CLEVELAND — LeBron James insisted it was nothing personal. The final score said otherwise.
James scored a season-high 38 points — 24 in a third-quarter clinic — to lead the Miami Heat in a 118-90 blowout win over the Cavaliers, taming a hostile Cleveland crowd even before halftime Thursday night.
“I have the utmost respect for this franchise, the utmost respect for these fans,” James said afterward. But he spent part of the second half taunting Cleveland’s bench.
The game that mattered most to the franchise turned into its worst loss of the season so far.
“I thought he played great,” Cavs coach Byron Scott said. “Simple as that.”
It was James’ first game back in the city where he played for seven years and won back-to-back MVP awards, but failed to win an NBA championship.
Before the game, fans peppered him with obscene chants and booed every time he appeared on the giant TV screens beneath the scoreboard. They held up signs that read, “Quitness” and “Play Like It’s Game Five” — a reference to his playoff failure against Boston last season, when many fans — and owner Dan Gilbert — felt James had quit. There were five guys wearing a single letter each on their white T-shirts that spelled out: LeBum.
Dwyane Wade added 22 points, James Jones 18 and Chris Bosh 15 for the Heat, which played its most complete game of the season to improve to 12-8.
“This is the first time I have seen this connection all year long,” said coach Erik Spoelstra, who’s come under criticism for the team’s slow start.
