. Whether the Sixers reach their ceiling will depend overwhelmingly on how well Brown and Embiid adapt their games to what optimizes the collective. Each has the ability to be the player they need to be. It is not a complicated thing. Drive when you have a lane. Shoot when you have a shot. Otherwise, keep the ball moving.
“To win, you’ve got to be able to have sacrifice,” Brown said. “You’ve got to be able to have communication.”
The presence of James as a connector and secondary playmaker should help. So, too, should the presence of Maxey and Edgecombe, two of the more likable, earnest and adaptable young players in the game. But if we are going to assume that Embiid’s outlook is as promising as the reports suggest, the Sixers’ fate will ultimately be determined by his synergy with Brown.
Jaylen Brown sat immersed in his new basketball community Thursday afternoon, ready to move forward.
The All-NBA wing had stepped inside the Francis J. Myers Recreation Center’s gymnasium in Southwest Philly. An absence of air-conditioning in early August did not prevent kids wearing blue T-shirt jerseys — with Brown and the No. 7 on the back — from creating a human tunnel to welcome the 76ers’ star. Mike Gansey, the Sixers’ president of basketball operations, marveled at the scene, saying, “This is Jaylen Brown right there, man. … This is a special, special day to be a Seventy-Sixer.”
Brown proclaimed that, “on paper,” these new-look Sixers boast “excellent” talent but cautioned that those names “don’t really mean nothing” when it comes to future on-court success. The 29-year-old also shrugged off a question about if there are enough touches to go around on a roster now full of high-usage stars, and acknowledged he is “not sure completely yet” what these Sixers will need most from him.
So his initial focus is on winning — and to “just be myself.”
“That’s one thing that I can promise this city, the organization, and the coaching staff,” Brown said during his news conference, “that I’m going to come in every single day and be myself. Put my best foot forward. Lead with my integrity, lead with my mentality, and lead with my capacity and my will to win.
“We’ll figure out the Xs and Os and the ins and outs. But winning is the agenda, so that’s the first thing that’s on my mind.”
Inquiries are valid about where Brown envisions his fit on a roster that also features All-NBA guard Tyrese Maxey, former NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid, and second-year standout guard VJ Edgecombe.
Brown is coming off the best individual season of his career, when he averaged 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 5.1 assists and finished sixth in MVP voting. Brown also publicly called it his “favorite season” on more than one occasion, because he was the unquestioned top offensive option while fellow superstar wing Jayson Tatum recovered from Achilles surgery and helped a Celtics team that many outsiders had written off finish second in the Eastern Conference’s regular-season standings.
That will not be the case on these Sixers now expected to legitimately chase a title in a deep Eastern Conference headlined by the defending-champion New York Knicks. Sacrifice, transparency, and communication between those stars will be critical, Brown said Thursday.
In turn, Brown vowed to earn the “trust and respect” of his new teammates. He is excited to learn from James, an all-time great and four-time champion. Those two premier newcomers are already in multiple group chats with the established Sixers, which Brown said are active “damn near every day.” Reserve forwards Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker were in attendance at Thursday’s news conference.
“I don’t care about the MVP award or the Finals MVP,” Brown said. “None of that stuff really moves me. It’s nice, but the only thing that’s going to move me is doing something collectively, so a championship.
“That’s what I’m looking forward to, trying to start that journey and building toward [it].”
Brown reflected fondly on his 10 seasons in Boston, where he spent one-third of his life and became a five-time All-Star and Finals MVP. He declined to fully rehash his messy and public departure — when his game and personality were heavily scrutinized by professional and social-media pundits — though acknowledged he is still processing “to some degree” the emotions of such a jarring professional and personal change.
“It’s been a crazy transition,” Brown said. “ … It has been a lot.”
But now Brown has officially begun immersing himself in his new basketball community. After his afternoon rec center visit, he headed to Citizens Bank Park to throw out the first pitch of the Phillies-Nationals game. Sixers training camp begins in less than eight weeks.
Sixers forward Jaylen Brown throws the ceremonial first pitch before the Phillies played the Washington Nationals on Thursday.Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
He sees the same impressive roster that has vaulted his new team into contender status. He also recognizes that a list of names and past individual accomplishments are not guaranteed to translate to the court.
So he will start his Sixers tenure by prioritizing winning, and being himself.
“Obviously, on paper, we look great,” Brown said. “But let’s all slow down. It takes real work every single day in order to make something like this happen. …
“I’m looking forward to doing whatever it is I need to do, whoever I need to talk to, to make sure that we’re on the same page and everybody’s focused on the same thing. If we do that, then we’ll be where we want to be.”
Jaylen Brown was officially introduced as a member of the 76ers on Thursday during a news conference at Francis Myers Recreation Center in Southwest Philadelphia.
Brown discussed his reaction to the trade, his thoughts on some his teammates, and more. Here are some quick highlights …
Trade reaction and Sixers group chats
The Sixers trading for Brown was one of the biggest shocks of a shocking NBA offseason, and one of the most unexpected trades in recent NBA history. It wasn’t just shocking for the fans. Even Brown was taken aback by the move.
“When I first got traded, I just threw my phone across the room,” Brown said when asked which new teammate reached out first. “But who was first? It might’ve been Max, I think [Tyrese] Maxey reached out to me first. He reached out and was like, ‘I know it’s a lot of stuff going on right now, but we’re excited to have you.’ Maxey and VJ [Edgecombe] were probably around the same time.”
Since those first texts, Brown has been in regular contact with his Sixers teammates, including LeBron James.
“We talk damn near every day. We’ve got group chats — multiple now — and we’re all trying to figure this thing out. LeBron, he’s active in the group chats. We’re trying to all get on the same page. I think everybody knows how incredible of an opportunity that we have, but we also have to put in the work.”
New Sixer Jaylen Brown speaks during his introductory press conference on Thursday.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
Silent respect for Tatum
On the Celtics side, Brown said he has “not really” spoken to longtime former teammate Jayson Tatum since the trade.
“We won a championship together,” Brown said. “Anybody that you win a championship [with], you would think that’s what a brotherhood or a lifelong legacy would entail. Obviously, there’s ups and downs in any type of relationship, for sure, but on my end, it’s nothing but respect. Besides when he plays the Sixers, I hope he does well, but other than that everything for me is just based in respect.”
Despite saying on his Twitch stream that he’d been “packed up” by Boston, Brown said he was ready to move forward after the trade.
“I look back at Boston and I’m grateful,” Brown said. “A lot of my most developmental years were in Boston. The relationships are still there, so are the connections. I’m very grateful for my 10 years in Boston. I have nothing but respect for Boston, but it’s time to move forward.”
The Sixers had a massive offseason under new president of basketball operations Mike Gansey and are suddenly among the favorites to win the Eastern Conference, but Brown isn’t looking that far down the road.
“On paper, we’re excellent … On paper, it doesn’t really mean nothing … We look great, but let’s all slow down,” Brown said. “It takes real work every single day in order to make something like this happen. We do that, we’ll be where we want to be.”
He also isn’t concerned about what role he needs to play to get there.
“My focus is winning, whatever it takes,” Brown added. “At this point in my career, nothing else matters. I don’t care about the awards, the only thing that moves me is a championship.”
Sixers guard VJ Edgecombe defends Brown during Game 6 of their first-round playoff series against the Celtics back in April.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
Already ‘a fan’ of VJ Edgecombe
As for his off-court role, Brown said he didn’t necessarily see himself as a mentor, but shared that he picked up a lot from the veterans in his early years in Boston and hopes he can provide the same for Edgecombe.
“I think VJ’s in a similar situation that I was a few years ago, when we had some of those rosters that were stacked with a decent amount of talent. I looked at it as a learning opportunity,” he said. “Some of those moments that I learned from back then, with the players I played with, some of that stuff I benefited from later in my career, because I took the time to learn, and talk to, and watch their workouts and see their mentality and their approach, take things they do well and add it to my game.
“I’ll be in VJ’s ear to help him learn and grow. He’s 21, just turned 21, he’s got a bright future, and this will be great opportunity for him to learn from a bunch of guys. His talent level, he’s going to carve out space for himself because of his talent level alone, so I’m excited for VJ. I’m a fan. He killed us in that series. The other guys, we knew about, but he was a difference-maker in that series. I’m a fan from afar for sure.”
There was a reason Brown hosted his introductory news conference at the Francis Myers Rec Center instead of the Sixers’ practice facility in Camden. Local kids were on-site wearing new Sixers shirseys with Brown’s No. 7 on them.
Brown explained why he wanted his first appearance as a Sixers to be out in the community.
“My family and I, we are rooted in the community. That’s where we hang our hat, is being able to affect other people’s lives. We’re very blessed, we’ve been able to help our own family and been able to change the course of what our generation and our family name can possibly do, but we look forward to being able to impact others and being able to touch families and households that we may never get to see.
“As I’m still getting to learn this community, I just wanted to make it clear that this was an important pillar in my life, community and the foundation. As I’m getting started on the journey here in Philadelphia, the introduction, the first impression is everything. I just wanted to let people know in Philadelphia that this is something that’s important to me.”
The 76ers had the splashiest offseason in the NBA, signing LeBron James on a two-year, $8 million deal and trading for Jaylen Brown. Those additions elevated the expectations for the Sixers, who were previously considered a playoff-bound team buoyed by the young backcourt of Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe and former MVP Joel Embiid.
But now they have emerged in the title conversation after adding two stars with championship experience. Considered one of the greatest players of all-time, James has lived in the NBA Finals and won four titles. Brown was the NBA Finals MVP in 2024 and carried his team to the postseason last season.
This team is also deeper prior seasons, with Anfernee Simons and Dean Wade — two players with starter talent — anchoring the reserves alongside exciting rookie Labaron Philon Jr.
So what does that formula mean for the Sixers? Should it make them the favorite to win the title? Or should the talent in New York, San Antonio, and Oklahoma City be enough to pump the breaks on this star-studded experiment? We asked our Sixers experts.
Gina Mizell, Sixers beat writer
Odds say no, simply because of the field.
The New York Knicks deserve respect as the defending champions. The Eastern Conference is the deepest it’s been in some time, making the road to the Finals a gauntlet. And in the West, the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder boast (arguably) the game’s most dominant players and recent Finals experience.
Yet this Sixers team is the franchise’s biggest title threat since at least the 2019 Kawhi Leonard shot, and possibly since the 2001 Finals squad. And it does already feel different from 2024, when many projected the Sixers as contenders after signing Paul George. Maxey is even better. Edgecombe is coming off a fantastic rookie season. Even if Embiid’s health does not hold up and James needs rest days, Brown is still in his prime and more reliable from an availability standpoint than George.
The hype around the Sixers is deserved, given the out-of-nowhere nature of their blockbuster offseason. But it’s really hard to win a championship. If it does happen, history tells us to bet on it in LeBron’s second season and not 2026-27. Regardless, the Sixers will be the NBA’s most fascinating team this season, which is a blast for folks like us who chronicle it all.
David Murphy, Sports columnist
I’d love to be the contrarian, but the answer really is no. What matters is that there is a realistic scenario where they are the favorites by the time the playoffs start. There’s also a realistic scenario where the Knicks are again the heavy favorite. Right now, Vegas odds have the two teams even as the co-favorites to come out of the Eastern Conference. That alone speaks to the massive upside of this team.
After all, there is a tremendous amount of unknown priced into those odds. No team in the NBA has a wider range of potential outcomes than the Sixers. We know who the Knicks are. We know they are going to be somewhere in the mix at the very end (barring injury, of course). The Sixers could easily find their formula is a lot more difficult in reality than in theory. That’s especially true if Embiid is closer to the player he was in his worst stretches last season vs. his best stretches.
The Sixers’ LeBron James and Joel Embiid will be charged with chasing a title alongside a bevy of other stars. Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
That being said, go back to the Knicks series last year. Imagine swapping Brown and James in for Kelly Oubre, Jr. and George. And imagine a bench that has Wade, Simons and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope coming off it rather than Quentin Grimes, Dominick Barlow and Justin Edwards. Imagine the Sixers aren’t coming off a seven-game first round series on the road. The potential is very real.
Gabriela Carroll, Sports reporter
Let’s go with no, to be safe. If this Sixers team is fully healthy, and manages to jell on offense and defense, they’ve got a shot. It’s as good a chance as they’ve had since the beginning of The Process. They currently hold the fourth-best odds to win the NBA title next season, behind the Spurs, Thunder, and the reigning champion Knicks.
Victor Wembanyama continues to level up, and the Thunder have two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and multiple deep playoff runs under their belt, including a championship in 2025. Even if everything goes right, winning an NBA championship against the strong field is a challenge. Even Rich Paul, James’ agent, said he didn’t think the Sixers were favorites for the title.
And as Sixer fans know well, a lot can go wrong. While Embiid said his knee issues are behind him, anything can happen, as indicated by last year’s late-season appendicitis.
