James may live in New York and commute by helicopter for games! Criticized for insulting Philadelphia, Chamberlain was also once condemned for the same reason.

On July 28, Beijing time, James hasn't played for the Philadelphia 76ers yet, but a revealed plan of his has already sparked considerable controversy. According to renowned reporter Shams, James might commute by helicopter from New York to Philadelphia for games.

Shams said at the time, "His final concern is to confirm whether his family supports this decision. His wife Savannah and youngest daughter Zhuri still live in Los Angeles. Bronny is currently playing for the Lakers in Los Angeles. His younger son Bryce is in Arizona. That means he will have to travel all the way to the East Coast. As for the subsequent arrangements—whether he will settle in Philadelphia, New Jersey, or New York, or whether he will commute by helicopter—nothing is certain yet. But it is clear that he is heading to the East Coast, and at this stage of LeBron's career, his lifestyle will undergo a huge transformation. He has also made it very clear that this choice has nothing to do with money, and at the end of the day, that is indeed the case."

Renowned reporter Windhorst also said, "Obviously, he doesn't even care much about this city, because it seems he won't settle in Philadelphia permanently—at least part of the time he'll live in New York. This thing... I don't even know how to characterize it; it's truly unbelievable."

James is not the first 76ers player to commute from New York to Philadelphia for games. Redick, who played for the 76ers from 2017 to 2019, regularly traveled from his home in Brooklyn to Philadelphia. NBA Hall of Fame legend Chamberlain had a similar experience: during the season, he lived in New York for a long time, commuted to Philadelphia for games, and also ran a nightclub in Harlem.

In his autobiography, Chamberlain mentioned that the Philadelphia media had always criticized him for living in New York. "I only missed one practice that week—just one, because of the flu—but the media made a big deal out of it," Chamberlain wrote. "They've always resented me living in New York... The media saw it as an insult to Philadelphia. On the day I was sick, a sports reporter asked Dolph Schayes where I was, and as usual, he didn't handle it well."

"I had already called him to tell him I was sick, but he just shrugged at the reporter and said, 'Who knows?' The media latched onto that and made a big deal out of it. This is a microcosm of the double standard I've faced for a long time. Bill Russell missed far more practices than I did, but no one ever criticized him; Tom Gola lived in New York long before I joined the Warriors, but no one ever accused him of insulting Philadelphia."

Now, the possibility of choosing to live in New York has already made some people dissatisfied with James. "This guy hates Philadelphia so much that he has to commute from Manhattan to play games," said Philadelphia media personality Dave Portnoy. "To borrow a line from Dick Vitale: 'Are you kidding me?'... This is the most blatant insult to a city I've ever seen. It's a dark day for Philadelphia, and I'm outraged."

Another fan wrote on social media: "It's hard to say he's fully committed to the city of Philadelphia when he talks about loyalty but won't set foot in Pennsylvania unless there's a game."

The biggest advantage of commuting by helicopter is speed. The helicopter flight from New York City to Philadelphia takes about 45 minutes, covering 150 kilometers; driving takes an hour and a half. Several charter operators have long been running this route regularly, connecting multiple helipads in Manhattan to the Philadelphia heliport.

But this convenience collides with a political controversy that has been brewing in New York for years. During last year's campaign, New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani expressed opposition to non-essential helicopter flights, triggered by a sightseeing helicopter crashing into the Hudson River, killing six people. Now, supporters of helicopter restrictions are urging the mayor to fulfill his promise and limit flights from city-owned heliports. In the past 12 months through June, New York received over 17,000 helicopter noise complaints; a city council proposal suggests only allowing essential flights from the two city-owned heliports in Manhattan.

Additionally, as soon as the helicopter commuting rumor emerged, social media immediately erupted in discussion, with many fans inevitably recalling the plane crash that took Kobe Bryant's life in January 2020. In fact, when the former Lakers legend died in Calabasas, California, James was one of the players who publicly expressed being most deeply affected by the tragedy.

Fans naturally did not overlook this point, sharing their opinions on social platforms: Some fans thought living in New York was fine, but absolutely not commuting by helicopter. Another fan commented, "I don't think basketball players should ever take helicopters again."