The elephant missing from the room was obvious, and obviously a factor in the outcome.
Still, not a single apology was to be heard in the Pacers' locker room following their 103-93 victory over Cleveland on Wednesday, a game LeBron James chose to take off and the Pacers chose to put forth another solid effort at both ends of the court.
It marked their first two-game win streak of the season and evened their record at 6-6, but the more significant point is that it was just the second victory in which they scored more than 100 points and held their opponent below 100.