LeBron: 1st-round matchup against Heat 'will be good for the fans'

LeBron James and Dwyane Wade have never played against each other in the playoffs. That may be about to change. 

James' Cleveland Cavaliers and Wade's Miami Heat enter Wednesday lined up to meet in the first round of the playoffs in a dramatic opening series. 

It's something that excites James, who teamed up with Wade in Miami for four seasons - leading the Heat to the NBA Finals in each one - before heading back home to Cleveland as a free agent in July. 

"I mean just to go up against a champion, a competitor like himself and that franchise," James told reporters Wednesday. "Obviously I'm not there yet, but I am kind of in playoff mentality but as far as my opponent, I'm not there yet because I lock down on what I need to do.

"You look at the standings, you see who's 2-7. If we continue to do well, we'll probably face the 7-seed and we'll see what happens then. But it will be good for the fans, for sure. And it will be good for me and D-Wade just being two guys that love to compete."

The close friends have been to the Finals four times together, and one other time each when they weren't teammates. Wade has won three championships and has powered the James-less Heat this season, a team that also lost 10-time All-Star Chris Bosh for the remainder of the campaign in February. 

The shooting guard has turned back the clock to make Miami a favorite to land one of the final two Eastern Conference playoff spots up for grabs. Wade's averaging 24.3 points, 4.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds over his last 15 games. 

James, meanwhile, has turned a Cavaliers team that went 97-215 during his tenure with the Heat back into title contenders. He's once again at the forefront of the MVP discussion, averaging 25.7 points, 7.3 assists and 5.9 rebounds in 64 games. Cleveland is 2-9 without him in the lineup.

The Heat have beaten the Cavaliers twice in three meetings this season. Thursday will mark their fourth and final clash, unless they battle for an epic seven-game series just over two weeks from now.