Live Bet Saturday | July 25, 2026 | Hour 2

**Ben Stevens** (0:01)
This is Live Bet Saturday on VSiN, the SportsBetting Network.

**Dustin Swedelson** (0:10)
Live Bet Saturday, VSiN, the SportsBetting Network, Dustin Swedelson alongside Ben Stevens. We've got you covered here for the next few hours. Live baseball action about to get going. Ben is on the Red Sox first five, and even money on the money line. He likes the Giants money line minus 125
Diamondbacks, Nats over nine. I have a plethora of plays. It's a lot to digest. They're over at vsin.com/picks as are Ben's. I'll just tell you them right now. I'm on the Giants as well. I'm on the Nationals minus 135 at home against Arizona, and I'm on the under Red Sox, Toronto, a few other plays as well. To see them, go to vsin.com/picks. And if you go to vsin.com, our daily newsletter, which Bill AD writes up every day, the headline today was very much about LeBron James going to the Philadelphia 76ers. And in case you missed it, maybe you're just waking up and you took too many sleeping pills a couple of nights ago and you're just finding this out. You're not living in Bizarro land. LeBron James is going to the Liberty Bell. He's going to the city of brotherly love. It's only a matter of time before a cheesesteak is named after him, an $8 million deal. Certainly a discount for the greatest of all time, entering year 24 and to help us digest all of that. We are going out to the Progressive Guest Line and welcoming in a guy who covers this team day in and day out, Paul Hudrick, Editor-in-Chief, Liberty Ballers, SB Nation Network, at Paul Hudrick. You can find him on X and he joins us now on Live Bet Saturday.
So let's frame it this way. Prediction markets did not know where he was going. Constant fluctuation between Miami and Cleveland at the top down the stretch. However, when it's all said and done, a team that was 8.9% to acquire LeBron James, the 76ers winds up getting him on this deal as someone who's covered this team and knows what they go through year in and year out with disappointment. 1 to 10, what's your level of surprise that LeBron James is actually signing with the 6ers?

**Paul Hudrick** (1:58)
I'm going to go with 8 because I thought it could happen. Look, there was a lot of smoke there and I didn't think it was unfounded smoke. I think that he had come out in numerous reports that that Jalen Brown trade was really the catalyst. That's what made him think, huh, the 6ers. Then when you look, they have a lot of connections, whether it's the Tyrese Maxey clutch collection connection, Nick Nurse is a clutch client. You look at Mike Gansy, they were competing, LeBron James and Mike Gansy, who is now the president of basketball operations. They compete each other in high school in Ohio. He beat out Mike Gansy for Mr. Basketball when he was a sophomore.
Up and down, Bob Myers and Rich Paul have a really close connection. Jameer Nelson, who is in the 6ers front office, they were all stars together. Joel Embiid, they won an Olympic gold medal. So I think there were a lot of connections that made me believe it was possible, but that eight comes from the fact that I was still pretty surprised because Philadelphia, we're not really accustomed to this sort of thing happening.
Maybe we're turning a leaf when you look at Bryce Harper chose the Phillies, St. Guant Barkley chose the Eagles. Maybe we're turning a leaf here in Philadelphia, which would be a very pleasant surprise. I would say, not totally shocked because I felt it was a real possibility, but still pretty surprised that one of, if not the greatest player of all time, chose to play for the Sixers.

**Ben Stevens** (3:22)
Paul, I completely agree with you. It felt like when LeBron James' sweepstakes in summer had started and we saw Rich Paul's whiteboard and he stored Tyrese Maxey's name, that it felt like the 76ers had some steam. But as it took a while and things slowed down a little bit, it just felt like a return to Cleveland was probably the most likely destination. Nope, LeBron James called it his last decision. He will play in Philadelphia. You said it there. You're not necessarily accustomed to super nice things when it comes to 76ers basketball. There has been some expectation, but the Sixers have faltered. The last NBA Championship for Philadelphia, 1983 The last NBA Finals appearance way back in 2001, but with the addition of LeBron James after the blockbuster to get Jalen Brown earlier this summer as well. Paul, is it fair to say it's NBA Championship robust this upcoming season in Philly?