National Basketball Association

Quotes on LeBron James' return to Cleveland

Published Dec. 2, 2010 4:29 a.m. ET

foxsports

A selection of quotes on LeBron James as he prepares to face the Cavaliers for the first time since leaving Cleveland for Miami over the summer:

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''It's going to be funny though, just being in a different uniform, being in the visitor locker room, starting off on the other end of the court, sitting on the other end of the bench. It's going to be kind of weird, honestly.'' - LeBron James.

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''I'll tell you what was a very volatile situation that I was there for. My first year in Miami when (Pat) Riley went back to New York. It was unbelievable. People literally screamed at him the entire game. It was brutal from the minute we flew into New York. Every TV station was outside the hotel. So I've seen it from a coaching standpoint, but I haven't seen it from a player's standpoint like this.'' - Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy.

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''I hope he's safe. That's what people are worried about. It's another basketball game. I'm sure there's going to be a lot of emotions with him and Big Z (Zydrunas Ilgauskas) out there playing back in Cleveland.'' - Oklahoma City's Kevin Durant.

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''It's amazing, so it'll be more evenly matched than people think. And then factor in the LeBron James coming back, you've got to understand those guys are going to play hard for Cleveland and they're going to play hard for Byron Scott. It's going to be a great atmosphere, I just hope everything stays civil, clean, because there will be kids there.'' - Former All-Star and TNT announcer Reggie Miller.

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''We've got to win. That's the most fun about anything. As long as you win, you walk out of there, you smile, we get the chicken wings that they have at the arena - they got some of the best chicken wings, I know you all know about them, that the NBA has. We've just got to win.'' - Miami's Dwyane Wade.

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''I don't know. He set a lot of records there. He took them to their first championship ever. They might appreciate him I think.'' - Los Angeles' Ron Artest.

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''Of course you worry about another person's well-being. He is another player, a friend. You just hope people don't cross the line. It's just basketball. It's sports. At the end of the day, he's a human being. Everybody has their right to be mad, pissed off, angry, hate, whatever. Just don't cross the line. It's just a game and he's an entertainer still.'' - Orlando's Vince Carter.

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''I'm sure the fans will have their LeBron Hate T-shirts, and all that stuff. But what does it mean? He'll still go out and get 40.'' - Memphis coach Lionel Hollins.

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''Game starts at 8, I'll be in my crib at 6:30.'' - Boston's Shaquille O'Neal.