AS THE CLEVELAND CAVALIERS play in their first playoffs since LeBron James skipped town for the second time in 2018, they do so knowing the impact the franchise icon created for the organization. They know they are writing a chapter in the history book James authored so much in.
The shadow is always there.
But the roars inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse are rising closer to the levels when James led the Cavs to one Eastern Conference title after another during his combined 11 seasons in Cleveland, and Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff feels the difference as this new group -- featuring Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen -- begins to try to build a legacy themselves.