Cleveland’s preseason schedule got underway on Tuesday (Oct. 6) with a 92-87 win vs. Charlotte. Both O’Neal and James were on the court for close to 15 minutes each and there were more than 20 000 fans in attendance for the chance to see Shaq and the King in Cavs blue.

It may have just been preseason but NBA fans and basketball bettors were still anxious to see how new Cavs center Shaquille O’Neal and superstar LeBron James would mesh. Early indications are that it’s going to be a very good year in Cleveland.

After the Cleveland Cavaliers were eliminated from the Eastern Conference playoffs it didn’t take long for the brains behind the operation to come up with a possible solution to the problem. Shaquille O’Neal was signed in June as the complementary piece that reigning league MVP LeBron James was missing to help take the Cavs to the next two steps.

For Cleveland, winning in the regular season was not a problem. The Cavs finished 2008-09 with 66 regular season wins, one more than the Los Angeles Lakers. Playoffs were going reasonably well, as the Cavs made short work of both the Pistons and Hawks, sweeping both. But then came the Orlando Magic. Cleveland was unable to win on the road against Orlando and fell four games to two.

Shaq is seen as the missing ingredient and O’Neal is coming into Cleveland with the right attitude. The 37-year old O’Neal knows his part and what is expected of him in Ohio and he’s comfortable with it. The Cavs haven’t won a title since 1964 and O’Neal does not have many opportunities left at adding another to his collection. O’Neal already has four NBA titles under his belt.

Whether or not the combination of the two basketball superstars will work remains to be seen. James and O’Neal have already started developing chemistry off-court and with an entire season ahead and as close to 100-percent chance as you can get for making the playoffs without uttering the dreaded “L” word used in the sports betting world by unsuperstitious types, there is plenty of time to find out.

Oddsmakers at online sportsbooks are hedging their bets.

- The numbers on King James winning the league MVP in 2000-10 season are less than 3-to-1, which is top of the class.

- Odds on the Cavaliers (+300) capturing the NBA league championship title are just a little higher. Those who bet basketball can probably guess the one team favored ahead of the Cavs (Lakers +240).

- Central division odds aren’t even fair for Cleveland backers, as a futures bet requires you to lay $400 to win $100. The next closest thing in the Central is Detroit, paying back at 3-to-1.