MIAMI -- For LeBron James, the signs are all familiar.

The initial discomfort in a new system. The frustrating losses. The growing pains. The private bickering, questioning and second-guessing. The attitude issues. Even the turbulence during particularly heated timeouts.

And yes, the breakdowns against the Boston Celtics.

James knows that script all too well. He's lived it during the honeymoon period with the Miami Heat, the one that sent the team into a brief stretch of disarray following a difficult 9-8 start.

The Heat have been there.

The New York Knicks are there now.

So as he watches his close friend and 2003 draft classmate, Carmelo Anthony, sputter through a similar rough patch in his transition with the Knicks, it's not difficult for James to shift away from his job as a competitor and step into the role of a confidant and counselor.

With James' Heat in third place in the East and Anthony's Knicks a game behind the Sixers for the No. 6 spot, the two could very well be on a collision course as potential opponents in the first round of the playoffs next month. But for now, they are charting a parallel path.

"I know exactly what he's going through right now," James said, of Anthony's more-difficult-than-expected indoctrination with the Knicks. "I understand exactly what he's been saying. Do the people, the fans and the media in New York want to hear that? I don't think so. But I know exactly what it means. And it's going to take time. Everybody knows we were 9-8. We had to figure things out. And we're still figuring things out. Once they figure it out, it'll be fine. It's not going to be a bed of roses."

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