LeBron James' brilliant destruction of Pacers can't mask his maddening habits

　　Early in the fourth quarter of Sunday's Game 1 win, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra looked the NBA's MVP in the eye and said, "You cannot get tired."Normally, LeBron James starts the final quarter on the bench, but the coach decided the game was too close, Chris Bosh was out with an injury and, as Spoelstra put it, "We needed him."James did not get tired. He had 16 points in the fourth quarter alone to help his team run away from the Pacers. The newly minted MVP was unstoppable down the stretch.But why did it even come to this?

　　Game 1 was surprisingly close throughout, and the Heat didn't take control until the final minutes. James scored only six points in the first half. He attempted two free throws. It seemed like every play was James hustling the ball up court, slamming on the brakes, peeling back and then throwing it to someone else. That's even what happened leading up to Bosh's injury: James was close enough to the basket to finish or draw a foul, but he deferred and Bosh got hurt underneath the glass. This isn't to say James is responsible for a teammate's injury – he wasn't – but a bull in a china shop shouldn't be so hesitant to, you know, break some things.

　　That's what's so maddening about James. He's an MVP who isn't always MVP-ish. Even Wade said Sunday, "Sometimes he starts out aggressive, sometimes he don't." We all know the answer: James wants to be the consummate teammate. But Wade, who is a consummate teammate, is almost always ferocious. "Flash" bolted for the basket from the beginning of Game 1 like a dad who saw his infant about to fall down the stairs. He went to the line 14 times and made 13 of his tries. There's no reason James shouldn't do the same.

　　The calls that went for Pacers center Roy Hibbert in the first round went against him Sunday, so it's not like the referees aren't going to give him the benefit of the doubt. James himself calls the Heat "an attack team," and it shouldn't take a close playoff game and an injury to a teammate for him to attack. Go to the rack, go to the stripe, go to the Finals.