MIAMI — A year ago, it was all different. LeBron James calls it a transition phase, one where he was wrapped up in figuring out how his game was going to mesh with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami.
The way James sees it, the Heat growing pains are gone. And he hopes that means his annual championship quest will finally be fulfilled.
Driven by last season’s loss to Dallas in the NBA finals — a series where he made seven field-goal attempts in 68 fourth-quarter minutes — James and the Heat return to the postseason as the No. 2 seed on the Eastern Conference bracket. Their first-round opponent is still not determined. Their ultimate goal was determined long ago.
“I have to be who I am,” James said in an interview with The Associated Press. “Last year was the biggest teacher. The greatest teacher in life is experience. And I had that last year. I’m back to being the person who can take over games.
“I have no problem taking over a game now.”
Here’s an example: In one recent game, Wade was walking to the bench for a time-out. Halfway there, he was met by James. For the next 45 seconds, James was in his teammate’s ear about something. He did all the talking. Wade did all the nodding.
A year ago, such a display probably wouldn’t have happened where 20,000 people could see.
“Obviously, last year we kind of got cheated a little bit out of the greatness of LeBron as a vocal leader,” Wade said. “He had so much going on, so much in his mind that he was just trying to show everybody with his play and his toughness.
“But this year, especially of late, we’ve all been getting the vocal player, the intelligent player that LeBron is. His IQ of the game is second to none. So you listen. Especially me.”
Heading into Wednesday night’s games the Knicks were the team lined up to play the Heat, who are locked into the No. 2 seed after losing to the Celtics on Tuesday, which clinched the Eastern Conference’s top spot for the Bulls. The Knicks need two wins and two Magic losses to move up to the No. 6 seed or to fall behind the 76ers, who they are tied with, to drop to No. 8.
James’ message has not wavered in months. He’s finally happy after a year filled with change. He’s going to be that take-charge player again. He’s more consumed by a championship than ever.
Here come the playoffs, a chance to prove what those words mean.
“I want to win it all, as bad as other guys want to win it — if not more,” James said. “That’s why I play as hard as I do in the regular season, to build my habits, build our team’s habits. I’ve been bothered by last season a lot. It’s constant. I dream about it a lot, winning that trophy and seeing the confetti come down.
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LeBron James, James, Dwyane Wade, the Heat, the Heat, Heat, Chris Bosh
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