Lucas, who will turn 48 next month, knows he will have his hands full with the Cavs when training camp opens Tuesday morning. Before he decided to leave his job as an assistant with the Denver Nuggets and take his third head coaching position in the NBA, he talked to everybody even remotely connected to the team, including most of the players. He knows the Cavs rank third in popularity among the top three pro sports in Cleveland, and he knows they're not ready to contend for the championship.

But he says this is not his biggest challenge. Asked the toughest job he ever had, Lucas paused for a long moment and then said quietly, "Staying inside my skin. Being me."