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MIAMI – LeBron James returns to American Airlines Arena where he has won two of his three NBA championships, two of his four league MVP awards and two of his three trophies for MVP Finals MVP as a Miami Heat star.
This will be James' first trip to Miami as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. And Dwyane Wade, James's best friend at the Heat, will not play because he is on paternity leave.
Nevertheless, the game is one that has been circled in the calendar for Miami Heat fans, and it will be interesting to see how they welcome their former superstar.
Regarding the teams, neither is elite: the Lakers (8-7) lost to the Orlando Magic on Saturday night and have only 3-4 on the road this season. They had a winning streak of four games until the Magic won them 130-117.
James was absent in the fourth quarter after Orlando built a 21-point lead.
"I want to thank the group that was there," said James about the Lakers' reserves, which reduced the lead in Orlando to 10 points before going to bed. "They continued to fight."
Miami is just 6-9 in total and 3-5 at home.
The Heat have split their two-game series against the Lakers in each of the last three years, but of course, the series takes on a new meaning now that James is on the list.
Before the game in Orlando, James had been on a roll with an average of 29.8 points on 55.1% of shots in the four-game winning streak.
James entered the weekend, leading the Lakers scoring (27.6), rebounds (7.9) and assistances (7.2). Kyle Kuzma (17.6) and Brandon Ingram (15.2) are the second and third options, respectively. Center JaVale McGee leads the team by block (2.9) and averages 14.1 points and 7.1 rebounds.
The former lottery choice, Lonzo Ball, begins as a leader, but he's odd with James because of his lack of shooting prowess. It averages 8.7 points and 4.9 assists. Ball was aimless in 28 minutes on Saturday, missing his five shots.
Lance Stephenson (19 points), Josh Hart (13 points) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (10 points) all played well as reservists.
Rajon Rondo, relief leader, should miss next month due to a broken right hand.
"We miss him," said Lakers coach Luke Walton. "But our group (overall) has been good."
Miami has its own injury problems as striker James Johnson (hernia) and goalkeeper Dion Waiters (ankle) have yet to play this season. Johnson should come back against the Lakers, which could be a boost for Miami. But the Heat could do without Goran Dragic (knee) and Rodney McGruder (quad). Both are listed as questionable.
Shooting goalkeeper Josh Richardson (20.6) leads the Heat in goals. Dragic is second in scoring (16.3) and leading in assist (4.7), and his absence would be major for Miami.
Heat center Hassan Whiteside averaged 13.8 points as he led the team in rebounds (11.0) and in block (3.0). His match against McGee – two big shooting blockers – should be interesting.
If Dragic sits, it will take more guards from combo Tyler Johnson (11.1 points) and shooter Wayne Ellington (9.4 points). Attackers Justise Winslow, Kelly Olynyk and Bam Adebayo are other notable contributors.
Still, this formation is much less talented than when James, Wade and Chris Bosh led Miami to four consecutive NBA finals (2011-2014).
Indeed, this has been a tough test for the Heat since James left Miami in the summer of 2014. The Heat has only won one playoff series since King James left.
But Heat's coach, Erik Spoelstra, prefers to focus on the positive aspects of James rather than the deadly feelings he's created in the minds of many when he left the Team dry and dry.
"Players and staff go in different ways," said Spoelstra, "but you still have that common bond."
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