Family Reunion - The Return of LeBron

Akron's most famous son returns home.

Needless to say, the LeBron James-Cleveland family reunion tonight will not be anything of the ordinary. There will not be any family portraits taken. No reminiscing of old times. And definitely no handshakes, hugs or kisses.

Nearly five months after LeBron made his decision to leave his hometown Cavaliers for the warm beaches of Miami, he will be walking down the halls of the Quicken Loans Arena for the first time as the enemy. For the first time perhaps in his career, he will face an entire crowd that will spitting venom at him for an entire 48 minutes.

Since "The Decision", the Cavaliers and the Heat franchises have gone through radical changes and repositioned themselves in the NBA landscape. Miami has struggled out of the gate and currently sits on an 11-8 record. James along with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh have taken longer to gel than expected and have struggled to beat teams with .500 records or better. Several preseason concerns are coming to fruition. The depth of the Heat is in serious question as, outside the Big 3, production is minimal from the bench. Significant injuries have put more pressure on the Big 3 to produce especially with the injury to Mike Miller (has yet to make his season debut) and the loss of Udonis Haslem (reportedly, done for the season). And big question marks surrounding the point guard position and the front court has been exposed by elite teams.

Off the court, the Heat has had to face their share of criticism and internal issues. With no true PG on the roster, LBJ has been forced to play point-forward and run the offense Magic Johnson-style. Reports say he prefers not to be the distributor and has clashed with coach Erik Spoelstra which climaxed with the media-constructed BumpGate. A player-only meeting was held after a dismal performance against the Dallas Mavericks in which the details of the meeting were kept internally. And campaigns for the firing of Spoelstra are in full-swing with Pat Riley coming down from the front office.

The Cavaliers, as expected, are struggling but the lack of quality teams in the East have them in playoff contention even with a 7-10 record. The Cavs have not done a complete overhaul of the team and is content on competing with the pieces they have. Veterans like Mo Williams, Antawn Jamison and Anthony Parker are taking the leadership role and help guide the young core of JJ Hickson and Daniel Gibson. The spirit of the Cavs fanbase remains high despite the latest blow to their sports-culture. Their attendance is ranked second in the league and does not need their fans to "Fan Up" to make sure they're in their seats on time.

When LeBron decided to leave back in July, he was on a pursuit for championships and believe the grass was greener in D-Wade's backyard. The Heat's struggles are well documented but it's still too early to declare the experiment a complete disaster. The final evaluation of LeBron's decision cannot be made on the premise of a handful of games or even one season. He is in for the long-haul, for now.

What is definitive is LeBron's perceived image by his hometown. He is the home-grown talent that made the Cavs relevant again. The player who brought the crowd to their feet every night. The marketing-gem who lured in big-name companies to the city and plaster his face on billboards.

But on this night, he will be perceived as the most recent blemish in Cleveland's sports history. The player who never lived up to the promise of delivering the city a championship. The man who ripped the heart out of his hometown on national TV.

When LeBron performs his pregame ritual of tossing the powder in the air, the Cleveland crowd won't be mesmerized by what his athletic greatness may bring tonight. They will see through the cloud of white powder and see an ex-relative.

This will not be a family reunion for LeBron James. It's judgement day.