'I Screamed So Loud That My Husband Fell Out of His Recliner': How Sixers Fans Reacted to the LeBron James News

It was a normal Friday morning for Linda Holmes, a Sixers fan of 70 years.

And then, a notification from X changed the day for her and her husband, Joe.

The notification was from none other than Shams Charania. LeBron James chose Philadelphia.

“I screamed so loud that my husband fell out of his recliner and I jumped up in joy while he was so confused what happened! Lol. He understood after I keep screaming, ‘Bron is signing with the Sixers!’ He didn’t believe me for a second but it was worth every second of his pain and suffering including the 40 plus years of heartaches. Let’s go, Sixers.”

👀 Welcome LeBron James to Philadelphia billboards are all over Philly

This I-676 billboard was donated by Interstate Outdoor Advertising CEO Drew Katz who is a lifelong Sixers & LeBron James fan pic.twitter.com/yH3Yejm2O7
— Jeff Skversky (@JeffSkversky) July 25, 2026

James’ arrival in Philadelphia sparked similar heartfelt, funny stories like this through the Delaware Valley as fans embrace the Sixers’ return to contention status. They are ready to again put their hearts into a team eager to break its 25-year Eastern Conference Finals drought. Their experiences, whether at work or with loved ones, upon hearing of James’ decision, show Philadelphia fandom in its most passionate form.

While at work

As was the case for most East coasters, many fans were at work when James broke the news.

Instagram user 'leonardoball_thethird', whose fandom began when the Sixers won 10 games in 2015-16, was stocking shelves. When he saw the news, he immediately blasted Meek Mill’s Dreams and Nightmares in the store.

X user 'Crossgrxx' works at a sports complex in the Philadelphia area and was waiting for a customer to pay when he checked the time on his phone and saw the news. It filled him with so much joy that he bought the customer’s item for him.

47-year-old fan Nicky Zerno was walking his mail route when, out of nowhere, he got a call from his coworker who broke the news. Zerno was in shock and once it settled in, he began celebrating through the street.

Lifelong fan John McGahan, who works at a Jersey Mike's in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, screamed.

“I was at work making cheesesteaks when the news dropped; my GM saw it on his watch and told me,” McGahan said. “I thought he was joking at first, went into the back and checked my phone and let out the loudest ‘Let’s go’ ever.”

Sixers fans right now pic.twitter.com/2X7Pcq3uX2
— The Pettiest Laker Fan 🤫 (@ThePettiestLA) July 24, 2026

Saad Chaudry was sitting in a Teams meeting while on a family vacation and just happened to open X as Charania posted about James’ decision. Without a second thought, Saad turned off his camera and began jumping and screaming all over the place. It was a top-three day of his life.

32-year-old Keith Phelps was actually at a work party celebrating the end of his tenure at his FedEx station in upstate New York when the news broke. He left his coworkers with something to remember.

“Right after we all walk in and out waiting for the food, I got the notification about the LeBron news on my phone and screamed ‘Holy s***’ and started showing all my coworkers,” Phelps said. “I was known as the Philly sports fan of the crew so most people assumed the news had to be LeBron signing.”

Around the house

25-year-old Gabe Yudis slept in and was dreaming about James signing with the Sixers. The moment he awoke, that’s exactly what happened.

“Thought I was living in inception, couldn’t believe it was real,” he said.

18-year-old Anthony Bova was at home, fixing his car, when he saw the news. What happened next drew concern from his neighbors.

“I was running around the yard jumping up and down screaming, ‘Oh my God, holy f***’ and [my neighbor] came out in a hurry like, ‘Is everything OK?’. I told him LeBron signed with the Sixers and he laughed and went back inside.”

Bova was having a bad day. Not anymore.

Out and about

High-schooler Bradley Kahn was at the gym when James’ decision shook the entire building.

“The guy on the cable machine across from me picked up his phone and said, ‘No way’ as I was finishing my set,” Kahn said. “I heard Siri announce that ESPN had sent a long notification and right then I knew it was something huge, but I wasn’t sure it was LeBron.”

“I grabbed my phone immediately and saw the Shams notification: LeBron had signed a two-year deal with the Sixers. Everybody in the gym seemed to see it at the exact same time, and the place went crazy. People were calling their friends, walking around talking about it, and trying to find out more details.”

It was 11 p.m. for first-year fan Dasha Endaltseva, who lives overseas, and the one time she put her phone away, James took action.

“I live on the other side of the ocean, so it was already around 11 p.m. here,” Endaltseva said. “For once, I actually put my phone away and went out to play pool with my friends and then boom—the Sixers signed LeBron. I started running around the pool table screaming. My friends probably thought I’d completely lost it. [Five hours later] and I still can’t fall asleep lol.”

When LeBron James chose the Sixers, down the shore, you could hear screams from the decks of the shore houses. “We got LeBron”
One house started playing the Sixers song. Sixers jerseys are out today. Some Sixers fans don’t even have words for LeBron choosing Philly. pic.twitter.com/LsHfyLavhs
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) July 24, 2026

20-year-old fan Liam Kelly was at Wegmans when the news dropped. It became a social experiment of sorts. Kelly started running through the aisles, screaming, “We got him!”

“[A bunch of] moms just looked at me like I was a nut,” Kelly said. "There was one old head though that slowly pulled his phone out.”

Australian fan Pier Giorgio Capobianco was sitting in a sauna poetically planning a flight to the United States to see the Sixers play for the first time when James made waves with his choice.

"I was already planning on travelling from Australia over Christmas to watch the 76ers as I watch every game for years since I can remember and now with Bron signing it’s even more of a reason,” he said. "Just hope tickets don’t price me out."

“I’ve been trying for the last 4 years to come, but my airline tickets continue to get cancelled too close to the date and we always never are able to come until this Boxing Day I hope!”

Sharing the experience

Many fans turned to their loved ones to express their excitement, a moment that included many fathers.

It took Temple student Brie Southerland a moment to process what had just happened, but when she did, she ran to her dad. They are both fans and make an effort to watch and go to games together. They turned on the iconic 'Here Come the Sixers' song in celebration.

Kat, who has a Sixers-based X account called “m6xey,” shares a deep Sixers connection with her father, as well. He was the person who got her into sports and took her to her first Sixers game in 2021. They’ve been going ever since.

“I called my Dad five times until he picked up and all I said was ‘Are you getting the jersey?’” Kat said. “He didn’t believe me at first lol.”

AJ Hibbard woke up late to see a text from his dad about the news and he instantly burst into tears and called him to talk about it. The moment resonated because he and his father have been fans through The Process and waited so long for the Sixers to become a legitimate threat to win the Finals.

Now, it’s on James and the new-look Sixers to deliver the Larry O’Brien trophy to Hibbard and the rest of the Philadelphia fanbase, one starving for a parade down Broad Street.

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