DWIGHT EAGER TO FACE LEBRON, CAVS

Orlando Magic all-star center Dwight Howard has marveled from afar this season at the dominant and consistent success of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, winners of 13 straight games before Thursday’s shocking loss to Washington.

But Dwight isn’t just tuning in to Cavaliers games these days for a scouting report on the team that his Magic could very well face in the eastern Conference Finals in May. Dwight says the Cavs have become must-see TV as much for their pregame theatrics as their in-game success.

``LeBron’s had an unbelievable season and he has his team playing great basketball,’’ Dwight said. ``But I would say now, more so than even watching his team play, I like watching the pregame rituals that his team does. To me, that’s more exciting than the game. Every time they play I try to catch the beginning of the game to see what they are going to do.’’

Dwight will have an up-close view of Cleveland’s pregame antics tonight when the Magic and Cavs face off in a showdown of Eastern Conference titans. Both teams will be coming off stunning losses to nonplayoff teams. Orlando’s six-game winning streak ended Wednesday when it lost to Toronto, while the Cavs stubbed their toes Thursday against the hapless Wizards.

Clearly, the stars of the show tonight will be Dwight and LeBron. The two Olympians have become the face of the NBA what with their ability to dominate games two dramatically different ways. LeBron is the favorite to win the MVP because he has his team on top of the East and has posted near-triple-double numbers most of the season.

Dwight, meanwhile, should be the landslide winner of the Defensive Player of the Year. He is just a matter of games from becoming the fifth player ever to lead the league in rebounding and blocked shots in the same season. David Lee would have to average 20 rebounds a game down the stretch, and Chris Anderson would need five-plus blocks a night the rest of the way – and that’s only if Dwight doesn’t scratch in either category. Not going to happen.

Being a face of the NBA suits Dwight just fine, and he knows LeBron, his friend from the Olympics, is right there with him.&n bsp;

``Hopefully that’s the case. We both want to set a standard for how the game is played for years to come,’’ Dwight said. ``We’re both doing it from two different positions. We’re trying to do the best job we can for ourselves and our teams. He went to Cleveland, which was a struggling team before he got there and he brought some life back there. I’m trying to do the same, bring some life back to O-town.’’