It isn’t purely speculation to claim the NBA built its schedule around LeBron James’ free agency decision.
“Where LeBron plays will affect the schedule,” commissioner Adam Silver said at the CNBC Sport x Boardroom Game Plan Summit in July. “I would like him to make his announcement already, so we can finish the schedule.”
James’ move to the Philadelphia 76ers ultimately didn’t impact the timeliness of the schedule release—this year’s announcement came on Aug. 13, as compared to Aug. 14 last year—but it did affect the team’s TV exposure. Last season, the 76ers played just 14 times on the NBA’s national broadcast partners, which was the median across all teams. After signing the 41-year-old James, the team leads the league in 2026-27 with the maximum possible 34 games on national TV and streaming.
MORE: LeBron Broke the NBA Aging Curve. Can He Keep Doing It?
During James’ four-year stint with the Miami Heat from 2010-2014, the NBA maxed out the team’s national TV appearances in every season. Even when James played for a smaller market in Cleveland from 2014-2018, the Cavaliers led the league in national TV games twice and had the third-most slots in the two other seasons. Then, in James’ eight seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, his team never dropped below second in the league in most games played on national TV.
