LeBron James made his first on-court appearance since signing with the 76ers.
James, 41, made his preseason debut with Philadelphia on Thursday, playing 30 minutes during the 114-108 loss to the Nets on Thursday.
Scoring was not on the agenda for James, who scored 10 points while going 1-for-1 from the field and 8-for-8 from the free throw line.
James, who took a playmaking role for the majority of the game, also put up four rebounds, five assists and a steal.
Thursday’s game was James’ first appearance in a Sixers uniform since signing a two-year, $7.95 million veteran-minimum contract with the franchise in July.
When speaking to reporters in September, James expressed full confidence in bringing a championship to Philadelphia, saying that he hopes to bring his previous winning experience to the team.
“I hope that I can, you know, bring that experience, bring that knowledge, bring the blueprint to the guys that’s trying to accomplish some things that they haven’t done in their career,” James said. “I’ve seen everything that this league has to offer on the floor and off the floor, so I hope that every single day with my approach to the game, approach to the work, that it can translate to every single guy.”
Drama has already started in Philadelphia, however, with reports saying that James let Joel Embiid “hear it” after the Sixers star big man was “a couple of minutes late” to a practice.
During Monday’s preseason game between Philadelphia and the Knicks, Mike Breen relayed the story that someone told him about the two.
“I had somebody tell me before the game that they were out ready to practice, and Joel Embiid walked out onto the court a couple of minutes late, and LeBron let him hear it,” Breen said on the MSG broadcast.
James vehemently denied Breen’s comments through a post on his Instagram story.
“He ain’t been late so stop the lies,” James wrote.
Following James’ comeback, Breen apologized for the initial report, saying that the story was taken out of context.
“I’m so disappointed how the story was interpreted,” Breen told ESPN.
“The whole intent was praising LeBron for already having an impact on the team’s professionalism and accountability, even something so benign as a player getting on the court for practice a minute or two late.”
