LeBron made his first return to the Quicken Loans Arena since joining the Lakers in free agency in the summer earlier today.
And paying tribute to his 11 years’ of service with the Cavs and the legacy of his efforts, his former team sanctioned a special video that played on the big screens during the first quarter.
James took the Cavs to four straight NBA Finals in his second spell and ended Cleveland’s 52-year wait for a title with a glorious championship triumph over the Golden State Warriors in 2016 – becoming the first team ever to recover from 3-1 down.
And the celebrations of their title win were among the highlights shown of LeBron’s time donning the Wine & Gold jersey.
It was a different welcome compared to the one the four-time MVP received in 2010 after leaving for the Miami Heat, also as a free agent.
In December that same year, LeBron returned to a furious home crowd who felt betrayed at their star’s controversial move to Florida.
The 33-year-old has since repeatedly declared it the most hostile crowd he has encountered during his 16-year career.
But Cavs fans were more welcoming this time around, the QLA roaring in appreciation as LeBron’s name was read out pre-game, with all eyes on him as he took to the floor five minutes after his team-mates in the warm-up.
And following that there were huge ripples of applause as the video played touching upon what he has done for the franchise and for the city.
Fox Sports analyst Nick Wright saluted the Cavaliers for the way in which they made note of what LeBron has done for the local community.
He said on Twitter: “Excellent jobs by the @cavs ops people in including LeBron’s off court contributions in that tribute video. That was very well done.”
Fittingly, James also scored the first basket of the night. The Cavs led 28-24 at the end of the first quarter.