Philadelphia 76ers guard Ben Simmons said it "sucks" that he will not face LeBron James as often after the NBA superstar joined the Los Angeles Lakers.

James swapped the Eastern Conference for the Western Conference following his decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers, who reached the NBA Finals last season.

Rookie of the Year Simmons and three-time NBA champion James went head-to-head on four occasions in the east last term – the 76ers and Cavaliers splitting the honours with two wins apiece.

Looking ahead to the 2018-19 campaign, Simmons discussed the absence of James from the east as he identified the new threats in the conference.

"It sucks that I'm not going to be able to play him as many times," Australian star Simmons told Omnisport.

"At the same time, I'll be able to go to LA and play at Staples [Center] against LeBron, which would be fantastic.

"Obviously he'll be able to come to Philly. I know that's going to be a huge game. It's going to be a lot of fun."

"I know Boston [Celtics], there's Toronto [Raptors], [Washington] Wizards and Miami [Heat] who are those teams in the competition right now.

"It's going to be really exciting to see those guys this season and have a good, competitive game. It's going to be a great competition."

The 76ers, who reached the Eastern Conference semi-finals in 2017-18 – open their season against the Boston Celtics on October 16.