Dave Portnoy calls LeBrons deal with 76ers…
Dave Portnoy thinks LeBron James goes to be the next Kawhi Leonard.
After stunning the world and becoming a member of the Philadelphia 76ers this past offseason, seemingly every basketball thoughts started double-taking at how James landed in the City of Brotherly Love for what many count on to be his closing seasons.
James signed for the league minimal to facilitate the deal and have the option to signal wherever he wished, and stories have trickled out that Michael Rubin, the billionaire proprietor of Fanatics who used to be a half proprietor of the 76ers, may need a bit more to do with James’ choice than was beforehand identified.
LeBron James shocked the league with his signing in Philadelphia. NBAE via Getty Images
“He basically took that contract (league minimum deal with the 76ers) because Rubin is doing a side deal with him,” Portnoy said in a post on social media. “He flies in and out. It’s illegal. It’s basically what Kawhi did. But the NBA won’t look into LeBron.”
James signing a league-minimum contract was shocking, as he had been on a max contract for almost his total profession before that.
LeBron James arrives in New York City via helicopter after his first scrimmage, Saturday, October 3, 2026. James made his public debut with the Philadelphia 76ers, and soon after arrived at a New York heliport. TheImageDirect.com
James was not too long ago noticed taking Fanatics’ personal helicopter to and from follow, opting to live in New York City over Philadelphia.
Front Office Sports’ Eric Roberts reported that James is allowed access to Fanatics Aviation as half of his contract with Rubin’s company, and he revealed his free-agent vacation spot in a collaborative social media post across a number of web sites.
Dave Portnoy doesn’t love LeBron James in Philadelphia. Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Portnoy is pointing to this “side deal” with Rubin’s company as a kind of wage cap circumvention, since Fanatics is paying him an undisclosed quantity of money that is clearly not a small quantity if he has limitless access to personal planes and is leaking his free-agent vacation spot to him.
Rubin, who used to be a half proprietor of the 76ers, bought his stake in 2022, including that it’s having an impact on the remaining of his companies.
“As our Fanatics business has grown, so too have the obstacles I have to navigate to ensure our new businesses don’t conflict with my responsibilities as part-owner of the Sixers,” Rubin said in 2022. “Given these realities, I will sadly be selling my stake in the Sixers and shifting from part-owner back to life-long fan.”
LeBron James arrives in New York City from Philadelphia via helicopter after his first scrimmage, Saturday, October 3, 2026. . TheImageDirect.com
Michael Rubin used to own the 76ers. Getty Images
Salary cap circumvention is a scorching subject in the sports activities world proper now, as the Clippers got a huge penalty of 5 first spherical picks – which they’ve since accepted – for funneling money to Leonard through unlawful means in the eyes of the NBA.
The scheme, first identified by investigative journalist Pablo Torre, resulted in Leonard getting $7 million in money and $5 million in stock per 12 months in the company Aspiration.
James is making just $3.87 million for his season in Philadelphia, but he’s made up for it in off-the-court partnerships with Fanatics (undisclosed quantity) and Polymarket ($15 million per 12 months).
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