LOS ANGELES — LeBron James became the first frontcourt player to reach the 7,000 assist milestone as he scored a season-high 44 points to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 116-105 win over the Charlotte Hornets.
James hit the magic number Saturday in front of a crowd of 20,500 at the Quicken Loans Arena by skipping a nifty pass to teammate Tristan Thompson who was driving to the basket.
“The last couple years this is the best I’ve felt. I’ve put a lot of work into my body, into my craft,” James said.
The 44 points was his best outing since returning to Cleveland and equaled the 44 points he scored in a Game One overtime loss against the Golden State Warriors in the 2015 NBA finals.
The Cavaliers delivered two home wins this weekend, and besides eclipsing 7,000 career assists, James also moved into ninth place on the all-time scoring list during the victories over the Miami Heat and the Hornets.
This was James’ first 40-point game during the regular season since February 26, 2015 when he scored 42 in a home win against the Golden State Warriors.
Kemba Walker scored 24 points and Cody Zeller had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Hornets, who had their three-game winning streak snapped.
Grizzlies 110, Warriors 89: Memphis stunned Golden State at FedExForum for its sixth straight win, holding the Warriors to a season low for points.
The Memphis defense dominated from the start and the Grizzlies scored 30 points off 23 Golden State turnovers. It was only the second time this season that the Warriors failed to score 100 points. Their previous low was 97 in a 20-point setback to the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 4.
Clippers 133, Pelicans 105: Chris Paul scored 20 points and dished out a season-high 20 assists, and Los Angeles extended the woes of New Orleans with a rout at Staples Center.
Both clubs were without their main stars.
Rockets 109, Mavericks 87: Trevor Ariza keyed an offensive awakening with four consecutive 3-pointers and Houston shot its way to a win over Dallas at Toyota Center.
The Rockets extended their winning streak to six games and added to their NBA record of games with at least 10 3-pointers. Houston finished 19 of 37 from behind the arc, with Ariza igniting a third-quarter run to clinch momentum.
Bulls 105, Heat 100: Jimmy Butler scored 31 points, Dwyane Wade finished with 28 and Taj Gibson added 13 as Chicago beat Miami at the United Center.
The Bulls held on for the win after leading by as many as 13 points in the third quarter. But the Heat cut the deficit to 101-100 with less than a minute to play on a Hassan Whiteside basket. But Chicago never relinquished the lead after Butler hit a pair of free throws to again extend Chicago’s lead back to three points.
Spurs 130, Nets 101
Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points in 27 minutes and the San Antonio Spurs posted season highs for points in a quarter and in a game and total assists while rolling past hapless Brooklyn at the AT&T Center.
Pacers 118, Trail Blazers 111: Paul George scored a season-high 37 points, and Indiana Pacers overcame a 20-point deficit to defeat Portland.
Wizards 110, Bucks 105: John Wall had 24 points and 11 assists as
Washington outscored Milwaukee 15-5 over the final 4:15 to pull out the win.
Bradley Beal had 20 points for the Wizards. Kelly Oubre scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed nine rebounds.
Nuggets 121, Magic 113: Danilo Gallinari scored 21 points and Kenneth Faried had 19 points and 10 rebounds, leading Denver to a victory over Orlando.
Jazz 104, Kings 84: Gordon Hayward scored 26 points and Rudy Gobert added 17 points, 14 rebounds and a season-high six blocks to help Utah pull away for a victory over Sacramento.
Trey Lyles added 14 points and five rebounds off the bench for the Jazz.
