CLEVELAND -- Vegas won't have to bother with taking bets on a LeBron James vs. Marcus Morris fight. But that didn't stop people from taking sides late Wednesday night, as if Morris and James were tough kids circling each other on the playground.
It all played out after the Cavaliers took command of the team's first-round NBA playoff series with a 107-90 victory at Quicken Loans Arena Cleveland leads the best-of-seven series, 2-0.
Morris and Pistons rookie Stanley Johnson both stood their ground verbally against James after a game that featured physical play and trash talk.
The Pistons promised to be more physical after Sunday's Game 1 loss and, on Wednesday's very first possession, center Andre Drummond snapped James' head back when the two bumped into each other.
The rough play continued and, after James and Morris collided midway through the fourth quarter, James grabbed his arm in pain and walked toward an official to complain. TV cameras appeared to show James saying, "I'm going to (expletive) that (expletive) up!"
Asked about it afterward, the soft-spoken Morris simply said: "I know for a fact he wasn't talking to me. You can quote me on that."
The implication was simple: James wouldn't dare to utter such words to his face.
James was dominant with 27 points on 12-for-18 shooting Wednesday. And he gave the 19-year-old Johnson a lesson. It was obvious James noticed Johnson's comments from earlier this week, in which the rookie noted the perceived preferential treatment that officials give James.
Johnson took pleasure when James bumped him during a break Wednesday.
Then after a spectacular dunk over Reggie Bullock, James let out a primal scream and gyrated. And then he proceeded to stare down Johnson all the way down the floor.
Johnson was amused by the scene and, afterward, called out one of the best players in NBA history.
• On the bump: "He didn't bump me, I just didn't move my direction. I don't know what y'all see from that. I didn't take anything from it but a cheap-ass shot, cheap-ass bump."
• On James being a front-runner: "I wish he would just talk when he's, like, zero-zero, not when he's up 16 and already got it going. That means something. That means you're more confident in yourself. You believe what you're about to do. Don't talk after you've made a couple of shots. Anybody can do that."
• And on the front-running Cavs bench: "(James) jabbers. He moves his mouth some time. The whole team does, like they're little cheerleaders on the bench anytime you walk in the right corner. They're always something like they're playing basketball in the game. Only seven or eight players play for them. I don't see why the others get talking. They might as well just be in the stands."
Here's the part where we note that Morris and Johnson combined to shoot 6-for-17 on Wednesday. According to ESPN Stats & Info, James had 15 points on 7-for-9 shooting when Johnson was guarding him.
And James' team is up, 2-0, with Game 3 coming today.
In other words, James has the scoreboard, and the Pistons are about to get a participation trophy.
But this stuff is gold for a fan base that still worships the Bad Boys of Isiah Thomas, Bill Laimbeer and Rick Mahorn.
And Morris and Johnson have breathed life into a series that could have been very dull.
Sports on 04/22/2016