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CLEVELAND -- Cavs coach Tyronn Lue broke into the NBA and won championships with the Los Angeles Lakers. Now he concedes he is surprised the leagues marquee franchise has struggled luring some of the top free agents the last couple of years.The Lakers arrive at Quicken Loans Arena fresh off their first victory in December after beating the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday to end an eight-game losing skid. It has been a difficult month after a surprising 10-10 start under first-year coach Luke Walton.Meanwhile stars such as LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Durant and Kevin Love have all bypassed the chance to sign with the Lakers in free agency the last two years.You would think that they would attract more free agents, but it depends who the free agents are, Lue said. Theres a lot of pressure when you put on that purple and gold. You have to win, and if one great player goes there and he cant carry a franchise, theres a lot of pressure on him. I dont think its because of the franchise or organization I just think its a lot of tradition that follows. For a guy to go there, go by himself and not be able to win, its a lot of pressure.Walton has done his best to keep the Lakers spirits up despite a skid that unraveled what was a promising start. Walton thought the coaches and players began putting too much emphasis on wins and losses rather than growth and seeing improvement. Once he corrected that course Friday morning, the Lakers produced one of their better defensive efforts of the season in beating the Sixers.Guard DAngelo Russell is still working his way back from platelet-rich plasma therapy on his right knee. He has appeared in five games now since the procedure, although Walton still doesnt believe hes all the way back.He still didnt look fully healthy to me, Walton said Friday. He looked great early, but later in the game he looked like he was laboring a little bit. I wouldnt call him 100 percent, but he looked good.Walton is a former Cavs forward who is friendly with Lue because of the Lakers ties the two share. They also share a craps table every July during summer league in Las Vegas.We meet at craps table No. 6 every night at 9 oclock, Lue said. We meet there every night during summer league. Me, him and (Richard Jefferson). But R.J. is terrible, so we keep him away. Hes not serious enough. Me and Luke are pretty serious about it.Lue is also serious about winning and keeping the Cavs fresh for what should be a deep playoff run. He was sharply criticized for leaving LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving at home for what turned out to be a loss at Memphis on Wednesday on the second night of a home-and-home with the Grizzlies. But all three stars will be back on the floor against the Lakers. For Irving, it represents a full week off after he complained of tired legs last Saturday.Of course you dont want to upset the fans and let the fans down, Lue said. You know they want to see LeBron and Kevin and Kyrie play. ... I feel sorry for the fans but my biggest thing is I have to protect our team and make sure our team is okay.The Cavs learned late Friday theyd be without reserve center Chris Birdman Andersen for the rest of the season. Andersen, 38, tore the ACL in his right knee during practice Friday and will need season-ending surgery to repair it. He played sparingly this season, but his loss leaves the Cavs with just three healthy bigs in Love, Tristan Thompson and Channing Frye.Terry OReilly Bruins Jersey .ca look back at each of the Top 10 stories of 2013. Today, we look back at Boston Strong - a citys recovery from tragedy. Steven Kampfer Bruins Jersey . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. http://www.thebostonbruinshockey.com/kevan-miller-hockey-jersey/ . The phone hearing is scheduled for 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt. Winchester, who was not penalized for the hit, appeared to make contact with Kellys head early in the first period of Thursdays game in Boston. Phil Esposito Bruins Jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night. David Backes Bruins Jersey . - Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie never doubted he would bring back coach Dennis Allen for a third year despite back-to-back 4-12 records.GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Floridas Jim McElwain made Southeastern Conference history by becoming the first coach to reach the leagues championship game in his first two seasons.Hes 13-3 in SEC play, has swept rival Georgia and pushed the Gators to start making strides to improve their football facilities.It is hardly enough, at least not in Gainesville.As the 15th-ranked Gators (8-3) head to Atlanta to face top-ranked Alabama (12-0) for the second straight year, McElwain is getting more criticism than acclaim. Florida looked overmatched in a 31-13 loss at Florida State last Saturday, failing to score an offensive touchdown for the second time in as many years in the series. And McElwain, hired to fix Floridas floundering offense, has come up well short and offered nothing more than a glimpse of anything resembling Steve Spurriers Fun `n Gun that dominated the league throughout most of the 1990s.The Gators currently rank 114th in the nation in total offense, down two spots from 2015 while averaging a meager 352.7 yards a game. And they easily could drop after facing the Tides top-ranked defense Saturday.I dont look at it as a mismatch at all, McElwain said Monday. I look at it as a great opportunity, and you know thats part of the chess match. ... I know this: Were playing in this game and were going to give ourselves every opportunity to be successful.Florida was somewhat competitive in last years title game.The Gators returned a punt for a touchdown early and trailed 12-7 at halftime before Alabama pulled away and won 29-15 . Florida finished with 180 yards, the fewest of McElwains tenure. Quarterback Treon Harris got the brunt of the blame for that stinker as well as Floridas late-season slide.There havent been nearly as many excuses this year.McElwain started two transfer quarterbacks (Luke Del Rio and Austin Appleby) over two freshmen he recruited (Feleipe Franks and Kyle Trask). It seemed justifiable before the season, but looked highly questionable once it became clear Del Rio and Appleby have flaws.Thee Gators have thrown for fewer than 150 yards in four of their last seven games, and havent topped 230 yards passing in more than two months.dddddddddddd think weve done it throughout the season in glimpses and spurts, Appleby said. The key for us is going to be to the consistency. We cant shoot ourselves in the foot. We cant have negative plays. Weve got to stay on schedule and keep working. ... We know we can do it.Now its just about doing it time and time again, and thats that mental endurance thing. Thats playing for each other, trusting in the plan, not making stuff up, and just executing the plan.Consistency hasnt been Floridas offensive forte under McElwain. Consider this: The Gators have been held below 275 yards of offense in 10 of their last 17 games. And its not like theyre playing some of the nations top defense every week. In fact, eight of Floridas 11 opponents have defenses that rank 63rd or worse.So it would surprise no one to see McElwain make wholesale offensive changes after the bowl game, including firing coordinator Doug Nussmeier, line coach Mike Summers and maybe others.In the meantime, the Gators can celebrate another SEC East title, with no mention that its widely considered the worst division in the Power Five conferences. The East is 11-33 against the West over the last three years.Florida has merely managed to be better than the rest in a watered-down division, good enough to put McElwain in the record books but not enough to silence detractors who question whether a guy who once said he could win with his dog at quarterback has made Florida any better offensively after 25 games.Its obviously one of those things that you have to constantly evaluate and get better at, McElwain said. I was also brought in here to get to Atlanta. How many years have I been here? OK.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 ' ' '