Anfernee Simons admitted he did not fully believe the speculation surrounding LeBron James’ free agency until the news became official, recalling his reaction to the future Hall of Famer signing with the Philadelphia 76ers this offseason.
Speaking on Cousins podcast alongside Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady, Simons described the moment he first learned James was headed to Philadelphia after weeks of widespread rumors.
“I mean obviously you see everything that’s going on like in the media and stuff so you see like that, you know, LeBron could potentially go there and, you know, to me I gotta see it to believe it,” Simons said. “So, I forgot what I was doing. I might have been working out or actually I woke up. I just woke up and I saw the news and I was like, ‘Dang, this is crazy.’”
Simons is in a unique position to discuss the move after signing with Philadelphia himself during free agency. The guard agreed to a two-year, $12.3 million contract, giving the 76ers another scoring option as they reshape their roster around James, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and newly acquired Jaylen Brown.
The 26-year-old enters his ninth NBA season after splitting the 2025-26 campaign between the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls. Across 55 games, he averaged 14.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists while shooting 44.0% from the field, 38.5% from three-point range and 89.6% from the free-throw line. He appeared in 49 games for Boston before finishing the season with six games in Chicago.
Simons has established himself as one of the league’s more reliable perimeter scorers during his career. In 444 NBA games, including 218 starts, he owns career averages of 14.9 points and 3.2 assists while converting 38.1% of his three-point attempts. His best offensive season came in 2023-24 with the Portland Trail Blazers, when he averaged a career-high 22.6 points and 5.5 assists in 46 games.
Philadelphia’s roster has undergone a dramatic transformation since the end of last season. After finishing 45-37 and reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals before being swept by the eventual champion New York Knicks, the franchise made one of the biggest moves of the summer by acquiring Jaylen Brown from the Boston Celtics in exchange for Paul George and draft compensation.
James’ arrival gives the 76ers another marquee addition as the organization pushes into win-now mode. The projected core now features James alongside Embiid, who averaged 26.9 points and 7.7 rebounds in 38 games last season, Maxey, who earned All-NBA Third Team honors after averaging 28.3 points and 6.6 assists, and Brown, creating one of the NBA’s most accomplished collections of talent.
