LeBron James, Heat add to Cleveland's woes, 117-90

Once more, LeBron James helped the Cleveland Cavaliers reach a milestone in the NBA standings.

First to 40 wins one year.

First to 40 losses the next.

Dwyane Wade scored 26 of his 34 points in the first half, James finished with 24 points and eight assists and the Miami Heat beat the Cavaliers for the third time since the two-time MVP changed cities, winning 117-90 Monday night to hand Cleveland its 21st straight loss — as many as it dropped in the entire 2009-10 regular season.

Cleveland (8-40) is now two losses shy of tying the single-season NBA futility streak record shared by the 1995-96 Vancouver Grizzlies and 1997-98 Denver Nuggets. Overall, the Cavaliers have lost 31 of 32 games, along with 24 straight on the road.

"I have nothing bad to say about the players that I left and the team," James said. "I wish the organization the best. And I wish the fans, more than anything, the best because we had a lot of great years together."

They might be hard-pressed to remember those now.

This game had a few moments of hope for the Cavaliers. They were down by 19 in the first half, when Wade was almost unguardable for stretches — one of his dunks, off a pass from James, was so spectacular that rap moguls Sean "Diddy" Combs and Rick Ross leaped from their courtside seats.

Quietly, Cleveland started putting together good stretch after good stretch, getting within 70-67 in the third quarter.

Was this going to be the night?

Not a chance.

James had nine points in a 19-5 run to close the third quarter, Miami's lead was 89-72 entering the fourth, and it turned into a romp from there.

"We played pretty good in the third quarter," Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said. "I thought they just took it to another gear. They've got the type of team that can do that."

The Heat (34-14) moved within 2 1/2 games of Boston for the best record in the Eastern Conference. Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 12 points and a season-high 14 rebounds against his former team, Eddie House also scored 12 and Chris Bosh added 10 points for Miami.

For Cleveland, Antawn Jamison finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Manny Harris scored 20 points and J.J. Hickson added 14. The Cavaliers were outrebounded 49-39.

"They are a good team and they've got some players who can make plays," Cleveland's Anthony Parker said, "even if you do everything right."

James insisted he bears no ill will against his first NBA team, and as if to underscore that, he pulled Harris aside for some postgame words of encouragement.

"I think he's a very talented young player," James said. "And I just told him no matter what's going on with the team, he has to continue to play well. He has to continue to stay aggressive, have his confidence."

Said Harris: "Coming from a player like him and his caliber it means a lot. Everything he said was right."

Wade hit 10 of his first 12 shots, the third straight game for him with a sizzling start. James had 15 in the first half, including a highlight-caliber dunk over Christian Eyenga and Hickson that gave Miami a 61-44 lead.

And although it was a one-possession game midway through the third quarter, the outcome never truly seemed in doubt.

"We had great respect for Cleveland tonight," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "Sometimes it can happen very quickly like that. That's why we talk about the habits. A game can change in three minutes. In a playoff series, that can be all it takes."

Cleveland's franchise — which reached great heights with James for seven years, and has fallen to the bottom of the NBA less than seven months after he left — already owns the all-time NBA losing-streak record, a 24-game slide that spanned from March to November 1982.

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Sports Authority Review: MVP of the Heat?

D-Wade returns, the Heat win. LeBron sits, the Heat lose. So who’s more valuable to Miami, LeBron or D-Wade?

Steve Aschburner:

Miami Heat fans get pretty upset, and Cleveland Cavaliers fans don’t much appreciate it either, but LeBron James clearly is the more valuable of these two. He already has won two MVPs in seven seasons and, in switching teams, has had huge impacts on both the Heat and the Cavs this season. Dwyane Wade is an All-Star, maybe a future Hall of Famer, but he has finished in the top five of MVP balloting only twice. His absence in training camp and the Heat’s struggle was all about learning, not needing to be rescued by an MVP. And look, this is coming from a Marquette alum.

Fran Blinebury:

It’s not a cop-out to say none of the above. The whole reason they came together is that neither was capable of carrying a team and winning a championship on his own. Then again, neither was Kobe before he got Pau. So now Wade and James are both each other’s Pau (and pal) and it’s the combustible combination that gives them the explosive power to win it all.

Art Garcia:

Don’t think you can tell much from a one-game sample, but it’s clear that both of these guys are critical to the Heat’s success. They’re not going to go far without either one for long stretches because this team just isn’t very deep. And you might as well throw Chris Bosh into the mix since Miami lost Wednesday night without its favorite lefty. If I had to pick one, I’d go D-Wade. No wait, LeBron. Ask me again next week.

Scott Howard-Cooper:

That’s an impossible tie to break. LeBron is slightly better as a player, but Wade has the longevity in Miami, and a ring, unlike some people, and is more of a stabilizing factor than James. Wade is also unmatched as a recruiter. None of this happens without D-Wade.

Shaun Powell:

I call it a push. A LeBron-only team doesn’t make Miami any more or less dangerous than a Wade-only team. I think both players would face the same issues and challenges because they’re similar players with similar styles. But I believe we know which player is more valuable from a PR standpoint.

John Schuhmann: Statistically, it’s been LeBron, who has a better plus-minus (raw and per-minute) thus far. He’s the more complete player and asked to do more in the Miami offense. But obviously, the Heat need both of them if they’re going to have a shot against the league’s best teams. And it will be how well they play together that determines how far they go in the postseason.

Sekou Smith:

This is a trick question. More valuable to the Heat? They can’t win the way they want or expect to without them both healthy and playing their best, particularly in the postseason. That said, as critical as Wade has always been to the Heat’s fortunes, he simply doesn’t impact the game in as many ways as LeBron can. James takes decent role players and makes them a 60-win team. Wade with the same role players produces a 45-win team.

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Bosh out, James starts Against Hawks

MIAMI – When LeBron James arrived for a shootaround practice Tuesday morning, his sprained left ankle was still sore and swollen.

By game time, the NBA's two-time reigning MVP was good to go.

James started for Miami on Tuesday against the Atlanta Hawks, ending an absence where the Heat lost games in Denver and Chicago with him sidelined. The Heat, however, were without forward Chris Bosh, who sprained his left ankle in the Chicago loss.

"We do have versatility on the roster," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "This is probably the time it'll show the most, playing guys that weren't necessarily playing big minutes, they'll be able to step up and have their opportunity."

Joel Anthony started at power forward in place of Bosh, who was ruled out early Tuesday.

James missed his customary pregame media session Tuesday, getting even more treatment. The determination was made about 45 minutes before tip-off that he would start.

James, Bosh and Dwyane Wade — Miami's Big 3 — all missed practice Monday as well. Wade has a sore left knee, courtesy of a collision with the Bulls' Kurt Thomas in the Chicago loss on Saturday, and was still battling some swelling on Tuesday, but sitting out was never an option.

"No matter who's on the floor ... we've got to find a way to get a win versus one of the hottest teams in the league," Wade said.

Spoelstra said he had five different lineup cards ready, depending on whether or not James would play. It was turning into a chess game of sorts; Hawks coach Larry Drew said he was waiting on his lineup decision until seeing who Miami had available.

The Hawks aren't perfectly healthy either. Forward Marvin Williams missed his ninth straight game with a lower back injury.

After Tuesday, the Heat do not play again until hosting Toronto on Saturday, giving Bosh plenty of time to heal.

Bosh was hurt with 30.7 seconds left in the third quarter in Chicago, going for the ball while the Bulls' Omer Asik dove for it as well. Asik rolled into Bosh's lower leg, and the Heat forward immediately grabbed at his left shin in obvious pain — and the way he tumbled prompted fears that the injury could be bad.

"He's making progress," Spoelstra said. "He's moving around better today. Certainly not ready to run and explode off of it, but if you saw the footage, the replay of it, we're just thankful it's minor at this point."

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LeBron James Power Heat to 96-82 Victory over Bobcats

LeBron James scored 38 points, Dwyane Wade added 31 and the Miami Heat dominated the second half to beat the short-handed Charlotte Bobcats 96-82 on Monday night for their 11th straight road win.

Playing for the first time against Paul Silas, his first NBA coach in Cleveland, James scored 26 of his points in the second half and added nine rebounds. Wade grabbed 11 boards in Miami's 18th win in 19 games.

Charlotte played without starting forward Gerald Wallace (ankle) and center Nazr Mohammed (knee) the same day tests revealed backup big man DeSagana Diop is lost for the season with a ruptured Achilles' tendon.

With Kwame Brown the only healthy center, the Bobcats fell apart offensively, missing 18 straight shots bridging the second and third quarters.

Stephen Jackson scored 22 points and D.J. Augustin added 16 for the Bobcats, who shot 38 percent from the field with 15 turnovers.

It was a day of awards for the Heat, with James and Wade sharing the Eastern Conference player of the month award, Wade named the East's player of the week and Erik Spoelstra picking up the coach of the month honor.

After worrying before the game that his players might get complacent amid their hot streak, Spoelstra had some concerns early in his 200th game on the bench.

Charlotte, one of the league's worst offensive teams, shot 63 percent in the first quarter behind Jackson's 12 points. The Bobcats led by seven in the second and went up 41-35 on Gerald Henderson's hoop with 4:05 left.

But Miami clamped down defensively and by the time the Bobcats got another shot to fall — Augustin's 3-pointer with 5:30 left in the third — Miami led 61-51.

James later made four straight shots as the lead ballooned to 78-59 heading into the fourth.
After the Bobcats cut the deficit to 80-69, James beat the shot clock by swishing a 30-footer along the left baseline while double teamed. He then stole a pass and went in for a reverse dunk on the next possession and Miami had locked up matching the second-longest road winning streak in franchise history.

James, whose Cavaliers lost here twice last season, revealed before the game players refer to themselves as the "Heatles" as they played in front of a rare sellout crowd in Charlotte.
"Off of the Beatles," James said. "Every time we take our show on the road, we bring a great crowd out."

This time, James took out his former coach, whom he credited for "learning how to be a professional on and off the court" as a rookie and second-year player in Cleveland.

Silas, who dropped to 2-2 since replacing the fired Larry Brown, had little to work with against a dominant team on a roll as owner Michael Jordan watched courtside.

Wallace was back on the shelf after playing in two games following a five-game absence for a sprained left ankle. The 2010 All-Star, who also has a bone bruise, aggravated the injury in practice on Sunday and Silas said he'll be out "a few games."

Mohammed was scratched about an hour before the game with a bruised right knee, and the Bobcats were outrebounded 46-35 in their second straight loss.

Joel Anthony had 11 rebounds in Miami's sixth straight win to help offset an off night from Chris Bosh, who had 11 points and four rebounds on 4-of-9 shooting.

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