Despite a scathing 129-99 loss against the Cavaliers, LeBron James will not only have bad memories of the Los Angeles Lakers match in Cleveland on Wednesday evening.
The organization welcomed the former star’s return to town by showing a video montage of James scoring 25 consecutive points during Game 5 of the 2007 Eastern Conference Finals against the Detroit Pistons.
The now 41-year-old athlete was visibly emotional after this montage aired midway through the first quarter. He was seen on the cameras wiping his eyes with his napkin at the end of the video. James spent 11 seasons with the Cavaliers, in two stints, and left for Los Angeles in 2018. It is unclear with the rest of his career if this was his last game in Cleveland.
The match was to the advantage of the Cavaliers who dominated their rivals 42 points to 22 in the third quarter to move towards victory.
James finished his evening with 11 points. Luka Doncic was the most productive for the Lakers with 29 points.
For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell stood out with 25 points to help his team record a fifth victory in a row.
Elsewhere in the NBA:
Chicago 110 – Indiana 113
CHI: Nikola Vucevic (25 points) and Matas Buzelis (20 points) were the only Bulls to collect at least 20 points.
IND: Pascal Siakam was the most productive of the Pacers with 20 points while Bennedict Mathurin totaled 15 points in 28 minutes.
Atlanta 117 – Boston 106
ATL: Jalen Johnson (19 points and 14 rebounds) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker with 21 points were the spark plug for the Hawks.
BOS: Jaylen Brown had a Celtics-high 21 points.
Orlando 133 – Miami 124
ENT: Paolo Banchero scored twice with 31 points and 12 rebounds.
MIA: Bam Adebayo gets 21 points and 12 rebounds for the double. Norman Powell totaled 22 points.
Charlotte 112 – Memphis 97
CHA: Brandon Miller scored 26 points, Moussa Diabate had 18 points and 20 rebounds, and the Hornets surpassed their win total from last year with a 20th victory.
MEM: Jaren Jackson Jr. led Memphis with 26 points. Cedric Coward scored 17 for the Grizzlies, who suffered a 4th loss in a row.
Minnesota 118 – Dallas 105
MIN: Julius Randle scored 31 points and teammate Anthony Edwards had 20 points.
DAL: PJ Washington was the most productive in the loss with 21 points.
Golden State 140 – Utah 124
GS: Steph Curry made four of his 10 three-pointers to close out his game with 27 points.
UTA: No Jazz player reached 20 points with Keyonte George and Ace Bailey at 19.
San Antonio 111 – Houston 99
SA: Victor Wembanyama was spectacular with 28 points and 16 rebounds.
HOU: Amen Thompson and Kevin Durant had 25 and 24 points, respectively.
