Sixers

LeBron James thought ‘long and hard’ about playing alongside Embiid, Simmons

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Published30 Jul 2018

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By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly Staff LeBron James thought 'long and hard' about playing alongside Embiid, Simmons

For the first time since joining the Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James sat down to talk about his decision with ESPN's Rachel Nichols. Leading up to James' decision, there seemed to be a chance that he'd come to Philadelphia and his representatives met with the Sixers prior to agreeing to sign with the Lakers.

During his sit down with ESPN, James was asked why he chose the Lakers over a team closer to winning a championship. The first two players out of his mouth while answering? Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons.

"I definitely thought long and hard about the possibilities of a lineup alongside Ben and Embiid or lineup aside Harden and Chris," James told Nichols.

In the end, James said that he enjoys the challenge of getting teams back to where they haven't been in quite a while instead of joining a super team. He mentioned that while the Lakers haven't been to the playoffs in a while, their organization and franchise history matches up there with all the greats in sports including historical franchises like the Patriots, Manchester United, Cowboys and Celtics.

For James' complete answer, see below.