LeBron James has a stronger cast around him as the Cavs make a run at beating the Celtics.

As a 23-year-old, LeBron James led the Cavaliers in scoring (30.0 ppg), assists (7.2 apg), and is now in an annual battle with the Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant for the right to be called the NBA's best player. James more than likely will test the free agent waters after his contract is up in 2010, and reports are speculating that with the Allen Iverson trade to the Detroit Pistons, GM Joe Dumars has freed up cap room for a run at James, which might prove interesting in the Eastern Conference, as he will go up against the Cavs.

James is an unbelievable athlete with his strength and size, and he keeps getting better and better. When his jumper is falling, he is virtually unstoppable. That said, Boston proved you can force James into some bad shooting nights, and no one has been able to step up in that type of situation and take advantage of the extra attention the All-Star receives.

James has a more formidable point guard to play with this season with the addition of Mo Williams, who was acquired in a three-team trade this offseason. Williams instantly becomes the No. 2 option for head coach Mike Brown and the Cavs after averaging a solid 17.2 points and 6.3 assists for the Bucks last season. In the season before that, Williams tallied 17.3 points and 6.1 assists, numbers that trump any of James' teammates over the same period.

"Mo is a player that excels as a traditional point guard, but also brings an extra dimension with his scoring and versatility," Ferry told NBA.com. "His ability to push the tempo, get inside the lane, shoot from the perimeter and distribute the ball will be very valuable for us."

As hyped, as people are to have Williams in town, he does sport a few blemishes. Williams has missed 54 games over the past three seasons with a series of ailments and he is not exactly the best defender in the world although Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Ben Wallace and Anderson Varejao can erase many perimeter defensive mistakes.

Veteran center Ilgauskas, who averaged a team-best 9.3 rebounds last season, joins Daniel Gibson, Sasha Pavlovic, Wally Szczerbiak, Varejao, Wallace and Delonte West to make up a decent supporting cast.

 Wallace has seen better days, but he can still clean the glass with the best of them and be an intimidating weak side defender. Offensively, "Big Ben" is a liability, which makes it tougher and tougher to justify having him on the floor in the final two minutes of a close game because of his poor free throw shooting.

Ilgauskas has great hands and remains a solid finisher around the basket. He seems to lose more and more of his lateral mobility each season, which was never his strong suit to begin with. Still, in a league where competent big men are in short supply, Ilgauskas is a legitimate center that actually plays like a center.

Szczerbiak could be an important part of the Cavs plans this year, especially if things go as expected. A great shooter, Szczerbiak should have plenty of room to shoot with James and Williams on the floor. However, he is in the final year of a six-year deal and his expiring contract could be used as trade bait if the Cavs need something extra at the trade deadline.

 Prediction 50-32 and First Place in the Eastern Conference