Magic Johnson and LeBron James embrace on the court after a Lakers game.
Getty
Magic Johnson embraces LeBron James following a Lakers game. Eight years after helping recruit James to Los Angeles, Johnson weighed in on the superstar's looming free-agency decision.
Five-time Los Angeles Lakers NBA champion Magic Johnson has posed “two big questions” to the Philadelphia 76ers after they landed LeBron James.
In a detailed post on X, Johnson praised the Sixers for a highly successful offseason that saw them add James and Jaylen Brown to their already star-studded roster, which includes Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and V.J. Edgecombe.
“After trading for one of the best two way players in the league and NBA All Star Jaylen Brown, the Sixers then signed the biggest free agent on the market this summer, 4x NBA champion and future Hall of Famer LeBron James,” Johnson began.
Magic Johnson Has ‘Two Big Questions’
The Lakers legend is convinced that the new-look Sixers can be “the biggest threat” to the New York Knicks‘ chances of repeating as NBA champions. However, he warns that 76ers head coach Nick Nurse will have many adjustments to make before getting there.
“LeBron makes the Sixers one of the best teams in the NBA and the biggest threat to the World Champion Knicks in the Eastern Conference,” he stressed. “Philly’s starting lineup will have four All Stars, LeBron James, Jaylen Brown, Joel Embiid, and Tyrese Maxey, and offensively they will be great. But all four are used to having the ball in their hands, so I’m interested to see what type of offense Coach Nurse draws up.
Finally, Johnson believes the Sixers will be a forced to be reckoned with if they can answer the following two questions.
“I have two big questions for Philly: one is on the defensive end, and two is their team chemistry. If they answer those two… watch out!”
Earvin Magic Johnson
After trading for one of the best two way players in the league and NBA All Star Jaylen Brown, the Sixers then signed the biggest free agent on the market this summer, 4x NBA champion and future Hall of Famer LeBron James.
LeBron makes the Sixers one of the best teams in the NBA
Can LeBron James Win His Fifth Ring?
Not everyone seems to be as high on the James-to-76ers move.
The Ringer’s Bill Simmons cautioned that the NBA’s latest Super Team could implode just as fast as the 2012 Lakers, who failed to win a title despite boasting four Hall of Famers: Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol.
“I just think this has the most variables every which way, including like there’s 2012 Lakers potential too, where this looks awesome on paper, and there are all these reasons for it,” Simmons said on his podcast this week.
“But you have LeBron, who’s 41,” he continued. “Who with a ton of miles on him, God only knows when he’s going to break down someday, and Embiid, who never plays, and Jaylen Brown on a new team, trying to fit his way. There’s an unhappy version of this, too. And I don’t know which one I would bet on, to be honest.”
As Simmons alluded to, Embiid’s health remains the biggest x-factor going into the 2026-27 season. If the 2023 MVP is healthy enough to survive the season, James may have a legitimate chance to win his fifth title, while riding shotgun alongside Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey. If Embiid’s health is compromised, all bets are off.
On his podcast, Rich Paul revealed that LeBron James was encouraged by Joel Embiid’s improving health—noting the big man has no offseason surgeries scheduled—before deciding to sign with Philadelphia.
“From my understanding, Embiid is doing a hell of a job this summer,” Paul said. “It’s the first summer he’s actually been healthy. Not having some type of surgery over the summer, which is always good.”