Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James sits on the bench during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2015, in Miami. The Heat defeated the Cavaliers 99-84. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Cavaliers arrived in Miami shortly after 5 a.m. It was the second game of a back-to-back after losing in overtime against the New Orleans Pelicans the night before. The setup made things incredibly challenging and it was known as soon as the schedule was released.

Then, about an hour before tip, Cavaliers head coach David Blatt made it more difficult, electing to sit LeBron James against his former team. James isn't injured so there's nothing to worry about for Tuesday night's showdown against Portland.

Saturday, however was another story.

Just like last season when James was sidelined with a bad back, the Cavs got thumped, losing to Miami, 99-84. The final score doesn't even show how lopsided the game was so maybe this stat will: The Cavs led for 21 seconds.

The Cavs are now 3-11 without James in the last two seasons. Miami went 9-9 without him in his four years.

Here are five observations from the loss:

Blatt's call - It's tough to tell James, the ultimate competitor, that he's going to rest. He wanted to play 82 games this season and playing in his old kingdom made Saturday's game a little bit different.

It took some convincing from Blatt, general manager David Griffin and James' trainer, Mike Mancias, for James to miss the game.

But it was the right call and Blatt deserves credit.

I was unhappy with Blatt's decision to play James 45 minutes on Friday against New Orleans, seeing the minutes start to pile up. James had slowly crept above his minutes-per-game average in four of the last five games, carrying much of the offensive scoring load for the shorthanded Cavaliers.

That was never the plan.

The Cavs spent wildly this off-season, boosting their bench and bringing in a serviceable new playmaker, Mo Williams, to try to keep James fresh and healthy heading into the postseason.

So Blatt and the crew chose the prefect time to sit James -- the second game of a back-to-back after an exhausting fourth quarter where he scored 23 points and carried the Cavs into overtime.

No matter how lethargic the Cavs looked without their unquestioned leader, Blatt should look for more opportunities to hold James out as the season progresses. It's up to the rest of the players on the supersized payroll to step up in James' absence and keep the Cavs competitive.

Focal point flop - With James resting and Kyrie Irving sidelined, the only member of Cleveland's Big Three to take the court in Miami was Kevin Love. Or did he?

A three-time All-Star and $110 million man, Love should've stepped up and played with the attitude and effort of one of the best power forwards in the NBA. It was his opportunity to be the focal point of the offense and send a reminder of his greatness.

Instead, he no-showed, much like the rest of the Cavs' starting unit.

"Not just Kevin," Blatt said. "A lot of guys had to give us more than they did. It wasn't just one guy."

Blatt's right. It wasn't just Love. But he's the big-money player and the expectations are, and should be, higher for him. The Cavs needed more.

"I got good shots, real good shots, especially from the perimeter," Love said. "Just didn't make them."

He recorded a season-low five points on 2-of-11 shooting and pulled down eight boards in 22 disastrous minutes. I mean, seriously? That's the performance Love provides on a night when the offense belongs to him?

Love has had a strong start to the season, showing flashbacks to his Minnesota days. One horrendous night in Miami doesn't change any of that. And he's still an important ingredient in Cleveland's championship elixir. But his play on Saturday was not nearly good enough. I would hope for a much better effort next time James rests.

On the other side, Bosh, who is very familiar with Love's role, scored 14 points on 5-of-6 from the floor. He also grabbed six rebounds, dished out three assists and had two blocks.

Laying down - The Cavs didn't have as much talent on the court as usual. Their offense has centered on James all season and it unsurprisingly dipped with him in a sport coat, one that made him look like a ship captain.

The 84 points is relatively excusable.

The lack of fight, the defeated attitude from the opening tip and the 93 points given up in the first 40 minutes isn't. Effort can be controlled and too often the Cavs allowed easy baskets, showing little pride on the defensive end of the floor.

On the night, Miami was 37-of-68 (54.4 percent) from the field, scoring 44 of their 99 points in the paint and putting together a highlight-reel of plays.

The only burst of energy came once the game was well out of reach and Blatt emptied his bench. A loss is one thing, and it's only December, but failing to show effort is another, especially when it's an issue that James has already spoken of a few times this season.

"The way they played was the way we should have played from the start of the game," J.R. Smith said after the game. He scored 12 points on 4-of-12 shooting, including 1-of-5 from three-point range.

He's right. Without James, the Cavs should've known they would have to fight and scrap to make up for their lack of offense.

No Mo - Williams was another player with a bigger platform on Saturday. Instead of stepping up in the face of injuries, Williams flopped. He played 12 minutes, scoring five points on 2-of-7 shooting. He also committed four fouls.

In the last six games, Williams is averaging 10.0 points on 28-of-56 (50 percent) from the field. He is also averaging just 24 minutes per game. Perhaps Blatt is attempting to not overuse the 32-year-old combo guard. Or maybe Williams' questionable defense is causing his workload to be cut back.

Soon, Irving and Iman Shumpert will be back and the Cavs will have to figure out what to do about Williams.

He was brought to Cleveland in the off-season to be Irving's primary backup while also keeping the team afloat during Irving's absence. Williams' scoring punch off the bench was something the Cavs missed during the postseason run. But Dellavedova's minutes aren't going to be cut much. He entered the night tops in assist-to-turnover ratio and he brings much-needed defensive intensity. He also has earned Blatt's trust.

So how will Williams get consistent minutes, especially if he continues to be a defensive liability? It's something Blatt will have to navigate once he gets his full roster and it won't be an easy decision.

More Anderson Varejao? The floppy-haired big man is not what he once was. Coming off an Achilles injury and on the wrong side of 30, Varejao is not quick enough or athletic enough to hang with some of the young big men in the Eastern Conference.

He does, however, bring two things that have been lacking: Hustle and toughness.

He showed it again Saturday, as he was one of the only players who looked like they cared as the Cavs were getting embarrassed. He finished with six rebounds and one steal in 14 productive minutes. The game was out of reach, but showed some value. If Timofey Mozgov continues to struggle and his confidence continues to wane then maybe Blatt should consider giving Varejao more playing time, hoping his energy, work ethic and never-back-down attitude can funnel through the roster.

There's no reason to panic or make drastic changes. It doesn't matter that the Cavs have tumbled from the top of the Eastern Conference standings. Not now anyway.

A loss was expected without James. The overall performance, the Cavs morphing into the Philadelphia 76ers for one night, was not.

There was enough talent on the court to keep the game from being a laugher. I mean, they still had Love, Mozgov, Williams, Tristan Thompson, Dellavedova, Smith, Richard Jefferson, among others. That's plenty to stay competitive. But the Cavs chose to join James, they chose to take the night off.

Tuesday is an opportunity to bounce back.