It is almost impossible to sum up what LeBron James did for the Cavaliers and the city of Cleveland in the 11 seasons he spent playing for the organisation.
But, in his return, the Cavs tried to do just that with a video tribute after the first timeout against the Los Angeles Lakers.
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They succeeded, and gave James a touching tribute fit for a king.
It not only showed his work on the court, but more importantly highlighted his work off it.
Thank you, @KingJames ! pic.twitter.com/LoeMSvbDLb
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) November 22, 2018
James, who opted out of his contract with the Cavs and later signed with the Lakers after his short stint as a free agent, is facing Cleveland for the 14th time in his career – and seventh time at Quicken Loans Arena. The bulk of those games were with the Miami Heat, and back then James did not receive the friendliest of welcomes.
After announcing he would "take [his] talents to South Beach" in a television special known as 'The Decision' that aired in July 2010, he later returned to his home state in December of that year only to be met with vitriol. He scored 38 points in a 118-90 win nearly eight years ago.
But, this time around it was different.
Earlier in the week, James admitted he did not know what to expect.
"I don't know," James told reporters, via the Chronicle-Telegram . "I don't try to put too much into it. I will go out there and see if we can keep this thing going.
"I will see some familiar faces like I did when I arrived here. I will think about some of the good, I will think about some of the bad, I will think about some of the great that I had with the franchise obviously and then once the tip ball gets going, it is time to go to work."
He certainly got a welcome worth watching over and over and over again.
James led the Cavs to four consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals through the 2015-18 seasons, and brought Cleveland back from a 3-1 deficit in 2016 to win the city's first championship of any kind since 1964.
