What was James’ response to all this? First, he said the Wizards’ crowd wasn’t nearly as intimidating as the Detroit fans in last year’s playoffs.

And as for Soulja Boy?

“My son knows every last dance Soulja Boy does and every last song he ever made,” James said. “So if my son was watching, he enjoyed it.”

When it was suggested that this might be part of a budding DeShawn-LeBron rivalry, James had a good laugh.

“There’s no DeShawn-LeBron rivalry,” he said, laughing again.

The Wizards tried to force James, who scored 32 and 30 points in Games 1 and 2, to shoot more from outside, and it worked. Booed heavily every time he touched the ball, the Cavaliers All-Star couldn’t get into a flow.

James said Washington’s tactics in the first two games were like a “Hack-a-Bron” strategy, but there was nothing like that this time. He finished with 22 points on 10-for-19 shooting from the field and took only four free throws.

“We double-teamed him more,” Jordan said.

The Wizards no doubt felt they got the calls that they argued were lacking in Cleveland, where the games were marred by physical play that included Brendan Haywood’s Game 2 ejection for a hard foul on James.

On Thursday night, Haywood and Zydrunas Ilgauskas got mutual technicals for pushing and shoving in the first quarter, but the hostilities didn’t escalate. The crowd roared its approval when James was called for a charge for knocking over Butler in the first quarter.

The one major issue for the Wizards is Arenas, who started for the first time since November but injured his surgically repaired left knee in the first half. He walked off the court late in the first half with an obvious limp and a bone bruise. He is listed as day-to-day.

“I think he’s going to be OK for Sunday,” Jordan said.

Notes: Several Wizards also sported a new look in front of the home crowd, which was almost universally dressed in white. Butler had his nickname — “Tough Juice” — etched into the back of his hair. Stevenson and Andray Blatche sported mohawks, and Nick Young showed off a modified high-top fade. ... The Wizards’ previous largest margin of victory in a playoff game came in 1978, when they beat Seattle 117-82 on the way to winning the NBA title. ... The Cavaliers’ previous biggest loss in the postseason was a 122-91 defeat at Boston in 1992.

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