LeBron and the Sixers ruin the Knicks' celebration; Wemby falls to the Thunder

LeBron James and his Philadelphia 76ers kicked off the NBA season on Tuesday with a 106-100 victory over the defending champion New York Knicks, while Victor Wembanyama endured a nightmare in the Spurs' loss to the Thunder.

The first day of the season was centered at Madison Square Garden in New York, where the Knicks raised their championship banner for the first time in 53 years.

The long-awaited celebration was not entirely complete for New York fans, who then watched their team succumb to the star-studded roster assembled by the Sixers.

In his first appearance with Philadelphia, at nearly 42 years old, LeBron James posted 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists.

He also made several standout plays, including an alley-oop set up by Jaylen Brown, the other free-agent signing that has catapulted Philadelphia into the ranks of the favorites.

LeBron, who was tempted to join the Knicks this year, made no secret of his satisfaction at snatching the victory from them on such a highly anticipated occasion.

LeBron, as expected in his 24th season as an active player, played the role of facilitator for younger stars like Jaylen Brown and Tyrese Maxey, who scored 19 and 28 points, respectively.

For the Knicks, Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 21 and 19 points, respectively.

Sports

The ball is bouncing again: New NBA season kicks off

Alejandro Baños

Knicks raise the long-awaited banner

Before tip-off, Madison Square Garden was decked out for the presentation of the championship rings and the raising of the banner to the rafters.

Captain Brunson addressed the 19,000 fans with a few words of thanks, including some die-hard celebrity fans, such as Spike Lee and Ben Stiller, and other occasional attendees like NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Thunder sends a message

The season opener also featured a showdown between the two Western Conference giants, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs, led by MVP favorites Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Victor Wembanyama.

Gilgeous-Alexander, a candidate for a third consecutive MVP award, led Oklahoma City to a convincing 116-104 victory with 32 points, aided by a disastrous offensive performance by Wembanyama.

The French phenom was held to 12 points in 34 minutes after missing his first 12 field goal attempts. His final stat line of 1-for-13 was a career low, with his only field goal coming at the buzzer at the end of the third quarter.

The Frenchman, who added 13 rebounds and 6 blocks, was even challenged by Spanish rookie Aday Mara in several matchups between these giants standing over 2.20 meters tall.

Mara scored 7 points in 12 minutes during a promising NBA debut and delivered a monumental block to Wembanyama in midair just as the Frenchman was about to dunk.

Oklahoma City was highly motivated to avenge its elimination at the hands of the Spurs in last year's playoffs, which knocked them out of the race for a second consecutive championship.

The visitors built a 26-point lead and didn't let up when San Antonio closed the gap in the fourth quarter thanks to the efforts of young players Stephon Castle (24 points) and Dylan Harper (18).

The rematch between the two franchises set to battle for supremacy in the West featured moments of high tension.

Spurs point guard De'Aaron Fox was called for a flagrant foul after knocking center Chet Holmgren to the ground in the second quarter, sparking a brawl that resulted in four additional technical fouls.