LeBron Drops 27 as Heat Spoil Christmas in LA

The Miami Heat marched into Los Angeles Saturday night for a Christmas matchup against the defending champion Lakers.  It was the Lakers, however, that did not show up.  LeBron James lead his team to a 96-80 victory with a dominating 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for his 3rd triple double with his new team.  Chris Bosh had 24 points and a hobbled Dwyane Wade added 18 points.   More importantly, the Heat played steller defense and made the Lakers look old and slow.  

Although both teams dismissed the pregame hype as simply "television curiosity", it is hard to believe it doesn't mean more to James and Co.  The Heat have now won 14 of their last 15 games, including victories over the Knicks, Suns, Hornets, Jazz and now Lakers.  If the Heat finish December strong with wins against the Knicks and Rockets, they will be 16-1 for the month, and barely behind Boston for the best record in the East.  With Mike Miller getting healthier by the day and with the possible return of Udonis Haslem, the Heat may just be the team they thought they would be.