LeBron James Returns To Miami, Stirs Up Speculation

To say things can get tense between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat is a bit of an understatement.

Cavaliers fans learned to despise the Heat after superstar LeBron James left the team. And now that he’s back on the Cavaliers, there’s no love lost between the two teams.

That’s the backdrop as James returns to Miami to face his former teammates tonight at 9:30. The teams have played in Cleveland before, a game the Cavaliers won 102-90.

Things have changed for both teams since last year. The emergence of center Hassan Whiteside (averaging 13.3 points and 11 rebounds per game) has helped the Heat to an 11-6 record, good for 4th in the Eastern Conference. First round draft pick Justise Winslow has been solid as well. As for the Cavaliers, they brought back point guard Mo Williams, and he’s delivered 14.1 points per game in return. Kyrie Irving hasn’t played at all this season, but the Cavaliers have a 13-6 record, good for 2nd in the Eastern Conference.

But many things have stayed the same for the Heat since the times when they’d dominate the NBA with James. Even though Dwayne Wade is getting older, he’s still averaging 18.3 points per game and playing extremely well. Chris Bosh is still providing a good inside presence, averaging 13.4 points and 9 rebounds per game.

The Cavaliers haven’t changed drastically either. James continues his usual otherworldly play, averaging 26.2 points per game and playing like a superstar. Kevin Love still provides a great inside presence for the Cavaliers, averaging a double-double thus far this season. The Cavs haven’t changed much, but when you were the Eastern Conference Champion last year and still look like the best team in the East, why would you?

So this game at American Airlines Arena is notable not only for the past animosity between the teams, but how fun it will be to watch. James-Wade is still a great game to watch, and the supporting casts seem to be up to snuff as well.

But the game might be noted for something that happened before play. For his pre-game interviews on Friday, James showed up to do his interview in a “Miami Winners” hat. Coincidence? Who knows!