James led a 16-0 first-quarter surge that quieted the boos and abuse of fans who used to call him King, scoring 38 points to lead the Miami Heat to a 118-90 victory over the Cavaliers on Thursday night.
It was James' first game back in the city where he played for seven years before leaving via free agency, angering disbelieving fans who considered him one of their own.
Dwyane Wade added 22 points, James Jones 18 and Chris Bosh 15 for the Heat, a star-studded team which has seldom played like one in going 12-8 so far.
Daniel Gibson scored 21 for the Cavaliers, who have lost six of eight and now play seven of their next eight on the road.
James had 10 more points than Cleveland's starting lineup.
Ahead by 19 at the half, the Heat poured it on by shooting 73 percent from the field in the third quarter, with James going 10 of 12 and Wade hitting all four of his attempts to stretch the lead to 30 points.
James sat on the bench for all of the fourth quarter, with dozens of security guards and police lining the team's entrance to the court and guarding against objects thrown at him. After the final seconds sifted away, he left without incident.
Until then, James frequently bantered with his former coaches with the Cavaliers and even talked to fans at courtside. The nativ [...]
