LeBron James is a Sixer.
Some variation of that sentence might be the lede for all of our foreseeable articles.
With James in the fold, the Sixers will have one of the most immensely talented starting groups in NBA history. Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown, James and Joel Embiid are five incredibly gifted players. The four veterans have all been All-NBA picks and it’s not crazy to suggest Edgecombe could join them one day.
The issue with many “super teams” is depth. Hell, the top-heavy Sixers
of 2025-26 had debilitating depth issues that were exposed in a big way by the eventual champion New York Knicks in the second round. You need guys to pitch in on load management nights or hit big shots while the stars get the attention.
But when you look at the Sixers’ roster for 2026-27, depth isn’t really an issue — despite what some national folks would have you believe.
Before free agency began, the Sixers selected Alabama guard Labaron Philon with the 22nd overall pick. Philon could prove to be a capable lead ball-handler at the NBA level, which should take a serious burden off Maxey and even Edgecombe, who was basically the team’s de facto backup point guard last season. Philon’s impressive summer league only adds to the belief he can be an immediate contributor.
Mike Gansey and company didn’t have much time to relax as free agency began mere days later — and they were aggressive from the jump.
On the first night of free agency, it was reported that Cleveland Cavaliers forward Dean Wade would be signing a four-year deal. The next day, the team made a move that surprised some, giving New York Knicks big man Ariel Hukporti a deal above the minimum. As Gansey noted after the selection of Philon, this team needed a little bit of everything. Adding versatile forward depth in Wade and another option behind Embiid in Hukporti struck those notes.
Of course, nobody saw what was coming next as the team shipped Paul George and draft picks to the Boston Celtics for Jaylen Brown. Without sacrificing any rostered players, Brown’s acquisition also improved the team’s depth because of the 2025-26 All-NBA pick’s availability compared to George’s.
One of the most surprising and perhaps underrated moves by Gansey this offseason was acquiring guard Anfernee Simons. Simons is an elite offensive player, with the ability to score and make threes at a high level on high volume. How many times did the Sixers just need any type of scoring punch off the bench in the postseason? The only game they really got it was Game 5 in Boston when Quentin Grimes had by far his finest game in the playoffs. For context — Gansey signed Wade and Simons for the same amount of money Grimes got from the Los Angeles Lakers. That’s strong value.
The Brown trade set the stage for signing LeBron, which also led to the eventual signing of veteran wing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and trading of Johni Broome. With that, the Sixers should have 14 players signed to standard deals who can help them win games.
Wade and Simons will be the top options while Hukporti and the incumbent Adem Bona battle it out to back up Embiid. Caldwell-Pope and third-year player Justin Edwards will likely battle it out for minutes on the wing.
And don’t forget about Dominick Barlow and Jabari Walker. Both players started last season on two-way deals before being converted to standard contracts. Barlow gave the Sixers meaningful minutes, even starting 59 games. Walker isn’t a world-beater, but he’s an ideal 14th guy on your roster who will give you high effort and make open threes against the Brooklyn Nets on a Tuesday night in January.
The depth chart looks legit:
PG: Maxey/Philon
SG: Edgecombe/Simons
SF: Brown/KCP/Edwards
PF: LeBron/Wade/Barlow/Walker
C: Embiid/Hukporti/Bona
All teams are going to have holes going into the regular season. Even the defending champion Knicks lost Mitchell Robinson and are attempting to replace him with old friend Andre Drummond. So, if you have concerns about the Hukporti-Bona duo being the primary plan behind Embiid, that’s fair, but there will be time to address the position ahead of the deadline.
Because they’re hard-capped at the first apron, their 15th roster spot will need to remain open for now. But by early January, they’ll be able to bring in players on 10-day contracts. Maybe one of those guys pops. Perhaps an interesting player will be available around the deadline. While first-rounders will be tricky to use because of the Stepien Rule, the Sixers will have plenty of second-rounders still at their disposal. They could also look into the buyout market once the deadline passes.
And don’t forget about the two-way spots. Rayan Rupert and Caleb Love are interesting lottery tickets. The third spot remains open. Maybe an intriguing big will take that final slot and force their way into minutes like Barlow and Walker a year ago.
The overall point is the Sixers have depth — plus avenues to add things they might need.
LeBron is joining a star-studded starting five.
He also has plenty of help coming off the bench.
