LeBron James did not open his first Philadelphia 76ers news conference by talking about longevity. He talked about the second round.

“I didn’t leave my family to lose in the second round,” James told reporters at the club’s Camden training complex on Monday.

That framing set the tone for a Media Day the Sixers have not had in years. James, who signed in free agency this summer, walked into a locker room with Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and newly acquired Jaylen Brown, and made the target simple.

James is 41 years old and starting his 24th season, extending the career-length record he took from Vince Carter last year. No player has ever begun a 24th NBA season before.

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Maxey the recruiter, Embiid the bystander

James credited Maxey with pulling him to Philadelphia rather than a return to Los Angeles.

“I have a really, really good, no, I won’t say good, GREAT relationship with Tyrese,” James said, calling the fifth-year guard one of the main deciding factors in his choice.

Embiid took the opposite tack about his own role. “I didn’t talk to him, I didn’t recruit,” the Sixers center said with a smile.

Along with James and Brown, the front office added guard Anfernee Simons and forward Dean Wade to a 21-man training camp roster. Embiid, entering his age-32 season, will operate under a new maintenance program after playing just 96 games over the past three seasons.

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Nurse’s blueprint for a 41-year-old

Head coach Nick Nurse has already indicated where James will fit. Nurse said he plans to use James as a de facto point guard, describing him as “an offense creator” who “will bring the ball up the floor and try to create for himself and others.”

James, asked about his role, waved the question off with a line about his own versatility.

“I think the luxury of my game is I can do everything, literally.”

He was measured about the work ahead. “Nothing can happen unless you put the work in. Everyone is highly motivated,” he told the assembled media.

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The Knicks are the standard, and they are next

The team James wants to unseat has been named for months. The New York Knicks won their first championship since 1973 in June, beating the San Antonio Spurs in five games, with Jalen Brunson averaging 32.6 points and taking Finals MVP.

Philadelphia does not have to wait to find out where it stands. The 76ers open the regular season at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, October 20, at 7 p.m. ET, the same night the Knicks raise their first championship banner in 53 years.

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