Live Thread: Cavs @ Lakers (#LeGone)

LeBron James has been missing in action for his new team, the Los Angeles Lakers, for three weeks now. During his 10 game absence, LA has gone just 3-7. Meanwhile, LeBron has been missing from his old team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, for six months now. Since his departure, the Cavs have gone just 8-35. The point being that, without LeBron’s availability… LeBron’s teams tend to struggle.

None of this is news. As Cavs fans, we learned as we vacillated between patience and panic over the previous four seasons, usually during this period of winter doldrums, that the center of a LeBron-centric construct does not hold when the King is gone. Whether from a sabbatical due to injury, boredom or general surliness, any stretch of contests that didn’t feature James turned them into strong candidates for the loss column. Even though he played all 82 games last year, it doesn’t mean he was mentally checked in for that extended January rough patch (aka the Isaiah Thomas experience).

This current stretch is due to a rather painful looking groin injury LeBron suffered mid-way through his annual Christmas Day game with the Warriors. Initially, LBJ was supposed to be out for a couple of weeks, but there was no real rush to hurry him back to the court. He was slated to make his return tonight against his former team… but that didn’t come to pass. The Lakers are still optimistic LeBron will return soon, possibly even later this week.

So, why did I spend so much time talking about LeBron, the injured former face of the Cavs’ franchise who will be only a spectator tonight at the Staples Center? Probably because there’s not much to talk about with the Cavs right now… unless you want to hear about a rash of injuries, a struggling rookie, potential trades and whether or not they can hold and opponent under 140…

Prediction: The King sips wine on his sideline throne as his new subjects rout his old ones, 142-118.

It’s a late one for you Eastern Time Zoners, so stay up for this one only if you’re a glutton for punishment. Tip off is as 9:30pm EST on NBATV and FSO. I’d say enjoy the game… but that’s probably asking a bit too much…