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VJ Edgecombe: “LeBron James is my dog. We talk a lot off the court. He’s super down to earth human being. Great person to be around, never have bad vibes. It’s always positive and that’s someone you want to be around. You don’t want to be around anyone that’s going to make you feel bad or drain your energy.”
Nick Nurse on LeBron James: “This summer, he probably stated publicly that he wanted to go someplace and have some fun playing. He loves the game. 24th year, I think that it’s a group of guys like I keep saying that have been super focused and intent of playing the right way, and I think he’s a big part of that, but I think it’s fun. It’s fun to sit here and say 23 out of 25 assists, that’s fun basketball. Everybody likes to play that, and I think that just kind of all comes together for that stuff.”
James crashed into a courtside fan while chasing the ball out of bounds, then briefly picked up the man’s beverage. Asked about the moment after the game, James confirmed what happened. “I spilled some of his wine. I crashed into him. Spilled some of his wine,” James said. “So, I wanted to see if it was worth it on my arm, man. You know, how good it was. It was all right.”
“Listen, I mean, it’s a long marathon, and if you don’t find ways to have fun throughout it, even though you’re working and even though you’re locked in, then it could wear on you,” James said. “For me, especially at this point in my career, being able to appreciate the moments, the small moments,” he added. “These fans are great to us. We try to be great to them as well by playing the game the right way, playing the game hard.”
K.C. Johnson: 76ers 126, Bulls 107 Wilson 24 pts, 7 rebs, 4 assists, 4 steals Powell 18 pts Giddey 13 pts, 10 assists Maxey 26 pts, 11 assists Brown 25 pts, 11 rebs, 5 assists Edgecombe 21 pts James 15 pts, 9 assists, 7 rebs
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Gina Mizell: Unsurprisingly, Joel Embiid and LeBron James are listed as OUT for tonight’s game in Charlotte. Jaylen Brown (knee) is questionable after missing last night’s win over New York. Jabari Walker and Tacko Fall also are questionable, which would provide a needed frontcourt lift.
LeBron James signed a free-agent deal with the Sixers in large part to have fun, play with close friends such as Maxey, and win. After the first month of the season, consider James undefeated in those categories. "I'm having a great time," James said. "I love what we're bringing to the table every night. I love our competitive spirit. Guys show up to work. Guys are ready to work hard. It's a fun group, too. I'm like a big-ass kid, to be completely honest. These guys are great to be around and I'm more than happy I made the decision to come here."
Sixers guard Tyrese Maxey called James a "calming presence" in late-game situations. And James' leadership has been a large reason why all five of their wins have come in clutch time (final five minutes, score within five points), including two now over a Knicks team that had won six straight in the series entering the season, including a second-round playoff sweep en route to the NBA title. "At the end of the day, he's LeBron James," Maxey said. "So it's just like he can do stuff like he did tonight, a couple of big buckets." It was the first 20-point game of James' Sixers career as he finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. He has now scored 20 or more points in 68 games since turning 40, more than every other player age 40 or older in NBA history combined (67). James also tied Hall of Fame center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the fifth-oldest player (41 years, 304 days) in NBA history with a 20-point game.
Of course it was him. With the game on the line, of course it was LeBron James who made the difference. He made the biggest plays down the stretch as his 76ers handed the Knicks a 98-93 loss Friday night. “Obviously, when you add arguably the greatest player of all time,” Karl-Anthony Towns said, “obviously you’re gonna get a lot better.”
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Drew Gooden: "I played four years with LeBron in Cleveland and we went to the NBA Finals in 2007. I had to just become a double-double guy. And when I sacrificed just the 10 and 10, they were telling me that I was having a better year that year going to the finals than I did the previous year averaging 15 plus."
Q: Is it like they're coming out slow out of the gates because again, they just won the title? It can be hard to stay motivated. Is it one of those things? The East is tougher now with the Sixers stocking up with LeBron James and Jaylen Brown. Amare Stoudemire: “It could be a little bit of all of that. But I think what we most have to look at is that when you win a championship, especially in New York, you have all these different opportunities off the court that take place. “You're filming commercials, you're having these different shows, you're doing these different things. All these events are happening. You’ve got to try to narrow it back down and lock in on basketball because playing in New York, you can get a little bit taken away from the sport with all the activities that go along with being in New York City. But you have to now try to narrow it down back to basketball. Key in, lock in on basketball. “Make it the main priority and build out from there.”
