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The NBA season hasn't even started and the Philadelphia 76ers' signing of LeBron James is already paying off. The 76ers will help open the NBA regular season on Oct. 20 with a game against the reigning champion New York Knicks. From a new jersey patch sponsorship to ticket and merchandise sales, the LeBron economy has already been a win for Philadelphia. "[He is], from a basketball perspective, one of the greatest, if not the greatest, to ever play. So he's going to make that impact on the organization, and then from an economic perspective, all that stuff follows," said Tad Brown, CEO of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which operates the Philadelphia 76ers. One consulting firm, Boyd Company, projects the first full year of LeBron James with the Philadelphia 76ers could add $250 million to $430 million in total regional economic activity. James left the Los Angeles Lakers and signed with the 76ers this summer. Even Pennsylvania's governor recognizes the LeBron effect. "You're going to have 41 home games with LeBron in South Philly, every game is going to be a destination for people to come, and I think it's going to be great for our economy .... It's going to be really big for Philadelphia," Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said in July. Jersey patch sponsor Bloom Energy recognized the national exposure that a figure such as James can bring. The energy company announced on Monday that it will be the 76ers' new jersey patch partner, taking over from Crypto.com. The annual value of the deal is more than $30 million — a "top two" deal in the league for a jersey patch sponsor, according to a person who asked not to be named because the discussions were private. The 76ers described the multiyear agreement as "one of the most comprehensive and impactful patch partnership deals in the NBA," in the press release. The deal will also bring a seven-figure community investment by Bloom Energy to the Greater Philadelphia region, the team said in a press release. "We saw this as a groundbreaking opportunity for us. Very clearly, what happened during the offseason of them building a strong team with Jaylen [Brown] and then bringing on LeBron was a cherry on the top," said KR Sridhar, CEO and founder of Bloom Energy, which manufactures fuel cells for data centers. The energy company will benefit from massive national attention, as a record 34 Sixers games will be nationally televised this season. Soaring ticket prices The 76ers say they are already seeing an immediate impact in the form of ticket sales. "We've had a tremendous surge in people who are interested in becoming season ticket holders," Brown said. On the secondary market, 76ers tickets are the hottest tickets out there, according to ticketing reseller StubHub. "The Sixers have gone from a middle-of-the-pack team to the NBA's top draw," said Jill Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for StubHub. "Tickets for the 2026-27 games are selling roughly 7x last year's pace." StubHub said that the Sixers went from 22nd to first in NBA tickets sold for both home and road games. Tickets are selling 11 times more than what they had at this point last year. The ticketing company said Sixers games are also attracting unique buyers with more than 4 in 10 tickets sold going to fans outside Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, up from about 1 in 4. Searches for Sixers games by StubHub buyers accounted for 38% of all NBA game searches — up from 4% a year ago, according to StubHub. Philadelphia 76ers home games are averaging $282 in 2026, up from $107 using the same sales window as last year, according to TickPick. The Oct. 20 season opener against the Knicks has a league-high average ticket price of $2,088, according to the site. Merchandise Many fans are eager to get the latest LeBron James 76ers jersey. Fanatics says July was the best-selling month of James' 24-year career in terms of selling merchandise. Since he announced his move to Philadelphia, James is also the best-selling athlete across all of sports on the entire Fanatics platform. James announced his move to Philly via a Topps Now trading card — print-on-demand collectibles that mark significant sports moments. Since then, more than 200,000 Topps Now cards have been purchased, said Fanatics, which owns Topps. "I think that when LeBron picks you ... it's a big validation," Josh Harris, managing partner of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, told CNBC. "He brings a lot of excitement, and you get sponsors calling you, you get tickets that are sold out. You get it all, and some of that definitely has occurred, but we take a long-term perspective on this, and best thing you can do is win." While the 76ers benefit from James' presence, he said on Monday at the 76ers Media Day in Camden, New Jersey, that his focus remains on winning a title for Philly. "I didn't leave my family to lose in the second round. I know that for sure," said James. "So, work needs to be done, and I'm ready to put the work in."
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