When you love yourself, even a 95-90 loss to the New York Knicks makes for a triumphant return.

Kendrick Lamar, Kevin Hart and some 20,000 screaming fans welcomed home LeBron James Thursday (Oct. 31) for his first game with the Cavaliers — and in his home state of Ohio — since earning two NBA titles with the Miami Heat.

Hart introduced the TDE rapper, who performed "i" on a stage just outside of Quicken Loans Arena. The track has been picked up as an official theme song for the 2014-15 NBA season.

"It was a special night," James said afterwards, despite the difficult game.

"It was pretty incredible," Knicks forward Amar'e Stoudemire added. "I haven't seen anything like that before. ... It was great to kind of spoil the excitement — great for us."

Watch Kevin Hart in a new episode of Real Husbands of Hollywood every Tuesday, 10P/9C.

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(Photo: Angelo Merendino/Getty Images)