Cleveland fans hope the Cavaliers can lure LeBron James back in free agency, but for now they'll have to settle for seeing him in an opposing uniform when the Miami Heat visit Wednesday night. The Heat are 4-1 in Cleveland since James famously took his talents to South Beach. Miami has won seven straight in the series and 10 of 11 since signing James, but all four meetings last season were decided by four points or fewer.
The Cavaliers have lost three straight and six of seven and are coming off a 126-96 laugher at San Antonio on Saturday. "Good, old-fashioned behind kicking," Cleveland coach Mike Brown called it. "We didn't do anything well. The only positive, I think, that we got out of this was that we got to see how to play the game of basketball the right way." They'll catch another glimpse when welcoming the Heat, who stretched their winning streak to seven games with a 107-92 home win over Phoenix on Monday and have won 10 of their last 11.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN, Sun Sports (Miami), FSN Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE HEAT (11-3): Miami's slow start to the season seems like a distant memory now that James (26 points, 6.6 assists, 5.7 rebounds) is healthy and he and Dwyane Wade (18 points, 5.7 assists, 4.6 rebounds) are feeding off one another. The second unit plays its role, with Ray Allen (11.1 points) and Michael Beasley (10.3 points) adding a spark off the bench. Miami has turned it up at the defensive end, too, allowing 100 or more points only twice in the last 11 games after doing so in two of its first three.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (4-10): The results have been ugly recently for Cleveland, and its two wins over its past 10 games have come in overtime. Star point guard Kyrie Irving (21.4 points, 6.4 assists) is producing, but there isn't enough firepower around him and two of the team's five double-digit scorers - guards Jarrett Jack (10.1) and C.J. Miles (10) - are nursing injuries and questionable against Miami. A potentially tough post duo is taking shape, though, as power forward Tristan Thompson has seven double-doubles and center Andrew Bynum is rounding into form after missing all of last season; he scored a season-high 16 points against the Spurs.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. James has scored in double figures in 509 consecutive games, the fifth-longest streak in NBA history.
2. Cleveland's bench has averaged 52 points over the past three games, and the Cavaliers' reserves have outscored the opponent's bench in 11 of 14 games.
3. Wade is one block shy of tying Dennis Johnson (675) for the most blocks by a guard 6-4 or shorter in NBA history.