LeBron James has Cleveland atop the NBA regular-season hill for a second straight season.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have done this before.

And it wasn’t too long ago.

Last season, the Cavs won a league-best 66 games to earn home-court advantage in the playoffs, but wound up losing in the Eastern Conference Finals against Orlando in six games.

Earlier this week, they clinched home-court advantage again for the playoffs after the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, but I’m still not sold the Cavs have the best team in the NBA, though.

Got some issues. Here’s a few.

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Kobe Bryant's 31 points were not enough to lead the Lakers past the Cavaliers.

After his Los Angeles Lakers lost 93-87 at Cleveland to the Cavaliers, Kobe Bryant didn’t pull any punches when talking about his team after the game.

Were they more physical?
“Yeah. Their bigs were very active. Very physical. Wore us down.”

Disappointed to lose twice to them now?
Yeah. It was a test for us. We got another test here later on on this trip. See how we respond to it. Got another physical team in Boston. So it’s going to be interesting to see how we respond.”
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Good evening

Here in Cleveland getting ready for what feels like a playoff game.

It’s only the opener, but a serious buzz is running through Quicken Loans Arena for tonight’s game between the Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics.

Just some quick bits.

Cleveland guard Delonte West is out for today’s game. As you know, West’s wife filed a domestic violence report on him Monday. He was already facing bi-polar issues and the weapons charge.

That’s  a lot on that young man’s plate to deal with. He is in the arena, is dressed and will warm up with the team, but will not play. Who knows when he will go. It’s a sad situation really.

Be back in minute.

Shaquille O'Neal (defending) is eying his fifth NBA ring with 2008-09 MVP LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Let the season begin.

I’ll be in Cleveland tonight for the Cavaliers’ regular-season opener against the Boston Celtics at Quicken Loans Arena.

Should be some scene so check back here from time to time as I’ll provide some pre-game talk, in-game action and post-game analysis afterward.

It’s on.

LeBron James saved Cleveland once again by hitting a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.

MVP. Miracle. Victory. ImProbable.

LeBron James’ buzzer-beating 3-pointer sent the Quicken Loans Arena crowd in an outrageous, exhalted state and lifted the Cleveland Cavaliers to a stunning 96-95 victory against the Orlando Magic to even this Eastern Conference finals series at 1-1.

For all that the 24-year old James has done in his short, but stellar career, this moment may have been the biggest of his career.

Game 3 is in Orlando on Sunday.

Oh lawd.

The Orlando Magic made us all take notice tonight.

Hedo Turkoglu and the Orlando Magic stunned the Cleveland Cavaliers in tonight's Game 1.

Rashard Lewis hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 14.7 seconds left to give the Magic a stunning 107-106 win against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena despite LeBron James scoring a career playoff-high 49 points.

The Cavaliers led by as many as 16 points, but were unable to close out the game against the Magic in losing their first playoff game this season.

Oh my.

The big thing that happened in Game 1 is that Cleveland reverted back to the way it played two to three years ago on offense. Instead of moving the ball the way they’ve done all season, they went back to having four guys stand and watch James make things happen.

Now James is great enough to score 49 points under those circumstances, but the Cavaliers are at their best when they move the ball and share the ball.

It’s how they built the 15-point halftime lead. Guys were cutting to the basket, driving to the rim and making the Orlando defense move and adjust.

When James just tries to create by himself, the rest of the teammates stand around and watch. If Cleveland continues to play that way, it will have a tough time beating the Magic.

LeBron James had his way with Detroit on Saturday afternoon.

Final score: Cleveland Cavaliers 102, Detroit Pistons 84.

Analysis: Cleveland looked as if it was toying with the Pistons for most of the game. Detroit had a chance to make a game of it when it trailed 41-38, in the second quarter but missed out on a fast-break opportunity. Cleveland ended the half on a 16-7 run. Detroit only cut the lead below double digits three times in the second half.

The go-getter: LeBron James (Cleveland) had a game-high 38 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
The brick-layer: Richard Hamilton (Detroit) shot 6-of-14 from the field for only 15 points. He also had three turnovers.
The stunning stats: Cleveland had only four turnovers for the game. The Cavaliers shot 61 percent in the first half.
The play: James hitting a 41-foot shot at the buzzer off the glass to give Cleveland a 57-45 halftime lead.

What’s next: Game 2 Tuesday at 8 p.m., Quicken Loans Arena.
What to expect: Detroit will try to commit even more attention to force James to pass the ball. If the Cavaliers hit open shots, they’ll win Game 2.

The Boston Celtics were no match for the Cleveland Cavaliers on Easter Sunday.

LeBron James said there isn’t a rivalry between Cleveland and Boston.

Could have fooled me Easter Sunday.

Now forget about the Cavaliers beating up on the Celtics by 31 points. Even the best teams get blown out. Although  Boston beat Cleveland in seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals last year, it was the first time the two teams met in the playoffs with James wearing a Cleveland uniform.

But when Ray Allen and Anderson Varejao got after it in the second half Sunday, that looked like two teams that don’t like each other.

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