LeBron James Day

On Friday, July 24, 2026, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro declared “LeBron James Day” across the state. The announcement came just 14 minutes after news broke that LeBron James was signing with the Philadelphia 76ers.

📝 Despite the name, this isn’t a legal holiday. The proclamation does not close state offices, alter school calendars, or create a legal holiday. Pennsylvania’s legal holidays are set in state law. It’s a symbolic gesture from the governor’s office, not a legislative act.

Why Shapiro made the move

Shapiro is a self-proclaimed die-hard Sixers fan, and he wasted no time celebrating the signing. He posted the proclamation directly on social media, writing, “By the power vested in me as the Governor of the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a die-hard Sixers fan, I hereby proclaim today to be LEBRON JAMES DAY.“

The proclamation itself walks through James’s career. It traces his rise from Akron, Ohio, where he was born in 1984 and raised by his mother, Gloria James, to his selection first overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2003 NBA draft at 18. It also lists his four NBA championships and four NBA Finals MVP awards, his four league MVP awards, 22 All-Star selections, three Olympic gold medals, and his 2023 rise to the top of the league’s career scoring list. Shapiro’s text also recognized James’s “great philanthropic work” and “bright future in Philadelphia.” 

The LeBron Deal

James, 41, is signing a two-year, $8 million contract with a player option, according to Klutch Sports Group CEO Rich Paul, who spoke with ESPN’s Shams Charania. The first year is worth the veteran minimum of $3.9 million, a steep drop from the more than $52 million James earned with the Los Angeles Lakers last season, his eighth and final year with the franchise. He informed the team on June 30 that he intended to explore his options.

This marks his 24th NBA season and his fourth franchise, after Cleveland, Miami, Cleveland again, and Los Angeles. The Sixers will pair him with Joel Embiid, and the team also recently added Jaylen Brown in a trade from Boston.

The Reaction

The city responded fast. Sixers new addition Jaylen Brown posted #throwtheballup, the team’s marketing slogan for the coming season. Eagles running back Saquon Barkley welcomed James to the city and invited him for a round of golf. Local fans, including an eight-year-old Sixers fan named Jordan Daily who was practicing pitching with his father in South Philly, were already talking championship odds within hours of the news.