Philadelphia 76ers managing partner Josh Harris indicates beliefs involving LeBron James and his management team taking a pitch from the Eastern Conference power quite seriously.

“I think they considered us very strongly,” Harris told ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk on Monday in Las Vegas. “I think he — I would be speculating on how he makes his decisions, and I don’t want to do that — but I think that they were really serious [about Philadelphia]. The fact that they took the meeting with us was something that they didn’t view lightly, so I think that they were very serious about it.”

More than a week after verbally committing to join the Los Angeles Lakers, James formally signed his four-year contract on Monday evening.

Contrariwise, there are reports that James did not personally meet with the Sixers, sending his representation instead, and that would counteract Harris’ claims.

By the end of the process, James was making a three-team decision between the Lakers, Sixers, and Cleveland Cavaliers, even if Los Angeles felt like a significant favorite on the day James announced the choice.

A high probability remains clear that the 76ers made every effort to secure a commitment from James, creating a challenge to ignore the possibilities of watching James playing alongside Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid, and company as noted by supporters.

Philadelphia has agreed to deals to bring back guard JJ Redick and forward Amir Johnson and add forward Nemanja Bjelica while acquiring Wilson Chandler. The 76ers are considered to be suitors for Kawhi Leonard if the San Antonio Spurs opt to trade him.