“Favorite place to play in the whole world”: LeBron James reiterates his love for playing at Madison Square Garden
LeBron James has been around the world and back again while playing basketball. From his beginnings in Cleveland, to his first championships in Miami, Olympic gold in Beijing and London, and even a recent stop in Saudi Arabia, James has done it all.
He's played on some of the biggest stages in the world, and after 20 years in the NBA, there's one place that stands out as his favorite: Madison Square Garden. After an 'LBJhistory' account posted about the remarkable performances LeBron James has had at Madison Square Garden, King James himself weighed in.
Taking to his Instagram story, he declared Madison Square Garden his favorite place to play basketball in the entire world.
With that in mind, let's take a look at some of LeBron James' best performances at Madison Square Garden over the years, heading into year 21 for the legend.
LeBron James' best Madison Square Garden performances
Over the years, LeBron James has played at Madison Square Garden numerous times, however, a few performances stand out. Most notably, fans may remember a pair of performances James had at MSG in back-to-back years in the 2008-09 season and the 2009-10 season.
On February 4th, 2009, LeBron James went off for 52 points at Madison Square Garden as he and the Cleveland Cavaliers looked to secure the NBA's best record. At the time, Kobe Bryant was fresh off a 61-point outing at MSG, setting a road record at the arena.
When James took the floor, he posted a monstrous stat line, adding 11 assists, nine boards, and two blocks en route to a five-point win over the Knicks.
Early on in the season, on November 6th, James went off for an impressive 33 points while also tallying nine assists and hauling down eight boards.
In that performance, James led the Cavaliers to a nine-point 100-91 win. Of course, with James set to return to LA, fans are gearing up for more potential historic performances from King James at Madison Square Garden.
This season, fans will have to wait until the new year before they get a chance to see James play at MSG. Although the two teams are slated to meet in LA before the end of 2023, James and the Lakers won't play in New York until February 3rd.
The game will be nationally broadcast on ABC, meaning fans around the country will be able to tune in. Whether or not we see another historic performance from James, only time will tell.