LeBron Lands in Philly, and the Lakers Rebuild Around Austin Reaves
LeBron James joined the 76ers on July 24, and the fallout reshaped both LA's roster and Austin Reaves' fantasy ceiling on a $185 million deal.
Post-LeBron usage should push him well past his #39 rank.
- LeBron signed with the 76ers on July 24
- Reaves back in LA on a $185M deal
- Reaves: 38.7 FPTS/G in 2025-26 (actual)
- 30+ of top 40 FAs signed in first 48 hours
- Simons to 76ers on two-year deal
The dominoes finally fell on July 24, when LeBron James agreed to terms with the 76ers — the fourth team change of his career and the last big name to clear this year's free agency board. Free agency opened June 30, and more than 30 of the top 40 free agents were gone inside 48 hours, so LeBron's holdout left the market frozen at the top while everyone waited on him.
For fantasy purposes, the real story isn't Philadelphia — it's the roster LeBron left behind. The Lakers are officially in their post-LeBron era, and they anchored it by bringing back Austin Reaves on a $185 million deal, then adding Walker Kessler via sign-and-trade with the Jazz plus guards Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton in free agency.
The LeBron Ripple Effect
Several teams and players bent their cap sheets chasing LeBron. James Harden and Draymond Green both declined options to create flexibility, and when it didn't happen, they simply went home. Green re-signed with the Warriors on a one-year, $27.7 million deal — the exact contract he'd opted out of — while Harden is expected back with the Cavaliers. Restricted free agent and 2025-26 All-NBA center Jalen Duren remains unsigned, though the Pistons can match any offer.
There was plenty of movement elsewhere. Mitchell Robinson left the champion Knicks for a three-year deal with the Celtics, hours before Boston shipped Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia. Norman Powell went from the Heat to the Bulls, Tobias Harris landed in San Antonio, and John Collins joined Detroit to fill Harris' old role. Anfernee Simons signed a two-year deal with the 76ers after the Brown move, and Tari Eason locked in a five-year, fully guaranteed deal to stay in Houston.
The Fantasy Fallout
Reaves is our #39 overall player (#19 at guard) after posting 23.3 points, 5.5 assists and 38.7 fantasy points per game across 51 games in 2025-26 (actual). That was with LeBron eating usage. Strip that away and hand Reaves the keys to the offense, and the ceiling gets significantly higher — even accounting for a recent cold stretch (last five games -3.9 fantasy points vs. his season average).
The verdict: buy Reaves before the market catches up to what a LeBron-free Lakers offense means for his volume. Watch Sexton too — he averaged 24.6 fantasy points in 68 games in 2025-26 (actual) and closed hot (last five games +9.9), but a crowded LA backcourt caps his upside. Green stays a bench flier at 25.1 fantasy points per game (2025-26 actual), and Simons, at just 21.5 in 2025-26 (actual), is a wait-and-see in a reshuffled Philly rotation.
