Ranking Every Sportsperson’s Pitch to LeBron James As Superstar Muses Over NBA Future

In the crossover of life and sports there are big decisions, like whether Madison Square Garden is the right place for a wedding between a pop star and her NFL fiancé. And then there are BIG decisions, like what NBA team LeBron James should play for in 2026.

James is done with the Lakers. He made that much clear in his announcement on leaving L.A. after eight seasons to pursue playing opportunities elsewhere. Since then, several teams are rumored to have joined the Bron sweepstakes, including familiar faces (Cavaliers, Heat) and intrigued suitors (Warriors, 76ers) alike.

In the coming weeks, expect plenty of NBA stars, analysts and pro athletes to make their pitch on why LeBron should come to their team or city. (Some of these pitches are being made via voice notes, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Thursday).

Whose pitch stands out above the rest? Whose is the most convincing, the most creative or simply the most fun? We ranked our personal faves and duds below.

4. IShowSpeed/Jaylen Brown

To start things off, negative aura points go to uber-popular influencer and streamer IShowSpeed, whose nagging presence at sporting events has become rather tiresome. He and another notorious Twitch streamer, Jaylen Brown, united at Thursday’s France-Morocco World Cup game and gave an awkward joint pitch to LeBron to come to Philadelphia.

“You gotta tell LeBron he gotta pull up, man. Pull up to Philly,” Brown told IShowSpeed, gesturing to the cameras.

“LeBron, pull up to Philly. Think about it. LeBron, Jaylen Brown, PG13,” IShowSpeed said. To which Brown had to correct him and clarify that Paul George was not, in fact, in Philly anymore. Brown and George were part of a blockbuster trade package between the Celtics and 76ers that swapped the stars earlier this month.

“LeBron, pull up to Philly,” Speed says next to Jaylen Brown pic.twitter.com/5idN0uWEEg
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) July 9, 2026

We weren’t at all convinced by the Twitch streamers’ half-hearted attempts to lure LeBron to the 76ers, but the organization might not need their help after all.

3. Saquon Barkley

Even Eagles star running back Saquon Barkley got in on the recruiting fun and pitched his reason for why LeBron should join Philly.

“I think [Philadelphia] is one of the greatest sports towns in the world,” Barkley said. “I know Josh Hart said the opposite. I saw that today on Twitter. But I have to disagree with him. If you want to go out with a bang, I feel like a great spot would be in Philly, and bringing a championship to Philadelphia, you’d be remembered forever.”

Hey @KingJames

Saquon Barkley makes his pitch to bring LeBron James to Philly pic.twitter.com/4lY5AMq1Mh
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) July 9, 2026

A pretty straightforward recruiting attempt, coming from someone who moved to Philadelphia and has since seen his NFL career flourish. James shared some love to the Philly running back last year when he, like the rest of the world, couldn’t believe Barkley pulled off a backwards hurdle. There’s clearly mutual respect there, it just might not be enough as James muses over all the pros and cons of his looming decision.

2. Bob Myers

Bob Myers got straight to the point in his candid pitch to LeBron on Philly. Myers, who serves as the president of sports for the 76ers’ ownership group, appealed to the 22-time All-Star on a recent episode of the Game Over podcast with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul.

Putting it quite plainly, Myers asserted that LeBron’s best chance at winning another ring was in the City of Brotherly Love.

“If he was here, I’d say I honestly believe this is your best chance to win,” Myers said. “... What I would just say is, if it's about winning, let's talk about this team. Because you can win here, in Philadelphia.

“If you want to talk about other stuff: What's this guy like, what's that guy like—by the way, he knows players, a lot of them better than I do, their games—this is a guy that probably watches more basketball than anybody understands. He's probably watching a game in February that nobody's watching. So not only does he know the guys, he knows how they play.”

“"If he was here, I’d say I honestly believe this is your best chance to win… If it’s about winning, this is your team. You can win in Philadelphia.”

~ Bob Myers speaking about LeBron joining the Philadelphia 76ers on Rich Paul & Max Kellerman’s podcast pic.twitter.com/2MKnSHgUpb
— Josh Reynolds (@JoshReynolds24) July 8, 2026

Shortly after James announced he was leaving the Lakers, Charania reported that he was prioritizing his “happiness” over money. Would winning his fifth NBA championship make him happier? Probably. But leaving the sunny West Coast and moving to the other side of the country? Probably not.

It’s looking like it could be a toss up for LeBron to potentially end his career on the 76ers, though credit to Myers for making a heck of a pitch.

1. Steph Curry

LeBron and Steph on the Warriors. This is the stuff dreams are made of.

It’s a years-long flirtation that has only gotten more teasing in recent months, given James’s very real availability and the fact that the Warriors could use a superstar to resuscitate their dynasty on its last breath. Without James, the Warriors will likely run it back with an aging team of Curry, Draymond Green and the recovering Jimmy Butler, while also keeping veteran contributors in Al Horford and Kristaps Porzingis.

With James... well, Curry more seriously entertained the pipe dream at a celebrity golf tournament this week.

“The pitch is: Do you want to play good basketball and be around people who know how to play the game? Raise our floor, our competitiveness,” Curry said Thursday. “There’s good golf in the Bay,” he cheekily added.

“We’re an organization that’s been there. He knows that. That’s really self-explanatory. It’s a matter of where he sees himself fitting. At the end of the day, that’s up to him,” continued Curry.

Steph Curry on the Warriors’ chances at LeBron James: “I don’t have a percentage. It’s kinda up to him.”

“The pitch is: Do you want to play good basketball and be around people who know how to play the game? Raise our floor, competitiveness...There’s good golf in the Bay.” pic.twitter.com/6R4pA28Hbj
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) July 9, 2026

Props to Curry for giving LeBron his space and not making the Warriors sound too needy or clingy. Also, his golf tidbit was genius—of course the 41-year-old James would want to go somewhere he can both hoop and golf.

As things stand, the Warriors are not considered one of the favorites to land the big whale, per Shams Charania. But when you have Curry on your side of the court, never say never.

Some imaginary pitches we’d love to hear from LeBron James’s other rumored suitors:

Miami Heat: Lionel Messi. Two GOATs in South Florida. Enough said.

Cleveland Cavaliers: Travis Kelce. The newly married Chiefs star probably is off on his honeymoon right now, but we’d bet good money that he’s at least thought about reaching out to The King to bring him home.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Bob Dylan. The T-Wolves could be a sneaky landing spot for LeBron this summer, and while Anthony Edwards seems like the obvious recruiter choice, we thought a bit out-of-the-box with Dylan, perhaps America’s greatest living singer-songwriter and a bonafide Minnesotan legend. Dylan hasn’t been seen at any NBA games ever (as far as we’re aware) and may not even have a favorite team. He also probably doesn’t have LeBron’s number. But he was deeply inspired by “Pistol” Pete Maravich and wrote about the New Orleans Jazz star’s legacy in his memoir—maybe there’s some shooting star chance he lures LeBron to Minnesota like the Pied Piper.

More NBA from Sports Illustrated

Add us as a preferred source on Google