THE Cavs got the band back together for all of about 16 minutes this preseason.

    That’s approximately how long all five starters from Cleveland’s 2016 NBA championship team were in uniform together for a game, thanks to J.R. Smith’s signing of a four-year, US$57 million deal Saturday.

    It was supposed to be coach Tyronn Lue’s first and only chance to use the Cavs’ main players as a true dress rehearsal for the upcoming season. Instead, it turned into a 96-91 loss to the Washington Wizards at Ohio State’s Schottenstein Center on Tuesday.

    The “dress rehearsal” faded away with 8:23 left in the second quarter, when Kyrie Irving left the court with what would later be called left calf tightness. He didn’t return, having failed to score in 10 minutes.

    The Cavs immediately downplayed Irving’s injury, saying it was not believed to be serious.

    LeBron James, playing for the first time since Oct. 8, scored 18 points with four rebounds, four steals, and two assists in 25 minutes. James shot 8-of-13 from the field; he’d rested for the previous three games. He finished the preseason averaging 13.3 points, and for the first time since returning to Cleveland, is fully healthy entering the regular season.

    Tristan Thompson, who didn’t play in Cleveland’s first three preseason games because of a stiff left foot, added 14 points and 10 rebounds and made all six of his shots.

    Kevin Love made three 3-pointers and finished with 15 points.

    As for Smith, whose first practice in 2016-17 was Monday, he scored four points on 1-of-4 shooting in 11 minutes. He took his usual place in the starting lineup, replacing Iman Shumpert.

    The Cavs ended their six-game preseason schedule Tuesday losers of their last four.

    Playing against Cleveland’s apparently tired and limited backcourt, Washington’s John Wall and Bradley Beal stood out. Wall scored 17 points with five rebounds and four assists in 24 minutes; Beal added 13 points and five assists in 28 minutes.

    (SD-Agencies)