Preview/Live Thread: Cavs vs. Heat (Home Opener!)

What a difference a year makes. Exactly 365 days ago, the Cavs arrived at the Q in storybook fashion, celebrating the return of the King (and his new court) with a giant street party, a live performance by the Imagine Dragons and a spine-tingling black and white Nike commercial that brought many a long-suffering Cleveland sports fan to tears. That night didn’t end the way most hoped or imagined it would, with the lowly Knicks knocking off the Cavs 95-90 in front of a disappointed sold out crowd. Though all of the starters finished with double digits, and new recruit, Kevin Love, performed well (19 points, 14 rebounds), LeBron himself had a night to forget (17 points on 5-15 shooting and eight turnovers) and the Cavs bench was nearly non-existent (one future Cav J.R. Smith almost outscored them on his own, and another, Iman Shumpert, actually did).

In the place of all that pomp, circumstance and wildly optimistic expectation surrounding a team that had the makings of greatness, is the centered focus, resolve and eye-of-the-hurricane calm that was bourn out of an epic and gritty Finals run, fortified by a bench overhaul that nearly rivaled the one David Griffin conjured up to remedy the starting lineup in the middle of last season. Sure, there is the specter of injury hovering over the shoulder (and back… and knee… and wrist) of this year’s squad, but that appears to be the only tangible obstacle standing between them and the promised ‘Land.

The ghost of injuries past… (and present)

It’s with that calm and focus that the Cavaliers take the court in a game that counts at the Q for the first time since Game 6 of the Finals in June. To celebrate, the Cavs will don an updated version of their “CavFanatic” mashup jerseys (first worn during the 2009-10 season — as seen in the headline visual), featuring the “CAVS” wordmark from team’s jerseys of the 1980’s, complete with the popular net-and-ball “V.” Aside from now sporting an Adidas logo, this jersey also features a small “All for one. One for all.” tag along the bottom.

And, in the “throwback” spirit, their opponent will be their old rivals from South Beach, DWade, Chris Bosh and the rest of the Miami Heat. The somewhat sexy pick to be the “team most likely” to knock the Cavs from their perch at the pinnacle of the Eastern Conference, the Heat still have their own injury cross to bear before they can be considered even in a realistic conversation for that feat. While they have Chris Bosh back and healthy from his blood-clot scare last year, they still will be relying heavily on the knees of Dwayne Wade to keep them in the hunt. From a starting five perspective, Miami does have some undeniable talent. Joining Bosh and Wade are promising big man, Hassan Whiteside, one-time Cav, Luol Deng, and up-tempo PG, Goran Dragic, who signed a long-term deal with the Heat in the off-season. Beyond those five, however, there are bigger question marks on a bench that features rookie Justise Winslow, a surprisingly rejuvenated Gerald Green (who’s suddenly transformed into a decent outside shooter) and newly acquired Amare Stoudamire, along with holdovers Josh McRoberts, Mario Chalmers, Chris Andersen and Udonis Haslem.

The Cavs will counter with the same starting five from the first two games: LeBron, Kevin Love, Timofey Mozgov, Mo Williams and J.R. Smith. Unlike a year ago, however, their supporting cast off the bench has some real punch to it. With a spry Richard Jefferson, more confident-looking Delly, refreshed and healthy AV, a slowly-rounding-into-shape TT, and some spark from Much Danger Ninja, Jared Cunningham, they appear (at least in the early going) to be a much more formidable force with which to be reckoned.

For LeBron, much of the discussion in the past few days has revolved around his back, and the degree to which it might actually be ailing. Some have speculated that his recent penchant for lying prone on his back when he checks out of a game could be real cause for concern, and have compared him to other greats with balky backs like Larry Bird and Steve Nash. This has in turn led to discussion about whether the King might need some more time off to recuperate, similar to the fortnight vacation in the middle of last season. However, today, he seemingly nipped that thought in the bud with the media…

Most interesting thing from today? LeBron said he plans on playing in all 82 games this season.

— Jason Lloyd (@ByJasonLloyd) October 30, 2015

In the meantime, there are two milestones possibly within LeBron’s reach tonight: He is five defensive rebounds away from passing Zydrunas Ilgauskas (3,568) for second place in team history (first place is Brad Daughtery at 4,020); he is also just 50 points shy of 25,000 for his career. Doubtful that Bron drops a half dollar on his old Miami pals, but you never know…

Chime in and share your thoughts on Opening Night… and GO CAVS!