LeBron James really did complicate NBA schedule with late 76ers decision

Adam Silver wasn’t kidding.

Back in July, the NBA commissioner publicly asked LeBron James to hurry up and decide where he was playing.

“Where LeBron plays will affect the schedule,” Silver said at the time. “So I would like him to make his announcement already, so we can finish the schedule.”

Turns out, he meant it.

NBA executive vice president and head of basketball strategy and growth Evan Wasch told Jeff Zillgitt of NBA.com that James’ late decision to sign with the 76ers created a significant complication for the people putting together the 2026-27 schedule.

Wasch calls that process “the world’s largest math problem.”

LeBron apparently made the math a little harder.

The NBA had to run different scenarios while James made his decision because wherever he landed would immediately affect nationally televised games, road trips and other marquee dates.

Once James chose Philadelphia, for instance, the league suddenly needed to determine when the Sixers would visit the Lakers for James’ return to Los Angeles.

That game would then affect Philadelphia’s West Coast trip, which would affect the television schedule, which would affect other games. You get the idea.

“It certainly is a disruption to the process to have a piece of information like that come that late in the process,” Wasch said.

Silver said basically the same thing five weeks ago, noting that teams and television networks were calling the league while everyone waited for James.

Now we know what was happening behind the scenes.

The NBA wasn’t just waiting for LeBron. Apparently, a good portion of its schedule was, too.