LeBron James’ move to Philadelphia “makes no sense”

RUMOURS of LeBron James’ move to join Ben Simmons in Philadelphia refuse to go away, but one expert has slammed the idea.

Ben Simmons and LeBron James

LEBRON James to the Philadelphia 76ers has become the NBA’s hottest talking point of late.

With the ability to be able to leave his current contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers at the end of the season, James is the hottest commodity in the league.

Despite the fact he’ll be entering his 16th season, James has shown no signs of slowing down as he continues to dominate on the floor.

A little over a week ago we saw a Pennslyvania company shell out the dollars to have three billboards placed near the Cavaliers arena, with a not so subtle message for James.

Then there was the rumour that James was reportedly spotted in the Philadelphia area touring area high schools over the All-Star break.

Of course “The King” denied he was in the area, but it has done little to stem the amount of speculation from fans and built up anxiety among the Cavaliers faithful.

And then came the meeting between James and his apparent destination next season, the 76ers.

In a game the young 76ers ended up running away with behind the stellar play of Ben Simmons, James sent fans into chaos with his postgame Instagram post.

It seems this rumour just refuses to go away and the speculation will only build with each and every innocuous social media post.

But one NBA expert has slammed the reported move and stated it to be “such a ridiculous thing”.

Ric Bucher joined Chris Mannix on the latest Yahoo Sports NBA podcast and the two discussed the rumours surrounding James to Philadelphia.

“The stupidest idea ever, it’s the stupidest idea ever,” Bucher proclaimed.

“Everyone is looking at the model, James goes and he goes to young talent and he brings them along and they play for another championship and he’s in the Eastern Conference and this is the best young team.

“If you scratch the surface and go past that, this team is not built for LeBron James.

“You also have a number of young guys that you’re going to have to make a decision on as far as what you’re going to pay them and how much.

“Putting James and his contract in the middle of that is going to be difficult.

“Everyone says Ben Simmons is the next LeBron James, slow your role on that a little bit there’s some similarities but I can’t equate that.

“But you don’t want to develop the next LeBron James by having LeBron James right on top of him, how’s that going to happen?

“You’ve got Joel Embiid who can shoot the three, but I don’t want him spotting up and leaving the lane open for James to work.

“From a basketball standpoint, it makes absolutely no sense. It makes no basketball sense for James to play with Embiid and Simmons.”

Ben Simmons and LeBron James

Despite the constant chatter and unknowns about where his future may lie, James hasn’t let it affect his day to day productivity.

Somehow his numbers this season have eclipsed his output from the past three seasons and in Thursday’s game he again showed just how dominant a force he can be.

Against the playoff hungry Denver Nuggets, James led from the front and finished with an incredible statline of 39 points, 8 rebounds and 10 assists to help the Cavaliers to the 113-108 victory.

39 POINTS
10 ASSISTS
8 REBOUNDS

LeBron James was doing it all in Denver! pic.twitter.com/cbqxfq9Q36

— NBA Australia (@NBA_AU) March 8, 2018

Currently sitting third in the Eastern Conference, another run to the NBA Finals looks a big possibility for James.

With a new team alongside him, will the strength of the side in the run home of the regular season along with the playoffs be enough to persuade James to stay at home, or is the lure of a move to Philadelphia or potentially Los Angeles enough to move arguably the greatest player to ever grace the hardwood?

Originally published as LeBron James’ move to Philadelphia “makes no sense”