PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia 76ers opened up NBA Cup play with a 98-93 win over the New York Knicks as they improved to 1-0 in Group B play. They are behind the Miami Heat based on point differential in the Cup standings.

Tyrese Maxey led Philadelphia with 27 points, but LeBron James at 41 years old put together his best game as a Sixer. The future Hall of Famer had 20 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists and made some big shots down the stretch as he knocked down a shot to put the Sixers up for good with 1:10 left and then had a putback off a Maxey miss with 11.9 seconds left to put Philadelphia up by five.

"I'm just trying to get more and more comfortable with what we're running offensively," James said after the win. "I think every game, every week that I'm here, my body will continue to ramp up and ramp up and I’ll feel better. So, that played a part."

As far as his two clutch shots are concerned, James just did what he does. He has knocked down so many clutch shots and been a part of so many big moments throughout his career and the Sixers were able to lean on that down the stretch to seal the win.

"As far as the two shots, just trying to be aggressive," James explained. "A one-on-one on the block versus OG, I was able to get to my fadeaway, knock that down, and then Reese draws so much attention, he had the layup, he kind of missed it a little bit, I was just able to tip it in."

Through six games, the Sixers are sitting at 5-1 overall and are winning close games. They have been impressive in terms of finding ways to close games out in the fourth quarter as they have gotten big defensive stops while also finding ways to come up with some big buckets. That right there is a sign of a good team and James knows it.

"I mean, that's very encouraging because that's not always the case, and it's not always the fact that, something that kind of builds throughout the course of the season," James explained. "And the fact that we've been in some close games this year, we've actually prevailed, and teams have made runs, teams have gotten up on us. We've got up on teams and then come back and then we, like, kept our cool. It's very encouraging and we will try to continue that trait going forward."

Obviously, James has been in so many huge moments. There's nothing in this league that can truly phase James. He has been through it all in this league and he has found ways to produce for 24 years. Now, he looks to pass that calming influence on to his younger teammates. He made sure everybody was good when the Knicks made their run.

"I guess the best teacher in life is experience, and I've been in really big games," James finished. "If you cover this sport, I've been in huge games this sport has ever seen. So for me to be able to be a calming factor for our team late game, just the experience that I have, and, if it's me with the ball, me without the ball, being able to put guys in the right position, just trying to talk them through. If the other team makes a run, come to the sideline, we good. Let's move on to the next play. Let's figure out how we can be better for this play and the rest of the game. So it's something I want to continue to pour into the team."

The Sixers will take on the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.