Nov 27, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) talks with Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the second quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn ImagesThere was a lot of hullabaloo last week when LeBron finally made his free agency decision and chose the Philadelphia 76ers, which was a surprise. Most people expected him to pick either Miami or Cleveland; in fact, Miami had already prepared a social media announcement, which was accidentally posted prematurely. But its Philly, because, as always with James, its where he thinks hes most likely to win a title. Is that going to happen? Well, maybe, but the odds are against it. Lets look. First, theres James himself. Hes played for 23 seasons already, and give him full credit: hes done an amazing job of keeping himself in great shape, and still, at 41, remains a tremendous player.But hes not the player he once was. Last year, we saw several occasions when he just didnt react on defense. Hes not nearly as explosive as he once was, and the brutal reality is that he will never be better than he was last season. Time catches up to everyone, even King James.This is also important: He played 82 regular season games in 2017-18, but since then? 2018-19: 55 games2019-20: 67 games2020-21: 45 games2021-22: 56 games2022-23: 55 games2023-24: 71 games2024-25: 70 games2025-26: 60 gamesHe missed more than a quarter of last season, and hes missed plenty over the last eight seasons, as noted. But hes not the biggest problem.That would be Joel Embiid, who, at 32, has had even more problems. Over the same period, heres how his availability has been:2018-19: 64 games2019-20: 51 games2020-21: 51 games2021-22: 68 games2022-23: 66 games2023-24: 39 games2024-25: 19 games2025-26: 38 games Now, bear in mind that in 2019-20, the season was limited by Covid, and no one played more than 67 games, but still, thats not a great track record. And dont forget that Embiid lost his first two seasons to injuries.On the bright side, the Sixers now have Jaylen Brown, who has been outstanding for his entire career, VJ Edgecombe, who will really benefit from Jamess experience, and Tyrese Maxey, who has really proven himself. Thats a great perimeter, but theres a lot riding on James and Embiid staying healthy. And if they dont, who do they have to step in? Theres not much on the bench. If you were betting on next year, youd probably be wise to look to the Spurs. They crashed hard against the Knicks in the finals, but their core is young, talented, and just got socked in the nose. They learned a lot from New York, and our guess is theyll be highly motivated for another shot.Go to the DBR Boardsto find Blue Healer Auctions||Drop us a line