Who Should Be The 76ers’ No. 1 Option? Ranking LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Jaylen Brown And Tyrese Maxey
· Yahoo Sports
The Philadelphia 76ers have created one of the most dominant superstar combinations on paper in the NBA. They have LeBron James, Joel Embiid, Jaylen Brown, and Tyrese Maxey on the same roster, giving them four players with legitimate arguments for being the best on the team.
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But being the best player isn’t necessarily the same thing as being the No. 1 option.
LeBron will be 42 next season. Embiid remains arguably the most dominant player in the group when healthy, but his availability is always a question.
Brown is coming off the best season of his career and has already proven he can be the best player on a championship team. And Maxey has increasingly looked like a player ready to take control of a franchise.
That’s what makes this fascinating. The Sixers don’t need to hand the ball to the player with the biggest name. They need to determine which player should have the ball when everything is on the line.
LeBron James
2025-26 Season Statistics: 20.9 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 7.2 APG, 1.2 SPG, 0.6 BPG
LeBron James is still LeBron James, which makes putting him 4th feel almost ridiculous. But this isn’t a ranking of who has had the greatest career or even who is the best all-around player.
It’s about who should be Philadelphia’s primary offensive option in 2026-27, and at age 42, LeBron shouldn’t have to carry that burden anymore.
James was still remarkably productive during the 2025-26 season, showing that Father Time has not completely figured him out. He posted his usual scoring, rebounding, and assist numbers efficiently, shooting 51.5% FG with the bulk of his shots coming around the rim.
He struggled from three, 31.7%, and his free-throw shooting was average at 73.7%. Those are some other reasons why he should probably take a backseat offensively.
His biggest advantage at this stage is his brain. LeBron is still a genius basketball player, and outside of Nikola Jokic, nobody should have that claim over him.
That makes him potentially more valuable as Philadelphia’s ultimate floor general than as its primary scorer. Last season, LeBron was willing to defer to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, and there’s no reason to believe he’ll suddenly demand the ball on every possession in Philadelphia.
In fact, he could potentially lead this group in assists while conserving his legs. If the Sixers are serious about winning a championship, asking 42-year-old LeBron to be their nightly offensive option would be poor roster management.
Joel Embiid
2025-26 Season Statistics: 26.9 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 3.9 APG, 0.6 SPG, 1.2 BPG
When Joel Embiid is healthy, this conversation gets much easier. He is the best player on the roster and a top-five star in the world.
Embiid can still punish teams in the post, face up from the midrange, stretch the floor, and get to the free-throw line. When everything is clicking, there is a very legitimate argument that Embiid should be Philadelphia’s No. 1 option.
He is coming off a 2025-26 campaign posting 26.9 PPG on 48.9% FG, 33.3% 3-PT FG, and 85.4% FT in 38 games. Those are superstar numbers, albeit in a small sample size. He attempted 18.3 shots per game, including 4.2 threes, so he can still get the volume up as he needs to.
There is just one enormous problem: availability. Embiid has played more than 60 games four times in 10 seasons. That is a scary resume to study.
A No. 1 option has to be somebody the offense can reliably build around. Philadelphia cannot spend an entire season designing everything around Embiid only to discover in the postseason that his body won’t cooperate.
When he’s healthy, he should get plenty of touches and be fed inside the paint. But Embiid becomes the featured option whenever he’s on the floor. That’s a subtle distinction, but an important one.
Jaylen Brown
2025-26 Season Statistics: 28.7 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 5.1 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.4 BPG
Jaylen Brown might be the easiest player on this roster to overlook because the Sixers have three enormous names surrounding him. That would be a mistake, and it is truly amazing how Bob Myers was able to acquire the former NBA champion.
Brown is entering his prime coming off arguably the best season of his career. He finished sixth in MVP voting, posted career highs in scoring and assists, and once again demonstrated that he can shoulder an enormous offensive responsibility.
He posted career-highs in scoring and assists while tying his rebounding mark. He also shot 47.7% FG, 34.7% 3-PT FG, and 79.5% FT in 71 games, showcasing his ability to lead a team. Remember, the Celtics finished with the 2nd seed in the Eastern Conference behind Brown’s leadership.
There’s also something extremely valuable about Brown’s championship experience. He has already been the best player on a championship team, winning Finals MVP with Boston, so he doesn’t need to prove that he can perform when the lights get brightest.
Brown should have a strong argument to lead Philadelphia in scoring because he’s in his prime, can create his own offense and doesn’t need the ball every second to make an impact.
Tyrese Maxey
2025-26 Season Statistics: 28.3 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 6.6 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.8 BPG
This should be Maxey’s team, not because he’s the most talented player on the roster. It is because he is the player who makes the most sense as Philadelphia’s primary decision-maker for the next several years.
Maxey is entering his prime and has already developed from a young guard into an All-NBA player with the Sixers on his back. His speed is the obvious weapon, because he is unstoppable at times. Maxey shot 46.2% FG, 36.7% 3-PT FG, and 89.2% FT in 70 games.
The beauty of making Maxey the No. 1 option is that it doesn’t mean everyone else becomes irrelevant. But when Philadelphia needs someone to make the initial decision, Maxey should have the ball. He should decide whether he or LeBron brings the ball up, or who controls the play.
If the Sixers are building for more than one season, there is no reason to hand the keys to a 42-year-old LeBron or an injury-prone Embiid when they already have a star guard entering his prime.
Tyrese Maxey Should Be The Number One Option, Followed By Jaylen Brown
This is ultimately the order that makes the most sense: Maxey first, Brown second, Embiid third, and LeBron fourth.
That doesn’t mean Maxey is better than Embiid. It doesn’t mean Brown is more talented than LeBron. It means Philadelphia should distribute responsibility based on age, availability, role, and what gives the team its best chance to win over an entire season.
Maxey should bring the ball up, initiate the offense and determine where the possession goes. Brown should be the primary secondary creator and one of the team’s most aggressive scorers.
Embiid should get fed relentlessly when he’s healthy and can take over games inside and out. LeBron should be the ultimate connector, facilitator, and coach from the floor.
Joel Embiid Will Get Looks When Healthy, But Must Defer
There will be nights when Embiid is obviously the best player on the floor and proves why he is one of the highest-paid players in the world. Those nights shouldn’t change the hierarchy.
If Embiid is healthy and Philadelphia is playing a team that cannot handle him inside, feed the big man. That’s common sense. A No. 3 option on paper doesn’t mean Embiid should receive fewer shots than Brown or Maxey every night. It means the offense shouldn’t depend on Embiid being available for 70-plus games to function.
That’s where this roster is different from previous Sixers teams. Philadelphia finally has enough elite offensive talent that it doesn’t have to panic when Embiid sits. Maxey, Brown, and LeBron can control the team whenever the center needs a breather, for a quarter or for a stretch of games.
LeBron James Will Be The Fourth Option To Conserve Energy For The Playoffs
Putting LeBron fourth sounds disrespectful until you remember that LeBron James will be 42 years old. He is without a doubt one of the best free agent signings this offseason.
The Sixers don’t need regular-season LeBron to prove anything. They need postseason LeBron, and that will be a juggernaut when it matters most.
He shouldn’t be chasing 28 points per game or playing 38 minutes every night just because he’s sharing a locker room with other stars. The goal should be to preserve his legs, let him pick his spots, and maximize what he has left for the postseason.
Philadelphia has enough scoring that LeBron can choose when to dominate. And honestly, this might be the best possible role for him.
LeBron has spent most of his career carrying enormous responsibilities. Now he gets to play alongside three other elite offensive players. The Sixers shouldn’t ask 42-year-old LeBron to be their regular-season savior. They should ask him to be their postseason cheat code.