Brian Windhorst, Special to The Plain Dealer

Miami, Florida — These days, LeBron James and members of the Miami Heat shake fingers at those who dared suggest that their new mega team wasn’t going to work. The pleasure of hindsight never ends, especially when some important details are dismissed.

One of the reasons the Heat, and James himself, are playing toward their potential after a shaky start is because James is going back to the way he played as a Cavalier.

Wednesday night, the Heat won in Houston to finish off a 15-1 December and became the first team ever to go 10-0 on the road in a calendar month. Their run of success started in Cleveland on what has now become a key date in the NBA season, James’ Dec. 2 return to The Q.

So they’re hot, there’s no doubt. Some of it has been time together, which is the issue Heat players and coach Erik Spoelstra point toward when they shame those who questioned their future after they started the season an underwhelming 9-8. But a huge adjustment, which wasn’t announced, was to get James, who celebrated his 26th birthday on Thursday, back to his roots.

“At the start, we weren’t playing our games,” James said of himself, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. “We were being too unselfish. We had to forget that and go back to being ourselves.”
During the Heat’s ragged November, James’ scoring and shooting numbers plunged while his turnovers shot up to totals not seen since his rookie season. He was throwing wild passes, taking 3-pointers out of the offense, and Spoelstra was playing him at point guard the most since Paul Silas tried it as an experiment in the fall of 2003.

Then something happened in Cleveland. The Heat committed themselves to featuring James for that game, an obvious strategy with James carrying so much personal meaning into the game. Then James went out and played his best game of the season, scoring 38 points.

Part of it was because of some abnormal great shooting, which James has done on the road off and on during most of his career. But the other part was it created a comfort zone for James to play in a familiar role.
Seeing the impact, Spoelstra changed his rotation to allow James six to 10 minutes a game as the featured player. Usually, it happens at the end of the first and third quarters, when James is given the green light. The result: Lots of shots, lots of freedom, lots of scoring.

“It has been a process for both the players and coaches to find a comfort level,” Spoelstra said. “We knew it would take some time but that these players were too talented not to be successful.”

James has used these moments to feed his desire to build his statistics, something he may not admit publicly but it always has been a driver for him, and the Heat seems to benefit from it. In December, by getting his bursts of freedom, James’ scoring average jumped two points a game and his shooting jumped nearly seven percentage points.

He had several games where he squeezed off 10 points or more in his allotted freedom minutes and the Heat usually experienced a surge. On Wednesday night in Houston, for example, the Heat outscored the Rockets, 16-2, when James was on the floor without Bosh and Wade.

In turn, Spoelstra has reduced James’ minutes at point guard by inserting Mario Chalmers into the rotation, allowing James to play more point forward, the position he played in Cleveland. As a result, the turnovers have dropped and the Heat’s offense has gotten stronger.

Wade, who now gets his exclusive scoring time on the floor without James, has seen his scoring average jump six points a game in December over November and his shooting percentage soar nearly 10 percent.
Though he usually plays with Bosh on the floor, the changes allow Wade to play more like he was accustomed to before James arrived.

Whether this dual-star role will work under the pressure of the playoffs remains to be seen. The Heat have had mixed success at the end of games, sometimes barely hanging on to leads with Wade and James on the court together. But they have also been able to carry the Heat to some victories by their individual play.

What seems certain is that finding a balance and putting together wins has come partially by going back to some old ways.

“We’ve all had to sacrifice things from our games to make this work,” James said. “This is why we came together, to be able to play together and win together.”

Former Plain Dealer writer Brian Windhorst is a reporter for ESPN.com, focusing on the Miami Heat.

CLEVELAND -- Well, that was not what they wanted.

No, Cleveland was hoping its plucky young team would drive hard to the basket, hit its free throws, grab every loose ball and dump LeBron James in a vat of hot wax. It was clear the night wasn't going well for the Cavaliers when the second half started and they asked the refs if they could use a Nerf hoop.

This was all wrong. And yet, it was completely right. This was a Cleveland sports night -- the whole exquisitely miserable experience wrapped up in one cold and unfulfilling evening. It began with an electric, playoff-like atmosphere and ended with the Heat drilling the Cavs. The final was 118-90, but it wasn't even that close. The Cavs scored garbage-time points against Eddie House, Erick Dampier and three of LeBron's accountants. (He got them roster spots because hey, they're his friends!)

The basketball lesson for the day was that 'tis better to have LeBron James than to have loved and lost him. But this night was never really about basketball. It was about Cleveland. It was about Brian Sipe and Earnest Byner and Craig Ehlo. It was about Cavs fan Bart Gruber, who brought his 8-year-old son to the game -- not so much to cheer or boo, but because they are Cavs fans. I asked Gruber what he told his son after "The Decision."

"After he cried for two hours," Gruber said, "I just told him this was life."

Miami will never have a night like this. Never. The Heat may win championships, but their fans will never pack their arena simply to boo. The team will never be ingrained in the city's fabric like every Cleveland team. There are passionate fans in Miami, of course, but not as many. Some of the biggest roars of the night were for former Brown (and Cleveland native) Bernie Kosar, who went to one Pro Bowl. Any town can celebrate championships. Cleveland celebrates heartache.

On some level, James has to realize this now. He played his butt off against Cleveland -- 38 points, eight assists, five rebounds in just 30 minutes. It was an especially impressive performance considering that he seemed self-conscious the whole night. He knew everybody was judging him. He knew it when he listened to his headphones in a crowded locker room before the game, when he did windmill dunks in the layup line and when he did his famous powder-clap before the opening tip.

And he surely knew it when he went over to the Cavs' bench during the game to joke with some of his former teammates. It was calculated, a way to soften the crowd. See? These guys like me. How bad can I be? And you could tell by the Cavs' faces that they were stuck -- they didn't want to ignore him but didn't want to be seen talking to him, either.

At one point, in a moment caught on video and posted on YouTube, Cavs assistant coach Jamahl Mosley appeared to tell James to shut the bleep up.

Mosley was not alone. In Miami this week, somebody asked LeBron if he would like to see his number retired in Cleveland someday. He was, after all, the best player in franchise history. He said he would love that, and you know what? I think the Cavs would love to hang his jersey from the rafters, as long as he is in it.

Most Cleveland fans say -- and have said since July -- that they aren't mad that LeBron left; they're mad at how he left. Of course, this is easy to say. It allows fans to take the high road and still be mad. But ask yourself this: If LeBron had played for Miami for seven years, then left for Cleveland in the same way, would Miami be nearly as angry as Cleveland is?

Trick question. NBA stars don't leave Miami for Cleveland.

I'm no psychologist, but I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that a guy who calls himself King James and has his initials and "Vivat Rex" -- Latin for "Long live the king" -- on his custom-made Nike jacket, and has CHOSEN 1 tattooed across his back and WITNESS tattooed on one calf and HISTORY on the other calf might have a big ego. It is an ego borne of insecurity, and this is why he left for Miami in the first place:

He wanted things to be easier. He wanted Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh at his side and South Beach a short drive away. That is the fundamental disconnect between James and Cleveland fans. They gave up on easy a long time ago.

So there they sat, at a table, the self-anointed Big Three, from left to right, Wade, James, Bosh. James said he loves Cleveland fans but that a "I'm a Miami ... Heat guy," because when you do something stupid like give your team a singular nickname, this is the silly stuff your stars have to say.

Behind the Heat bench, where fans wore shirts that read LeBUM, and a man and woman hugged and wore matching VICTIM shirts and looked like they had just run over their poodle, it got ugly. James may have ungodly leaping ability and ridiculous hand-eye coordination, but he also has ears, and the fans knew he could hear them.

Some of the chants were amusing ("Scottie Pip-pen!) and some were cruel ("Ak-ron hates you!") and many were unprintable. At least one cup flew out of the stands toward the Miami bench. It was a little inappropriate, considering he does have that CHOSEN 1 tattoo and it is Hanukkah.

Anyway, James seemed unfazed. He joked with Wade and Bosh about a broken bobblehead doll that landed near them. He ignored almost everything the fans screamed.

And then a few guys sitting on the baseline got his attention. They didn't taunt him. They didn't yell. They just said:

Look around. Do you see all the fans? This is Cleveland. This is what you're missing. You'll never have this in Miami.

And LeBron James agreed.

"He said, 'You guys are crazy,'" said one of the fans, named Ryan Napier.

James meant it as a compliment. They are crazy. He has left them for a land where there is no winter, for teammates who were stars before he joined them, for fans who care passionately about their basketball team for every bit of the final two minutes of playoff games. Someday, he'll miss those crazy fans and those winter nights. Someday, he'll miss all those witnesses.

Yesterday there was an article that appeared on ESPN.com.  It showed a first-hand look at just how consumed with himself LeBron James is, and his new demeanor and attitude during a trip to Las Vegas.  The article was up for about an hour and then ESPN took it down, similar to the tab on Sportscenter entitled "LeBron in Las Vegas" that disappeared midway through the show  Many believe that the most pathetic manager in sports, Maverick Carter, was behind this.  This just shows how pathetic both LeBron and ESPN are.  The article was orignally written by Arash Markazi, and I'm publishing here in its entirity. 

Go check out my new blog: Cleveland Deserves Better

LeBron James leans against a waist-high stone wall with a 16-foot-tall Buddha hovering over him.

He’s at Tao, a bustling restaurant and nightclub inside the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas, and his arms are crossed as he listens to Lynn Meritt, senior director of Nike Basketball, and Charles Denson, president of Nike Brand.James is quiet, occasionally applying Chap Stick on his lips and nodding when he hears something he likes.

Five security guards are stationed around him, one at each corner of the table he’s about to sit at and another roving around with him, watching his every move. Anyone who takes two steps toward James is stopped and must have James’ approval to come closer.

The waiter bringing him his cup of green tea with a spoonful of honey and a dash of lemon juice makes the cut, as does the scantily clad brunette with a tattoo of a heart on her right shoulder.

She wants to take a picture with him. “I can’t right now,” says James. “Maybe later, upstairs, I’ll remember you’re the one with the tattoo.”

James will host a party later in the upstairs nightclub at Tao, but he is currently hosting a dinner for his friends and family in the downstairs restaurant. Wearing a gray striped shirt and gold crucifix around his neck, he bobs his head to music played by an amped-up saxophonist who weaves his way around the table like a one-man mariachi band.

I have somehow found myself at this exclusive table, seated beside Eddie Jackson, who is introduced to me as James’ father (though he actually began dating James’ mother, Gloria, after LeBron was born and the two are no longer together). Jackson, wearing a muscle shirt accentuating his large biceps, looks like a member of James’ four-man entourage, like one of his childhood friends.

James’ circle includes Randy Mims, seated to his right at the center of the table, Maverick Carter, seated at the head of the table, and Richard Paul, seated in front of James. The quartet makes up the initials behind LRMR Marketing, the management firm James founded almost four years ago with his buddies. Their offices in downtown Cleveland gained notoriety this month as the location teams flocked to for their meetings with James.

LeBron James partied at Tao last weekend, complete with a kings’ cake and an entourage to make heads of state jealous.

Seated to the right of James is Chris Paul, whose brother, C.J., is seated across from him. The New Orleans Hornets point guard has seen how James has positioned himself to win a championship by signing with the Miami Heat and joining forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh and has reportedly considered a similar move himself.

The truth is, in James’ dream world, the duo he would love to play with for the next decade would be Wade and Paul, his two closest friends in the NBA. Paul has been like a brother to James since the two were in Las Vegas four years ago for USA Basketball training camp, when as a rookie he carried James’ and Wade’s bags to and from the team bus.

James and Paul are fairly quiet at the center of the table as they take in the scene around them. As family style plates of miso-glazed Chilean sea bass and crispy lobster and shrimp dumplings are brought to the table, James effortlessly picks up the food with his chopsticks and occasionally raises his cup of green tea to passersby as they raise their martinis and mojitos in his direction before being helped along by security guards.

When trays of dessert plates are brought over, James gets up, preferring to start his party upstairs instead of indulging in the giant fortune cookies and chocolate cake. A security guard comes over and puts plastic wristbands on our wrists and escorts us through the back of the restaurant, up a flight of stairs in the bowels of the hotel and through a back entrance into the club. About a dozen security guards, moving their flash lights, direct us to a roped off section on the dance floor of Tao next to a couple of apparently nude women in a bathtub full of water and rose petals.

James, now wearing sunglasses in the dark club, immediately stands up on the couch and folds his arms high on his chest and nods his head. He smiles as he looks at the dozens of people crowded on the dance floor. Noticing him, they stop dancing and snap pictures as the DJ screams out, “LeBron James in the building!” and plays LMFAO’s “I’m in Miami.”

Carter, LeBron’s childhood friend and manager, begins dancing around James like Puff Daddy in a Notorious B.I.G video. A giant red crown-shaped cake is brought over to James while go-go dancers dressed in skimpy red and black outfits raise four lettered placards that spell out, “KING.” Carter grabs a bottle of Grey Goose and pours a quarter of it on the floor and raises it up before passing it off.

James’ infamous one-hour special, “The Decision,” was reportedly the brainchild of Carter, a 28-year-old who has never managed anyone outside of his friend James. This three-day party marathon in Vegas (which James is being paid six figures to host) is also Carter’s idea.

Bottle after bottle of “Ace of Spades” champagne is delivered to the table by a waiter flying down from above the dance floor like some overgrown Peter Pan on a wire. One time he’s dressed like a King, another time as Indiana Jones and another in a replica of James’ No. 6 Miami Heat jersey.

James, who can hardly see the flying figure through his tinted glasses, almost gets kicked in the head on the waiter’s last trip down. He looks at the girls around him and says, “I wish they’d have one of these girls with no panties do that instead of the guy.”

Toward the end of the night, Boston Celtics forward Glen Davis walks past James’ party and looks at the scene up and down several times like a painting in a museum, soaking in the images of the go-go dancers, the “King” sign and the costumed man delivering bottles of champagne.

Davis shakes his head and walks on.

James dances on the couch and sings along with the music blaring from speakers all around him.

The more you hang around James, the more you realize he’s still a child wrapped in a 6-foot-8, 250-pound frame. The night after the party at Tao, he and his crew walk through the casino at the Wynn and Encore and he pretends to dribble a basketball as he walks past ringing slot machines and tourists who do double-takes. In a Nike T-shirt, jeans and sneakers, James’ pantomime seems unconscious. He stops every few feet to shoot a jump shot, his right hand extended above his head on the follow through. He weaves through a pack of a dozen friends and pretends to connect on a layup as he walks past a gift shop. He passes overhead casino signs and jumps up and slaps them, pretending to dunk. Columns covered with advertisements for lounge acts become stationary defenders, chumps to fake out before connecting on imaginary mid-range jump shots.

James probably goes through a practice’s worth of shots as we walk from the XS nightclub at Encore (James left his poolside table when he saw the club was practically empty), through Wynn and over the bridge to the Palazzo.

Soon after arriving at Lavo, a restaurant and nightclub at the Palazzo, a scene straight out of “West Side Story” breaks out when James and Lamar Odom, seated at a nearby table, engage in an impromptu dance-off to California Swag District’s “Teach Me How To Dougie.”

Odom, smoking a cigar, can’t quite keep up. James celebrates by crossing himself and taking a shot of Patron. Moments later, a handful of girls dressed as cheerleaders walk toward his table with someone dressed in James’ Heat uniform. Someone throws talcum powder in the air as James does before every game, while his new unofficial song, “I’m in Miami,” plays.

Odom casts a glance James’ way before looking in the opposite direction and raising his glass at a couple on the dance floor who point to their ring fingers and smile.

Back at his table, James and his crew sing every word to Rick Ross’ “Free Mason.” LeBron raps every line to former teammate Damon Jones (who played with him in Cleveland). Jones, puffing on a cigar, nods.

James rips out the lines:

“If I ever die, never let it be said I didn’t win/ Never, never say/ Never say legend didn’t go in/ I just wanna die on top of the world.”

While he looks at club-goers flashing the LA and Westside signs at him, James smiles and points to Jackson’s T-shirt, which reads, “Another Enemy,” and raises his glass of champagne.

Finally, Carter tells James it’s time to leave the club and they do, LeBron pretending to cross-over tables and shoot over slot machines all the way back to his room.

Editors note: This article originally appeared as a guest post I did for Cleveland's Hope. I discussed the ultimate impact of LeBron's decision and what it means for the franchise as well as the city.

“I’m taking my talents to South Beach.” One statement will never have as big of an impact on any city ever again, guaranteed. Those 7 words pierced through the hearts of Clevelanders as LeBron announced on ESPN that he would be playing for the Miami Heat next year, essentially abandoning the city he put on the map. Most in Cleveland were optimistic that LeBron would stay, but he decided to play with Wade and Bosh instead.

Regardless of whether you agreed with his decision, or the manner in which he decided.. LeBron is gone. What does this mean for the franchise? What impact will it have on the city? 

LeBron’s decision to leave Cleveland has already had an enormous impact on the city. By now, you’ve seen the burning jerseys and the local outrage over his decision. You smiled when you read Dan Gilbert’s letter to fans, proclaiming LeBron a coward and a traitor. But it still hasn’t sunk in. Arguably the world’s best basketball player is gone, and with him goes championship aspirations. No longer will Austin Carr chime in, “and the King THROWS the hammer down.”

Although Dan Gilbert has vowed that the Cavaliers will win a championship before LeBron does, there is virtually no chance that statement holds true. LeBron, Bosh, and Wade on the same team. That’s 3 starters from the All-Star team. Bring on Zydrunas and Mike Miller, a few other role players, and Miami is instantly the favorite in the East. You can pretty much give them the best record in the regular season, and see them in the NBA Finals.

It was hard to lure free agents to Cleveland when we had LeBron. How much harder will it be now that he’s gone? I doubt any elite players will want to come here to play; LeBron is a tough act to follow. The Cavaliers are left with Mo Williams, Jamison, Hickson, and Varejao. Oh yeah, and Christian Eyenga. He might be our best hope. Now granted there is some talent in those 5, but there is one thing missing; star power. The Cavaliers were on national television frequently, only because of LeBron. You can kiss those days goodbye, along with the nightly appearances on SportsCenter’s Top 10 Countdown. No more jaw-dropping “Akron Hammer” throw-downs. Next year, we will be lucky to get one game on ESPN - when LeBron returns to Cleveland.

The city has seen its hopes of a championship vanish with LeBron’s “decision.” The Indians are not going to win a World Series anytime soon. The Dolans simply cannot afford to keep our best players, so they trade them away. The Browns have always been the lovable losers, and making the playoffs alone would be considered a miracle. It’s been 8 years since we made the playoffs, and I don’t see it happening soon. Jake Delhomme will not be leading us to the Promised Land. 

The impact of LeBron’s decision also will hurt the city’s economy. As a result of LeBron leaving, an ESPN report estimated are that Cleveland will lose $20 to $40 million dollars per year. LeBron’s presence meant business for local restaurants, hotels, and bars. Although Cleveland has always been faithful to its sports, it will be hard watching the Cavaliers and knowing something is missing. Never again will this city have a superstar that brings the amount of attention that LeBron did, and his decision pushes us far away from sporting relevance. Maybe we won’t lose 65 games like we did in 2002, but we certainly won’t win 65 either.

Dan Gilbert will do his best to put together a contender, but don’t expect his efforts to translate into a championship level team anytime in the near future. Maybe I’m just being pessimistic, but deep inside I realize the impact that LeBron’s decision will have on Cleveland sports. Where are Ricky Davis and Darius Miles when you need them?

                       

So.. last night didn't go so well.  LeBron goes on National Television, and announces he will be leaving Cleveland to team up with Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade.  What a way to leave the city that has given you unconditional support. 

Thanks for screwing us big-time LeBron.  Not only do you leave, but you're so self-centered that you decide to hold the city hostage. 

Now, we have no chance of landing any respectable free agents.  Chicago already signed Boozer, and New York got Amare.  By keeping your decision to yourself, you have handcuffed the Cavaliers organization and put us in a very bad situation.  Time after time, you put yourself above all else.

LeBron knows the history of Cleveland.  The "Drive", the "Catch", the "Jose Mesa", and now the "Decision."  We thought you might be better than that.  I hope you fail miserably in Miami, and as Dan Gilbert put it, "take the Cleveland curse down south with you."

Ultimately, you leave Cleveland a disgrace and a failure.  You failed to win a championship, something you vowed to do.  When you did make the Finals and were matched up against the Spurs, you embarrassed the city by getting swept.  The last two years, you turned the sidelines into your personal dance floor and had the best record in the regular season.  But, when it came time to show up in the playoffs, you failed again.  Your performances in Game 2 and Game 4 were atrocious.  You honestly gave up. 

Kobe has to be smiling in this whole situation.  LeBron hasn't even won a ring, and just created one of the biggest media circuses of all-time for a crushing "Decision" to leave Cleveland.  This mis-management by "Team LeBron" will have negative repercussions throughout the rest of his ill-fated career.  Team LeBron is a joke.  The "LeBron Brand" takes a big hit here, as he now has to join forces with Wade and Bosh to win a championship.  He can't do it on his own, and will never be considered to be on Jordan's level.  Kobe is better anyways.

LeBron needs to go to Miami because he's not welcome here anymore.  He needs Dwyane Wade because on his own, he fails.  Skip Bayless has always been right when he said, "LeBron does not have the clutch gene."  He never did.  The unreal amount of attention he has received since high school has never quite been justified.  Sure, he might be the best "athlete" in the Association, but he is certainly not the best "basketball player."  Kobe won one with Shaq, and then without him.  LeBron couldn't win a championship in Cleveland with the Diesel.

The Miami Heat will undoubtedly be fun to watch this year, but they might not be as good as everyone expects.  3 players don't win a championship.  As of right now their roster consists of Mario Chalmers, Mike Miller who just signed, and a bunch of no-name draft picks.  The Celtics had the Big 3, but they also had Rondo.. and Perkins.. and Glen Davis.  Miami definitely has the flash with the new Big 3, but they don't have substance.  Miami will find out soon enough, just how short LeBron can come up when it matters. 

I hate Chris Bosh.  Seriously, hate is an understatement.  I'm not one to wish harm upon another, but either LeBron, Bosh, or Wade is going to go down with an injury this season.  Dan Gilbert's letter to the fans was priceless.  More to come on that later.  The Cavs owner seems more motivated than ever to bring a title to Cleveland.  As for LeBron, good riddance.  This city deserves better than an egotistical, maniacal, self-centered, underachieving "King" who quits and leaves when he fails under great expectations.  In my eyes, he's done this city more injustice than Art Modell ever did.  Am I upset?  Absolutely.  Should we be surprised?  Not really.  One thing is for certain; LeBron James was never underrated

Cavs fan reacts to The Decision

Reports are surfacing that LeBron has already made up his mind, and will announce tonight that he will join Wade and Bosh with the Miami Heat.  We will find out tonight, when he LeBron announces on national television his ultimate decision.

I'm still not buying into any of this speculation.  How many times has ESPN and Chris Broussard flip-flopped on where they think LeBron will go?  ESPN has latched on to this story for months, maybe even years, and has done nothing but enable Team LeBron.  Only LeBron and Maverick Carter know his "Decision", and thus no one should be reporting anything until we watch LeBron's television spectacle in approximately 6 hours tonight.

If he does leave, I blame everything on Chris Bosh.  Had Chris Bosh, (who looks like an Avatar) agreed to join LeBron in Cleveland, the Cavaliers would be smiling right about now as they knew that LeBron would return.  The lure of Bosh and Wade in Miami is a tough choice, but so is playing with Amare Stoudemire in New York.  It seems as if the Cavaliers are not the favorite anymore, but I still think we have a chance.

LeBron will be announcing his decision in Connecticut, and some have speculated that this means he will sign with the Knicks.  He does have a love affair with Madison Square Garden, but that doesn't mean he will sign with them.  Mike Dantoni isn't exactly the coach who gives LeBron the best shot to win a championship. 

I still think that the Cavaliers signing Byron Scott will have an immense impact on LeBron's decision.  LeBron's best friend Chris Paul has been reported to be urging LeBron to stay with Cleveland and give Byron a shot to take him to the promised land.  The Cavaliers have apparently have vigorously tried to trade for Paul, but with no success.  However, Scott has won championships as a player, and has led the Nets to several NBA Finals appearances.  He has the experience to coach a superstar in LeBron, and work with our supporting cast to get the most out of them.

The future of the Cavaliers franchise will be determined in a few short hours.  There have been estimates that predict the value of Dan Gilbert's investment could decrease by $150 million or more if LeBron decides to team up with Bosh and Wade.  LeBron need to stay in Cleveland.  Dan Gilbert is committed to making us a championship contender each and every year. 

This summer of free agency is just one of many to come.  There are always blockbuster trades during the season and if LeBron does stay, rest assured the Cavs will do everything in their power to improve an already impressive roster.  Hickson and Varejao are underrated big-men.  Besides, if LeBron goes to Miami he isn't the number one option anymore.  Wade has proven to be more trustworthy in the clutch.  Does LeBron really need to go play with Wade and Bosh to win a championship?  I don't think so.  Hopefully he makes the right move.  All of Cleveland will mourn if he goes on National Television and announces he is leaving.  We've already had enough heartbreak.  Cleveland deserves better than that.  LeBron James is Underrated