Lebron James and Carmelo Anthony have played against each other since they were in their early teens. Both being supremely talented, they were destined to take their battles to the biggest stage.

However, their fates seem to have been reversed. In their high school skirmishes, Carmelo was on the better team. Oak Hill Academy is one of the top high school basketball programs in the United States. The alumni of Oak Hill is like a who's who of the NBA: Kevin Durant, Josh Smith, Rajon Rondo, Brandon Jennings, Michael Beasley, Ty Lawson and Steve Blake among active players according to Oak Hill Hoops.com.  The only other NBA player who came from St.Vincent-St.Mary where Lebron James went is Jerome Lane from the 80s (St.Vincent-St. Mary wiki).

At their present career paths, it seems like they have gone full circle. Lebron James is with the much better team, and it's not just about the win-column and the two titles. Despite all the reported uncertainty, the Heat are very sound .

All of the Heat's coaches and staff, even the Big Three of James, Dwyane Wade and Bosh look sincere when they give the textbook answer that they are focusing on defending the title and not thinking about the summer.

Carmelo Anthony has already made multiple slips of the tongue. Who can blame him?

From the Miami Herald, Greg Cote compares the two teams and their chances of keeping their star:

"The Heat surround LeBron with every reason to re-sign - with the vintage Wade seen Thursday maybe the best reason of all - while the Knicks' calamity all around Melo makes him a diamond in a septic tank, a player you'd think couldn't get out of New York fast enough.

The gaping difference between the extremes of the Heat and the Knicks we'd call the Three C's:

Character.  Chemistry. Culture."

A stark contrast is presented:

"New York has the most overpaid player in the league in the ghost of Amare Stoudemire and his creaking knees. They have Raymond Felton, who got arrested this week for threatening his girlfriend with a loaded gun. They have, of course, J.R. Smith, too, the sulking comedian who unties opponents' shoelaces and grabs their headbands when not too busy running afoul of the league's substance-abuse policy. They have an apparently clueless owner in James Dolan.

They are sinking fast out of the playoff chase."

He also points out a clear example of the Heat owner's values: "The Heat is eyeing available Caron Butler to sign instead of younger Danny Granger. Why? Because Miami players know and like Butler, while the mouthy Granger had irritated Heat players in past meetings." (UPDATE: Butler eventually picked the OKC Thunder over Miami).

He cites another example: "Miami had a chance to trade now-seldom-used Udonis Haslem (along with Toney Douglas and a draft pick) to Philadelphia last week for promising young Evan Turner, probably a smart move from both a basketball and financial vantage, but didn't. Why? Miami was repaying Haslem's loyalty."

Despite all this, free agency is still an unpredictable territory. But for now, it is safe to say that Lebron learned a lesson from being on the losing side of their high school encounter. Carmelo has to re-orient himself-the hard way.