PHILADELPHIA — In the deep Eastern Conference, get used to what transpired between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers Thursday.

The competition is fierce. Wins don’t come easy. So much is contested, so much is earned.

The intensity burned between the Cavs and Sixers, matching the high-voltage atmosphere at Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Proving again that a deficit is just a number to overcome, the 76ers deleted a 29-point deficit and defeated the Cavaliers 114-106.

Yes, it’s the first week of the season, but who wouldn’t want to see that matchup in a best-of-7 playoff series.

The Sixers open the season with two impressive victories: the opening-night victory against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden and then a 69-37 second half to beat the Cavaliers, who reached the Eastern Conference Finals last season.

Tyrese Maxey scored a team-high 32 points, leading five starters in double figures. Joel Embiid had 24 points, LeBron James added 17 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and three steals, Jaylen Brown had 21 points and eight rebounds and VJ Edgecombe contributed 11 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.

“There’s a lot of things that we can learn from 96 minutes of our existence playing together – offensively, mentally, things that we’ve done well, things we didn’t do well,” James said. “Every opportunity we hit the floor or watch film, we have to learn from that. We have to put our minds and souls into it. It’s definitely a marathon.”

1. 76ers starting five turn it on in the second half

Philadelphia’s dynamic starting five was the story of the second half. It didn’t take the Sixers long to cut a 69-45 halftime deficit to a one-possession game with 3:59 left in the third quarter.

The 76ers took their first lead of the game, 96-95, on an Embiid basket with 6:54 remaining in the fourth.

“It’s a great opportunity for us to respond to adversity,” Brown said. “It’s going to be ups and downs all year long. How we respond is going to be 80% of the battle. It’s a good sign that we came out being down 30. We could have been pointing fingers. We got after it. I like that.”

The starters scored 64 of 69 second-half points.

“That’s kind of a wild way to win a game, to get just absolutely two halves that don’t resemble each other at all,” said Sixers coach Nick Nurse. “But at least it’s a dig-in, 48-minute game. We just talked about it. We got to come out and make a physical improvement and an effort improvement and see where it takes us. … Then all of a sudden, you get yourself right, you can at least see where you got a chance to maybe get back in it.”

2. James makes home debut for fourth franchise

At 41 years old, James made another home debut for the Sixers.

He took note of the fans. “It was everything that I dreamed of and more,” he said. “Got the boos, that was amazing. We deserved it. And then we got the cheers and almost blew the roof off this thing tonight in a good way. It was a hell of a night.”

That’s for sure: It was the biggest comeback win of James’ career.

He took note of family and friends who were in attendance, including his wife Savannah and daughter Zhuri who celebrated her 12th birthday Thursday.

“It’s great to be able to go out and just do what I love to do and just be well received,” he said. “Daughter was here. I told her happy birthday on the Jumbotron, and she sat courtside. It was super cool, man.

“Super special for me to be able to have moments like this in this building, in this city – one of the best sports cities in the world along with a couple other cities. It’s damn sure right up at the top. I’m happy to be here, extremely happy to do it with the guys in this locker room and hopefully we continue to do something special throughout the season. “

Through two games, it’s easy to see how James fits in as a player who can still do a lot, including defend, but doesn’t have to do it all.

3. Sixers turnovers problematic in the first half

The Sixers committed 11 turnovers in the first 13 minutes of the game, leading to a 17-0 Cavaliers edge in points off turnovers. Following a Maxey turnover late in the second quarter that led to a Donovan Mitchell 3-pointer, the Cavs owned a 22-6 edge in that category and a 67-39 lead.

Certainly, some of Philadelphia’s miscues can be attributed to the additions of James and Brown and a starting five that had played just one regular-season game together before Thursday’s contest.

Those chemistry issues will be a work-in-progress as players get used to playing alongside each other – where they like to catch the ball, who’s doing the passing, timing, spacing, cutting. Ball movement leads to solid offense, but it requires time with new players.

“Those are little things that we still are working on, and we’ve still got to figure out,” Brown said. “It’s good to figure it out and win at the same time.”

4. Quick start followed by rough second half for Cavs

The Cavs were one of two teams who did not play on the first two days of the season, and they were anxious for a regular-season game. “They want to get together and compete against somebody else,” Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said prior to the game.

His team was ready from the start. But in the second half, the Cavs were committing the turnovers and the Sixers capitalized.

“They upped their pressure and physicality. It was pretty clear,” Atkinson said. “We did not handle it well … But I’ll take away that on the road, hostile crowd, we gave ourselves a chance despite what happened in the second half.”

Donovan Mitchell scored 20 of his team-high 32 points in the first half and added 10 rebounds, and Evan Mobley had 18 points and eight rebounds.

* * *