Key TakeawaysLeBron James challenged the Philadelphia 76ers to embrace discomfort and hard work rather than coast on their star-studded roster.“I didn’t leave my family to lose in the second round,” James said, making clear that anything short of a deep playoff run would fall below his expectations.The 41-year-old delivered the message at his first Sixers media day after leaving the Lakers and signing a two-year, $8 million deal with Philadelphia.
LeBron James made his expectations clear at his first media day as a Philadelphia 76er, saying the team’s star-studded roster can’t settle for simply looking good on paper.
“In order for us to be great, we have to do things that are just not comfortable. We have to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. That is the best way to expedite being great. You have to fall in love with doing things that’s uncomfortable,” James said. “And if we can do that, then we can be a great team.”
He then made his goal even clearer: “If we don’t do that, then we’ll be like, ‘Oh, man, it was a great team on paper, and we had a lot of great talent, and we lost in the second round.’ I don’t want to do that. I didn’t leave my family to lose in the second round. I know that for sure, so work needs to be done, and I’m ready to put the work in.”
James’ comments come after the 41-year-old left the Lakers and signed a two-year, $8 million deal with Philadelphia this offseason.