LeBron James made his first home appearance with the 76ers feel like a full-on Philadelphia night - boos, cheers, chaos and all.
The Sixers dug themselves into a huge hole Thursday at Xfinity Mobile Arena, falling behind the Cleveland Cavaliers by as many as 29 in the first half. By halftime, the building had turned on the home team, with Philadelphia trailing 69-45 and the crowd making its feelings clear.
Then came the flip.
Philadelphia ripped off a 74-37 second half, erased the deficit and finished off a 114-106 win in one of the wildest reversals the arena has seen. The fans who had booed earlier were suddenly roaring, and the comeback marked the biggest in franchise history in the play-by-play era, which dates back to the 1996-97 season.
Afterward, James said the night delivered exactly the kind of atmosphere he was hoping for.
“It was everything that I dreamed of and more. We got the boos.
That was amazing. We deserved it.
And then we had the cheers, and almost blew the roof off this thing tonight, in a good way. It was a hell of a night,” James said.
The crowd had already been buzzing before tipoff, erupting when James went through his signature chalk toss. Once the Cavaliers started stretching the lead, the noise turned hostile - and former Sixer James Harden, now with Cleveland, heard it too.
James didn’t exactly settle the home crowd early. He was shaky in the opening stretch, accounting for three of Philadelphia’s first five turnovers. But he recovered, and he and Tyrese Maxey helped ignite the third-quarter push by getting the ball out in transition and pushing the tempo.
James finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds and five assists against the team he helped beat for the 2016 title. He signed a two-year deal with Philadelphia for the veteran minimum this offseason.
Maxey led the way with 32 points, Joel Embiid added 24, and Jaylen Brown - also making his home debut after arriving in a trade from the Boston Celtics - scored 21.
Donovan Mitchell carried Cleveland with 32 points, including 22 in the first half, but the Cavaliers couldn’t hold off the surge.
Philadelphia improved to 2-0 after opening with a win over the New York Knicks. The Sixers now head into a busy stretch at home, with the Milwaukee Bucks coming Saturday and the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.
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