Toronto Star

Everything all right, LeBron?

Just wondering.

- Bruce Arthur

Should people worry about LeBron James? This is a real question right now, honest. Yes, his Cleveland Cavaliers are tops in the NBA’s Eastern Conference, ahead of the Toronto Raptors, and he is still really good at basketball. One of the best ever, really. Nice! I bet that’s awesome.

But it’s his Twitter account, you see. It’s gotten . . . motivation­al.

“It’s OK to know you’ve made a mistake. Cause we all do at times. Just be ready to live with whatever that comes with it and be with . . . those who will protect you at all cost!” — James, March 1, 4:47 p.m.

Now, this could refer to anything. We all make mistakes, and not just on pick-and-roll coverage (I see you, Kevin Love), or inconsiste­nt effort (I see you, Kyrie Irving) or incompeten­t ownership. (I see you, Cavs owner Dan Gilbert!) Literally, this could be about forgetting to pick up the dry cleaning. It probably isn’t about LeBron’s decision to return to Cleveland at all.

“Can’t replace being around great friends that reciprocat­e the same energy back to you in all facets of life.” — James, March 3, 1:55 p.m.

This came after James did some workouts during some Cavaliers downtime. In Miami. With his old friend Dwyane Wade, with whom he won two titles with the Heat before returning to Cleveland as a free agent.

Is this a message to his current teammates, and their energy? Maybe. Or maybe we all have good friends!

“The ultimate level of chemistry is when you know what I’m thinking without saying a word and we execute it. Visa Versa. #TheDC #SFG.” — James, March 5, 5:23 p.m.

He’s added a hashtag for The Da Vinci Code, which may explain the clumsy writing here. As Michael Deacon of The Daily Telegraph once wrote of Dan Brown, “The critics said his writing was clumsy, ungrammati­cal, repetitive and repetitive.”

“It’s this simple. U can’t accomplish­ed the dream if everyone isn’t dreaming the same thing everyday. Nightmares follow. #TheDC #SFG.” — James, March 6, 10:53 a.m.

OK, what is James talking about? It’s becoming a mystery on the order of The Da Vinci Code. Specifical­ly, how The Da Vinci Code sold 80 million copies. As a wise man once wrote, “It’s OK to know when you’ve made a mistake.”

“Structure and Consistenc­y creates Perfection. U shortcut, u come up short! Straight Up. #DVC #SFG.” — James, March 6, 11:53pm.

“It’s Not Who You Are Underneath, It’s What You Do That Defines You!” — James, March 6, 11:37 p.m, on Instagram, next to a cartoon picture of . . . himself in a Batman outfit, staring at his mask. Like, a kiddy cartoon. Did he pay somebody to draw that?

During all this, by the way, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith reported LeBron might leave Cleveland again if he feels overly annoyed and misused. Now, Stephen A. is a human dryer vent a lot of the time, all hot air and a cloud of blowing lint, but in 2010 he did report LeBron and Bosh might go to Miami, way ahead of time. He then backed away from that like it was on fire, yes, but . . .

“Control what you can control. Sounds so cliche, but its the bold truth. Good Morning!!” — Kyrie Irving, March 7, 7:12 a.m.

Do the Cavs not ever talk in person? Is there a whiteboard in the locker room? Post-it notes?

Maybe it’s good. Maybe it’s healthy. Except, Monday night the Cavaliers lost to a Memphis Grizzlies team that was missing four starters. Their starters were Mario Chalmers, Tony Allen, JaMychal Green, P.J. Hairston, and Ryan Hollins, any number of whom may actually be in witness protection programs.

People in Cleveland say LeBron has been trying to drag his teammates towards championsh­ip habits since he returned. He has to know they’re nowhere near the Warriors, or the Spurs, and might not be as good as Oklahoma City. A part of LeBron might be wondering if he ever wins a title again.

So maybe he’s pulling out all the stops. LeBron was asked about his tweets on Monday and said, according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN, “Just my mind working. I got a beautiful mind, and I want to use it sometimes in a social manner.” Same, LeBron. “They’re for the educated mind,” James said. “So if you have an educated mind, they hit home for you.”

Educated minds don’t let educated minds read Dan Brown, LeBron.

Eh. Maybe LeBron thinks the young Cavaliers need the conflict and tension, as Kobe Bryant recently said of Golden State. Maybe he craves attention in a Steph Curry league. Maybe someone gave him an Inspiratio­nal Quote-A-Day calendar for his birthday.

This is what the Raptors are chasing: a second-tier super-team revolving around a generation­ally defining player reduced to tweeting what are either vague threats or passive-aggressive lifestyle zen koans or mass-media therapy. It doesn’t really matter until it all starts to go bad for Cleveland, which in Toronto would be terribly entertaini­ng, assuming the Raptors remember how defence works and can win two playoff series for the first time in franchise history.

If so, Toronto’s best chance against Cleveland — if it ever came to that — would be a Cavaliers chemistry implosion. If I read my Inspiratio­nal Quote-A-Day calendar correctly, there may still be a chance.

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