Still feeling the effects of a scratched cornea from last week, LeBron James apologized Thursday at the United Center for keeping his head down during the entire 10-minute interview at the Cavaliers' shootaround.
"The light is bothering me," James said, staring at the floor.
At times, the glare accompanying the Cavs' season after their historic championship has made James and his team just as uncomfortable. Injured and inconsistent, the Cavs limped into town to play the Bulls having lost more games than they won since the All-Star break and suddenly battling the Celtics for the No. 1 seed in the anemic Eastern Conference.
"It's tough any time you try to repeat," Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said.
Cubs fans, already saving for next October's World Series road trip, can you hear him through the delirium? Turn down "Go, Cubs, Go," for a minute and listen to the cautionary tale Lue and James shared before trying to snap the Bulls' TNT winning streak.
"I know what it takes," James said. "I know how taxing it can be. ... The competition gets motivated to play you every single night but also you can't short-cut it. You have that feeling of what it felt like to win a championship (and) understand you have to get back to the point of thinking how far it would take for us to get there."
Winning can soften a champion's edge as much as it sharpens the challenger's approach. The latter change is what Lue has noticed most consistently.
"You win a championship, you're going to get your opponents' best every single night _ there are no nights off," Lue said. "We play great one night and then can't make a shot. If you're going to be champs, you have to expect that and be willing to play through that."
Therein lies many of the Cavs' struggles. The urgency players felt to end their city's 52-year championship drought dissipated. As much as any factor, it was that hunger that fueled the Cavs when they trailed the Warriors 3-1 in the NBA Finals.
Duplicating that desire has been easier said than done. A Bleacher Report writer called the Cavs "$128 million of sleepwalking giants." Put less harshly: The Cavs too often look less emotionally invested.
As baseball's Opening Day nears in Chicago, naturally you wonder how the Cubs will handle 162 games without the motivation of being the franchise's first team in 108 years to win a World Series. Instinctively, you believe that won't be a problem because manager Joe Maddon finds ways to keep the approach fresh with all his sayings, T-shirts and gimmicks. But consider the Cavs have the most indomitable spirit in sports in James and still hit an inevitable lull _ and their season only lasts 82 games.
"It's human nature sometimes to take a step backward but for us, if we want to be in a position where we want to be legendary, you throw that to the side, and you understand you have to take this process very seriously," James said.
Is it human nature to expect complacency after winning it all, I asked James?
"Not for me," he said.
Lue laughed explaining what he learned navigating the Cavs through their first season ever as defending champs.
"It's hard," Lue said. "You deal with a lot of personalities and egos, the media. If we lose two games, the world's on fire. You win five, you're the best team in the world. You have to stay on an even keel. You have to stay confident, which we are. And stay poised throughout the process."
Staying healthy would help too. Besides the inherent mental challenges involved in repeating, unforeseen physical problems can complicate everything. Injuries have forced the Cavaliers to use 20 players and 21 lineups. Team statistics show the Cavs' starting five _ James, Kevin Love, JR Smith, Tristan Thompson and Kyrie Irving _ has played together only 370 minutes all season.
"This is my third time defending a championship and the one thing that's different from any other season is we haven't been healthy all year, so it has been very tough to get a good sense of what team we can become," James said. "We have had so many moving parts in and out. That has been the most challenging."
The constant remains James, who felt as frustrated as he was fatigued Monday after a 29-point loss to the Spurs. He called this rough stretch "a delicate time" for the Cavs but _ three days later _ reiterated he will know better than anybody the right time to speak up.
As Cubs outfielder Jason Heyward might agree, it's not always what a team leader says to bring a championship group together as much as when he says it.
"I'm vocal throughout the whole year, but it's a feeling," James said. "Leadership is not just on the court, it's off the court as well. It's a combination of seeing everything. Once I calibrate all the necessary data I need, I'll translate it to the team."
One guess at James' interpretation for teammates: Stop living comfortably off last year. Winning again will require even more focus, effort and energy. Take nothing for granted.
For championship teams trying to repeat, it's a message worth remembering.
