The return of LeBron James to Miami may have been the biggest story when the Cleveland Cavaliers faced the Miami Heat on Christmas, but it was a happy ending for Dwyane Wade and co., who beat the Cavs, 101-91.
Led by Wade (31 points, five rebounds, five assists) and Luol Deng (25 points, eight rebounds, eight assists), the Heat proved to be too much for James and the Cavs, ending Cleveland's three-game winning streak despite the absence of Chris Bosh.
James was blunt about where his team stands after the game via Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com:James didn't disappoint against his former team, however, scoring 30 points and adding eight assists. Kyrie Irving had a strong evening as well, going for 25 points, while Kevin Love scored 14 points and pulled down five rebounds.
Still, had James been a bit more clinical from the free-throw line, this might have been a different game. Consider this tidbit from ESPN Stats & Info:While this game was an emotional moment for James, it was clearly more important for the Heat, who are just 14-16 on the season and perhaps looking to prove they could turn things around without their former star player. The Heat are likely to reach the playoffs in a pretty thin Eastern Conference, but they haven't looked like title contenders early in the season.
This may be the signature win to get them back on track.
As for Cleveland, it can get by on talent alone most evenings, though it's evident the James-Irving-Love experiment is still a work in progress. The Cavs remain one of the favorites in the East, no doubt, but contests like this have made it pretty clear that this team still has some serious blemishes.
Source http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2310636-cavaliers-vs-heat-score-and-twitter-reaction-from-christmas-day-2014
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