CLEVELAND _ LeBron James was selected to the NBA All-Defensive first team five consecutive years starting in 2009.
Now those skills are being put to the test.
With just six games remaining in the regular season starting with Tuesday's home game against the Magic, defense has become more of a focal point for the Cavaliers. James is being called on to guard the opponents' best player, challenged by the Bulls' Jimmy Butler on Thursday and the Pacers' Paul George on Sunday in an epic double-overtime scoring duel.
The Cavs have worked on traps that they will need in the postseason and unveiled them in games. Their rare practices have concentrated on sets for the playoffs. A lapse on a George 3-pointer with 49.7 seconds left in the second extra period against the Pacers led to an altercation between James and Tristan Thompson.
Out of that scene, which James knew didn't play well on television, Cavs coach Tyronn Lue found a positive.
"That shows you that we care about our defense," Lue said. "The game's on the line, you want to win. Paul George makes a tough shot, they get into it. That's part of the game. You like to see that passion, and a lot of times take it out on the other team. Some miscommunication right there, but they got over it."
If that incident is an indication that defense has become a priority, there may be more emotional outbursts in store. Going into Monday night's games, the Cavs stood 24th in the league in defensive efficiency (points per 100 possessions) at 108.1. The Spurs and Warriors ranked 1-2. Also to be noted if the Cavs, one-half game behind Boston, want to claim the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, is that four of the five remaining teams on the schedule (including Atlanta twice) rank among the league's top 11 in that category.
The emphasis on defense and what will be required of James going forward also puts the spotlight on the fact that he is playing 37.6 minutes per game, the second-highest average in the NBA. He went 51:39 against the Pacers, his most since Jan. 27, 2013, when he totaled 51:56 for the Miami Heat in a double-overtime loss at Boston.
To guard the league's best, James will have to ramp up his effort despite those heavy minutes. But James knows what is in store for him defensively.
"There's going to be opportunities where I have to guard these top-notch guys in the playoffs," James said Sunday. "You're looking at Jimmy Butler, you look at Paul George, you look at a couple more guys we have in the East. If you can try to just to slow them down a little bit, there's going to be a good chance to win. Do a lot of reporting and scouting and things of that nature.
"You just try to slow them down. These guys are multiple All-Stars and great players, and you can't stop 'em. Obviously you see what Paul did tonight."
While James recorded his career-high 11th triple-double of the season with 41 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists, George had his way with the Cavs. He scored 43 points, pulled down nine rebounds and added nine assists in 48 minutes. He scored 19 consecutive points in the two overtimes, a string that ended with the 3 that led to the Thompson-James argument.
James said he tried to keep George below his shooting percentage of 45.2, but did not succeed as George hit 16-of-33 from the field. George made 6-of-16 from 3-point range (37.5), below his season average of 38.9 percent.
"I was guarding him off pick-and-rolls, guarding him off triple pindowns, guarding him off isolations, which he's very good at," James said of George. "You try to ... make it tough on him and you live with the results."
George and the Bulls' Butler, who scored 25 points with six rebounds and five assists in Chicago's 99-93 victory, are just the beginning for James.
"We've got to get on a roll and win some games, and in the playoffs he's going to have to guard the best players at that position," Lue said of James. "He wanted to take the challenge tonight. They know they can't post Paul George with LeBron on him. They try to run him around off a lot of screens to try and wear him down and Paul George was effective tonight doing that."
