Julius "Dr. J" Erving believes that LeBron James is the most unique player in NBA history

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With LeBron James joining the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2026 offseason, he now has some shared history with Julius "Dr. J" Erving. For the longest time, Erving has been quite complimentary towards James because he sees him as one of the greatest players in NBA history.

They are now superstars for the same franchise more than 40 years apart. However, it seems Dr. J has always been a LeBron fan, so he will be ecstatic with his arrival. Across NBA history, Dr. J has seen many players and superstars, but he thinks that LeBron is incomparable.

Julius "Dr. J" Erving is a big LeBron James fan

Across NBA history, there have been many top-tier small forwards. Back in the day, Dr. J was the absolute pinnacle of the position. Larry Bird then came and became the best in the position, but everything changed when 2003 rolled around because that was the time LeBron James entered the league.

Since then, LeBron has redefined both the position and the sport. He has become one of the most unique players in NBA history because he is not only a small forward, but he can also play multiple roles from his position. That is what caught Dr. J's eye.

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For the longest time, there have been players who are similar to each other. With the shooting guard position, many players want to be like Michael Jordan. The best example of that is Kobe Bryant, who modeled his game after the Chicago Bulls legend. While Kobe is great, that is the exact reason why Dr. J is a big LeBron fan.

"I think LeBron is one-of-one; Kobe's another sort of imitation of Michael Jordan. There have been plenty of imitations of Michael and Kobe and me, and other people. LeBron's like one of one, so I'm going to give him his pick," Erving said in an interview with The Schmo.

Now that LeBron is playing in Philadelphia, Dr. J will have a closer look at him. Erving loves the 76ers, so he will be supporting a team that has one of the greatest players on it once again for a shot at winning the title for the first time since 1983, back when Dr. J was on the floor.