MIAMI — Defending NBA champion Miami returned to work Saturday for pre-season training camp, with star LeBron James coming off a gold medal effort at the London Olympics and two top teammates coming off injuries. Last June, the Heat captured their first NBA crown since obtaining James two years earlier, James finally winning his long-awaited first NBA title. Now the Heat have added 37-year-old guard Ray Allen, the all-time NBA leader in 3-point shots, and veteran forward Rashard Lewis to a championship roster. “We can be better than we were this past season,” James said. “We have the potential to be a lot better. That is scary.” The Heat will visit China for pre-season games against the Los Angeles Clippers at Beijing on Nov. 11 and Shanghai three days later as part of the preparation for the Nov. 30 season opener against visiting Boston. James matched Michael Jordan as the only players in NBA history to win an NBA title, Olympic gold and be named the NBA regular-season and NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the same year. James could become only the fifth player in NBA history to win at least four NBA season MVP awards if he can lead the Heat to the sort of season players are expecting. “You can feel the excitement,” Heat guard Dwyane Wade said. “You can see the difference. Guys came in really in shape.” Once the campaign kicks into gear, the Heat will try to match the Los Angeles Lakers as the only team in the past decade to win back-to-back NBA titles. “This team was built for something bigger than making a one-year run,” said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. “How will we respond to success? Will it be as big a motivator as the pain of the year before?” Wade and center-forward Chris Bosh were supposed to have played alongside James at London but injuries suffered during the intense playoff run kept them off the team. Bosh said he has spent the off-season “just chilling” while Wade, who struggled with knee pain, has some spring in his step after surgery and three months of rest. “I've been here before. I feel a lot better. I'll be ready to go,” Wade said. “As the season goes on I'll feel even better. I'm looking to have a better year. I just want to be an efficient player when I'm on the court. “I'll continue to work throughout the year. I won't have to play 40 minutes a night. As the season continues I will try to be stronger.” Wall to miss eight weeks Washington Wizards guard John Wall, the top pick of the 2010 NBA Draft, will miss about eight weeks with a stress injury to his left kneecap, team president Ernie Grunfeld said Friday. The injury should sideline Wall for the entire pre-season training camp and about the first month of the upcoming NBA season, which opens for the Wizards on Oct. 30 at Cleveland. No surgery will be needed to repair the left patella injury, which was uncovered in an MRI exam Thursday in New York that showed Wall in the early stages of a stress-related injury after feeling left knee discomfort. The Wizards went a woeful 20-46 last season, the second-worst record in the NBA last season to Charlotte's all-time worst win percent in a 7-56 campaign. Wall averaged 16.3 points, 8.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds last season without missing a game in a season shortened to 66 games by a lockout. “We're all disappointed for John after how hard he worked this summer and how excited he was to begin training camp,” Grunfeld said. “But we feel fortunate that we caught the injury early and that he will be able to return with the vast majority of the season still in front of us. “We're confident that the versatility and depth of our team will help us move forward and continue the positive momentum that we've seen over the past several months.” — Agencies
