LeBron James remains historically productive for a player in his 40s, but he hasn’t completely escaped the ravages of age. Take a look behind the scenes Sixers training camp, ESPN’s Dave McMenamin reveals that James has chronic arthritis in his left foot and is still getting “special attention” on his lower back, where he dealt with sciatica that forced him to miss the first month of last season.
According to McMenamin, James arrived at the team’s practice facility more than three hours before practice began. He worked with his old trainer, Mike Manciasto a routine that included stretching and other activities to prepare him for competition.
McMenamin also notes that James, who lives in New York, made the 40-minute helicopter ride, landing on top of the team’s office, which is next to the practice facility. McMenamin adds that no one in the organization seems as bothered by the daily flights as the owner Josh Harris also often comes to work the same way.
More on the Sixers:
- Two weeks before James signed with Philadelphia in late July, Coach Nick Nurse interrupted his golf game for an impromptu conversation on the course, McMenamin states in the same piece. After receiving a text from the CEO of Klutch Sports Rich PavelNurse stopped in the middle of her round and discussed a potential partnership with James while sitting in a golf cart. “I think the first things were just offense and defense — the nuts and bolts of basketball,” The nurse said. “He’s played us a couple of times (since Nurse became Philadelphia’s coach in 2023) and I’m like, ‘Hey, we did this because of this and this because of that,’ and he’s like, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, that makes sense.’ He kind of remembers why we did what we did offensively. So that was the main thing. And then it went to, “Where do they fit?” How do you see fit? And I was for it. I thought he was perfect to fit in there and give us a lot of what we needed.”
- The Sixers’ talent level was on display Saturday intrasquad fightbut questions remain about how so many ball-handling players can fit together and whether the starting five will be healthy enough to build chemistry for Tony Jones of The Athletic. Judging by comments in training camp, Jones expects the starters to see plenty of action during the preseason. “It just comes down to us being on the same page and defining what our job is,” Jaylen Brown said. “We have to know what our roles are and try to hold each other accountable. I think just establishing that is the most important thing. That’s the foundation and that’s where our core values have to be.”
- Adam Aaronson of The Philly Voice looks at five questions before the season begins, including whether the clear front-runner for backup center minutes, the role of a first-round pick Labron Filon the younger and the battle for an open two-way slot.
