Cavaliers F LeBron James' "much-anticipated return to Miami" will occur during a nationally televised Christmas Day game on ABC, "barring an unexpected change of heart" by the NBA, according to a source cited by Barry Jackson of the MIAMI HERALD. ESPN "wants Heat-Cavaliers that day and the NBA is sensitive" to the net's wishes. It is unknown if the Christmas game "would be the first of what will be three or four Heat-Cavaliers regular season matchups this season." The full regular-season schedule is slated to be released next month (MIAMIHERALD.com, 7/29).
RESPECT THE CHAMPS: A report over the weekend had the Cavaliers hosting the Spurs to open the season, and ESPN's J.A. Adande said it is "continuing the way" the NBA has "treated the Spurs in the past as defending champions." Adande: "If you win the championship, at the very least you should expect the next year to open at home and get your rings on national television." Dallas Morning News columnist Tim Cowlishaw said, "What I do not want to see is San Antonio against LeBron, which is a big game, wasted on opening night. Opening night, you don't need those kind of matchups. People are going to watch because it's opening night." ESPN's Pablo Torre: "This is almost an example of the NBA getting real with itself in terms of realizing, 'Look, we're about stars and storylines. This is what our league is fueled by.' That's why we've been talking about LeBron one billion times more than the San Antonio Spurs" ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 7/28).
