Heat In Cleveland For Rematch With LeBron James, Cavaliers
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CLEVELAND (CBSMiami/AP) – The Cleveland Cavaliers are a much different team than the one the Miami Heat defeated on Christmas Day.
#WinningCuresEverything.
LeBron James and Kevin Love have put aside their cryptic Twitter beef, and will try to lead the Cavaliers to a 10th straight home win Wednesday night when they face the Miami Heat.
Love is struggling to fit in with Cleveland (32-21), averaging 17.1 points for a drop of 9.0 from his career high set with Minnesota last season.
James had enough, calling out the forward via Twitter on Saturday, saying "Stop trying to find a way to FIT-OUT and just FIT-IN. Be a part of something special! Just my thoughts."
While James was initially evasive about the tweet's target, he later indicated it was intended for Love.
"It's not a coincidence, man," he said.
The message was heard loud and clear, as Love responded with a season-high 32 points and 10 rebounds in a 120-105 win over the Lakers on Sunday.
"Listen, I was caught off guard when I heard it," Love said. "I talk to LeBron every day, we're teammates. We see each other. There's no problem with us. He said that if he had a problem with me or anybody on the team ... he would go right to them. So, initially I was confused, but I don't feel bad. I am just going out there to trying to help this team.
"There's no problem with us, and I'm just going to keep saying that I am just trying to help this team. That's all that matters."
Winning surely helps.
The Cavs are averaging 108.3 points during a 13-1 stretch, including nine straight home wins for their longest run there since taking 11 in a row from Feb. 23-April 6, 2010 - during James' first stint with the franchise.
James is averaging 27.6 points on 50.0 percent shooting in his last 14 games after coming two assists shy of a triple-double Sunday, scoring 22 points with 10 rebounds.
The four-time MVP, though, feels there's still room for improvement.
"It's getting there," James said of Cleveland's recent success. "We do a great job of communicating on and off the floor, and guys get along and that's the most important thing.
"We got good chemistry and at the end of the day, all we want to do is win."
Cleveland hasn't done any of that against Miami, losing 11 consecutive meetings with James wearing Heat colors for 10 of them. His 30 points weren't enough in a 101-91 loss in his return to Miami on Christmas Day.
"We're a different team than what we were then," coach David Blatt said.
Ending that streak will likely require a better performance from Love, who had 14 points and five rebounds while shooting 5 of 13 from the floor on Christmas.
The Heat (22-29) are looking to enter the All-Star break with back-to-back wins after rallying from an early 14-point deficit in a 109-95 victory over New York on Monday to end a three-game slide. However, they'll have to do it without Dwyane Wade, who will miss a seventh straight game and this weekend's All-Star festivities with a hamstring injury.
Chris Bosh picked up the slack against the Knicks, scoring 32 points with a season-high six assists after he totaled 28 points on 12-of-32 shooting in his two previous games.
"No matter what, as tough as it's been on this team this season so far, we always come to play," Bosh said. "Guys want to win. Guys show up and compete, no matter what. That's what I've loved about this group."
Luol Deng, who scored 25 in the first meeting against the Cavaliers, returns to Cleveland for the first time since leaving the team via free agency in July. He averaged 14.3 points in 40 games with them last season after being acquired in a trade from Chicago.
(TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2015 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
