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It took 23 minutes and 58.7 seconds to define the series as it now stands at 2-0.

That’s when Brendan Haywood committed his first offense against LeBron James. That’s when the Cavaliers – and the Wizards – officially knew that the bad blood wasn’t just talk.

“Trash talking started three years ago, it just didn’t start this series,” quipped the otherwise-likeable Gilbert Arenas after Saturday’s loss. “That’s what players do – you have teams that don’t like each other on the court, but love each other off the court. Damon Jones and I are best friends, but I talked trash to him before we arrived and throughout the game. That’s what basketball is about.”

Haywood – who was a Cavalier for around 20 minutes on Draft night in 2001 – committed his second offense on Monday night when he knocked LeBron out of the air on a put-back attempt in the third. Haywood got hit with a Flagrant-2, but won’t receive a suspension. James’ teammates talked about the physicality of the series and that particular shot on Tuesday at Cleveland Clinic Courts.

“It was hard foul, but in this series, you have to be prepared for anything,” said Daniel Gibson. “It’s really intense and guys are really getting after it, so you just have to be prepared for those kinds of situations when you take the ball to the basket.”

LeBron’s been fouled harder than the shove Haywood gave him, but it was the precarious mid-air position that made it a dangerous play. The Cavaliers went on a 15-6 run after his ejection, putting the game on ice for the night.

“When somebody’s in the air like that – I don’t know if you’re trying to hurt somebody or it’s just a hard foul,” said Zydrunas Ilgauskas. “But the problem is when you’re in the air that high, you land funny and (could) break a hand or do something to your knee.”

“I don’t think anybody’s out to hurt anyone," added Boobie. “But in a series like this, sometimes play gets out of hand. But I don’t think (Haywood) intentionally wanted to hurt him.”

Obscured among the rough play has been the Cavaliers’ excellent play – especially on the defensive end. The Wizards are shooting just under 39 percent in the first two games. Washington’s “Big Three” were a combined 10-for-36 on Monday.

Wally Szczerbiak found his shooting touch in Game 2, and has frustrated Caron Butler defensively in both contests. “Tough Juice” has gone 9-for-23 over the past two, while Szczerbiak was 6-for-9 for 15 points on Monday.

“We’re not going to relax as a team,” said Szczerbiak. “We did a good job of protecting homecourt. We definitely feel good about how we’ve played in the first two games and now we just have to carry it over to Washington.”

Wally has responded well to the starting assignment, and for the first time since the Cavaliers made the 11-player deal on Feb. 22, the chemistry seems to be coming together. Ben Wallace has been tough in the post and showed some early offense on Monday. Delonte West has been strong in the final three weeks of the season, and has carried that into the first two games.

And Joe Smith has been Joe Smith – rock-solid on both ends of the floor, and a nice complement/alternative to Anderson Varejao. Smith is the perfect blend of toughness and technique and has been a strong, veteran presence.

“They made a statement in Game 1, giving LeBron a couple of hard fouls,” said the 12-year veteran. “We obviously don’t want to hurt anybody out there but we don’t want to give up anything easy. We kind of answered back a little bit with a little bit of aggressiveness (Monday).”

Nothing the referees can do will reverse the tone of the series. No player wants to get thrown out, but it’s the Playoffs and there won’t be any more easy dunks. That part of the season ended last Wednesday.

As the old George Karl saying goes, a series doesn’t start until the home team loses a game. The Cavaliers will be looking for the unofficial beginning on Thursday night in D.C.