And then there was one

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MIAMI -- LeBron James was sent home from Miami's game-day shootaround practice to rest Thursday morning, and the Heat say he will be a game-time decision for that night's matchup with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Meanwhile, the Lakers -- and James' former coach -- fully expect him to play.

"When you talk about great players like him, those guys even though they're sick or a little injured or whatever, they find a way to perform at a high level," Lakers coach Mike Brown, one of James' former coaches with the Cleveland Cavaliers, said Thursday afternoon. "I don't think it's any different for LeBron."

James has been battling flu-like symptoms for much of this week. He said it affected him in the early minutes of Miami's game against San Antonio on Tuesday, a contest where he started slowly and still finished with 33 points, 17 of those in a huge third-quarter run as the Heat turned a 14-point halftime deficit into a 22-point win.

James said he was feeling better Wednesday, though some symptoms apparently reappeared Wednesday night and into Thursday morning. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra indicated James was sent home only as a precaution.

"He's feeling under the weather still," Spoelstra said.

Miami will be without guard Dwyane Wade, whose sprained right ankle will keep him sidelined for the second straight game. It's the fifth game Wade will miss in Miami's first 14 this season because of injury, the first three of those caused by a sore left foot.

"The show still goes on," Heat forward Chris Bosh said. "We're still going to expect to win."

Whether James plays or not, the Heat plan to use Shane Battier and James Jones defensively on Lakers star Kobe Bryant, at least some of the time.

"It's always a luxury having such great players on your team," Bosh said. "But sometimes they're out. This is why we made moves this season, was to be a deeper team."