LeBron James Claims "King Of New York" Title In Instagram Post

After the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Knicks 104-101 at Madison Square Garden, Cavs star LeBron James took to social media and dubbed himself the "King Of New York" in an Instagram post on Tuesday.

James poured in 23 points with 12 assists and 9 rebounds Monday night to help his team erase a 23-point deficit and secure a victory against the Knicks — but that’s not all he secured. The 32-year-old seemingly claimed supremacy over New York in an Instagram post on his verified account.

"You’re welcome (crown emoji) of NY #myfavoriteplayground #striveforgreatness," he captioned a photo of himself standing mid-court in the Knicks arena.

Things got heated in the fourth quarter when Knicks rookie point guard Frank Ntilikina and James started a shoving match during an inbounds play under the basket. Ntilikina repeatedly pushed James in the chest before Knicks big man Enes Kanter jumped in and defended his teammate.

Kanter appeared to double down and defended his team against James during a post-game interview.

"I don’t care who you are, king— whatever you call yourself, king, queen, princess—whatever you are, you know what, we gonna fight. And nobody out there gonna punk us," he told reporters of James.

James responded to Kanter's comments during his own post-game interview.

"Well, I’m the king, my wife is the queen and my daughter is the princess. So we got all three covered," James said.

The tension may have started when James emphasized during an interview Sunday that the Knicks should have drafted now-standout Dallas Mavericks rookie Dennis Smith Jr. in June with their No. 8 overall pick instead of Ntilikina. James later clarified that his comments were directed at then-Knicks president Phil Jackson instead of the rookie guard.

"The Knicks passed on a really good one and Dallas got the diamond in the rough. He should be a Knick," James told reporters. "It’s gonna make some headlines but he should be a Knick."

James' remarks seemingly jarred the Knicks, especially Kanter, who defended his rookie teammate in a post on Twitter.

"Nope!! We love what we got. Thanks!!!" the Knicks center wrote Sunday.

The Akron native has historically played well each time he’s visited the "Mecca" of basketball. James famously recorded 50 and 52 points in games in 2008 and 2009 at Madison Square Garden, which is the only arena where he has scored upwards of 50 points multiple times.