CLEVELAND — King James is not going to turn into the Drama King to get more calls from NBA officials.
“It’s not me,” small forward LeBron James said Friday. “There’s been times when I’ve thought about it, but my game won’t allow me to — whether you call it flopping or acting like it’s something bigger than it is — do it.”
That said, James and coach Mike Brown continued their campaign for more calls, particularly on drives. “I don’t have a great feel yet for when they’re going to call a foul and when they’re not,” Brown said.
He has been told by officials that a foul is called when a player is “re-routed,” but the coach’s contention is that the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James is so strong, he sometimes goes right through a hit. Even so, a foul is a foul, Brown believes.
“Bron’s at a disadvantage,” he said. “At the end of the day, the only thing we can do is keep playing.”
Added James: “Because of my size and my strength, the way I get hit is not seen. I’m never one to complain, but sometimes it feels blatant on me and it’s not called. It’s definitely challenging mentally. It can be frustrating at times.”
James, who goes through his share of drama whenever he’s knocked to the floor, is among the NBA leaders with seven technical fouls this season, but Brown does not fear he is developing a reputation as a whiner.
 “I don’t think LeBron complains much,” Brown said. “With his status, he should be able to voice his opinion.”
Like James, Brown does not think the answer is for his player to turn in Academy Award performances every time there’s contact.
“Sometimes you want to tell him (to do) that,” the coach said. “But now you’re getting into something that could not be good for our team.”

Getting technical

Brown, who was hit with a technical foul after running toward official Bob Delaney in the third quarter of Thursday’s Orlando game, had no intention of confronting the veteran referee, who for years worked undercover for the FBI.
“He is an ex-cop who knows people in the mob, so no,” Brown said when asked about it. “I don’t mess with that.”
The Cavaliers came unglued at that point, which is not what Brown wanted when he got the “T.”
 “We try not to let it bother us,” he said. “We do believe we’re a no-excuse team.”

‘Z’ from the start

Center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who had missed the last 13 games with a chip fracture in his left ankle, was back in the starting lineup against the Clippers. Cleveland went 9-4 without the big man, who last played Dec. 30.
“We played pretty good basketball without him, but we couldn’t do that for a long period of time,” James said. “We needed him back.”
Ilgauskas could have returned Thursday, but the Cavaliers didn’t want him to have to play back-to-back games right off the bat. Asked why Ilgauskas didn’t play, and sit out against the Clippers, Brown said, “I look at the Clippers as an NBA team. We’ve got to go out and get wins. Once I start playing him, I don’t want him to sit down.”

Seeing stars

James is still upset Mo Williams was left off the Eastern Conference All-Star team, especially since the Cavaliers were 35-9 coming in. Orlando, which was 35-10, has three selections, while Boston (38-9) has two.
James is Cleveland’s only representative. “It shows the lack of respect we get from coaches and people around this league. We’re the only team that high in wins to only get one All-Star. It’s definitely disappointing,” he said.
Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4061 or rickn@ohio.net. 

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