In his annual return to Cleveland, LeBron James made sure to show out for the crowd.
Late into the second quarter, the King finished one of his best plays of the season: a monster dunk over his former teammate Kevin Love.
LEBRON JAMES!!!!!
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) March 22, 2022
It was an amazing moment for James and anyone lucky enough to view the event live. It didn’t end there, though.
Before the half-time buzzer, Kevin Love made sure to get his “revenge” on James, putting him in a headlock in a hilarious encounter on the sidelines.
Kevin Love's response to getting dunked on by LeBron was putting him into a headlock 😂
No hard feelings between the two former longtime teammates.
🎥 @SpectrumSN pic.twitter.com/9LmTyyXzL0
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) March 22, 2022
James and Love were teammates for four seasons in Cleveland. They achieved great success together, winning a title in 2016 during a 4-year consecutive run to the Finals.
Although James would leave his Cavs teammates behind for the sunny skies of Los Angeles, he never let it destroy the relationships he formed along the way. Even long after his departure, Love never expressed any resentment towards his former co-star.
“I think he’s always looking for a different challenge,” said Love about James. “He’s always wondering what’s next and it feels like sometimes he’s playing chess and everybody else is playing checkers. He’s very very mentally strong, knows the game of basketball so well and sometimes, there’s things that he sees that other people don’t. So I think making it to four straight Finals, him helping the most in us winning a championship in 2016… I think he might’ve been looking for something different. A change and the next chapter for him and here we are.”
Years later, Kevin Love is still on the Cavaliers, who are quickly becoming one of the best young teams in the league.
While it remains to be seen if James will ever return to his hometown team, he’ll have plenty of familiar faces ready to welcome him back if he does.
For now, he’ll just have to relish the rare moments he gets to step back on their court.
