The Q was alive Wednesday night, with Ronnie Duncan not the only one bellowing out his favorite players nicknames.
LeBron James, playing his first regular-season game with new teammates brought in to help get him to the playoffs, made six 3-pointers and scored 31 points as the Cavaliers beat the New Orleans Hornets 109-87 in their season opener Wednesday night.
James made five straight 3-pointers — four in a row during a 1:44 span over Hornets forward Bostjan Nachbar — and scored 24 points in the first half as the Cavs built a 21-point lead and buzzed the Hornets, who won their opener on Tuesday over Sacramento.
Following a timeout, James chuckled as he went back onto the floor and quickly hit his fifth 3-pointer of the half. As he retreated on defense, the 20-year-old blew on his hand like a gunslinger cooling off his hot hand. The first one caused a stir, the next two a commotion. And when LeBron James sank his fourth straight three-pointer in less than two minutes, everyone in the building was on their feet begging for more.
“It was amazing,” Cavaliers forward Donyell Marshall said. “We were just like the fans, we wanted him to keep shooting, too.”
James feels 50 victories are a realistic goal for the Cavaliers, who went 42-40 last season. “I think we can get to 50,” he said. Asked what Cleveland has that it didn’t last year, James said: “Everything.”