2018 Game 7, Then Philadelphia

2008 and 2018 were do-or-die Game 7s in the same building, ten years apart, and they ended in opposite directions.

Cleveland won that 2018 Eastern Conference finals 4-3, and Game 7 on the road in Boston finished 87-79. His line: 35 points, 15 rebounds, 9 assists, across all 48 minutes without a rest.

Then the list of teams moves on. Cleveland from 2014 to 2018, the LA Lakers from 2018 to 2026, Philadelphia from 2026.

On Friday July 24, 2026 he announced on X that he had signed with the Philadelphia 76ers, calling it "my last decision". The deal is two years and $8 million in total, with a player option on year two of about $3.9 million. He made nearly $53 million in 2025-26 with the Lakers, so this is a large pay cut. He is 41, turns 42 on December 30, 2026, and this will be his record 24th season.

Here is where the rivalry closes a loop. Earlier in the same offseason, Philadelphia sent Paul George and draft picks to Boston in exchange for Jaylen Brown. He now plays alongside a former Finals MVP acquired from the franchise that knocked his Cleveland teams out in 2008 and 2010, next to Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe, on a team that went 45-37 last season and was swept in round 2 by the eventual champion Knicks. The 76ers have not won a title since 1983.

Against Boston he stands 5-2 in series and 25-16 across 41 games.