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Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James and Iman Shumpert celebrate J.R. Smith's reverse dunkSeth Wenig/The Associated Press

LeBron James was sitting comfortably on the bench and figured on staying there. Then J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert punctuated their return to New York with an alley-oop that demanded he stand.

"That was beautiful, that was special," James said. "I was planning on not getting up too many times off the bench, start my treatment session, but that was special."

James and Kyrie Irving each scored 18 points, Smith had 17 and the Cleveland Cavaliers crushed the Knicks 101-83 on Sunday.

James moved past Allen Iverson into 22nd place on the career scoring list, and added seven rebounds and seven assists. Kevin Love finished with 16 points and 16 boards, combining with James and Irving to outscore the inept Knicks in the first half.

Cleveland won for the 16th time in 18 games and got good performances from Smith and Shumpert, who were acquired by the Cavs on Jan. 5 and have helped solidify a team that was still below.500 shortly after the trade.

"I think it's great," Smith said. "Our mindsets have changed, as opposed to trying to get a win to expecting to win every game."

The Cavaliers are 35-22 now and have been untouchable since returning from the All-Star break, hammering Washington by 38 on Friday and leading this one by 30.

Shumpert came off the bench for four points, five rebounds and seven assists, one of them when Smith jumped to catch his lob pass and slammed it down with his back to the basket for an 89-59 lead. The two guards hugged, and Smith jumped into James' arms heading back to the bench.

"I even told him in the timeout, 'Thank you for the price of admission,"' Cavs coach David Blatt said. "That was special and really nice that it was here in New York."

Langston Galloway scored 13 for the Knicks, who shot 3 for 19 from 3-point range and lost their seventh straight.

It was 62-38 at halftime and James, Love and Irving had 39 points. The Knicks missed all nine 3-point attempts in the first half.

"It's the same thing occurring over and over. It's nothing new," Knicks guard Tim Hardaway Jr. said. "We need a better start to games, point blank."

James has 24,383 points. He came in four behind Iverson and passed the former Philadelphia 76ers star quickly during a 12-point first quarter, when he slammed the ball so hard after a steal that it ricocheted off his left shoulder over the baseline after going through the basket.

He played only 29 minutes, ending his streak of 25-point games on the road at 11.

PACERS 104, WARRIORS 98

INDIANAPOLIS – Rodney Stuckey scored 30 points to help Indiana beat NBA-leading Golden State.

The Warriors played without star guard Stephen Curry for the first time this season. He sat out because of soreness in his right ankle.

Showing little signs of the left ankle sprain he suffered in a victory at Philadelphia on Friday night, Stuckey made a cutting layup off a pass from David West to give Indiana a 91-90 lead with 3:58 left.

C.J. Miles added 13 points. He made a 3-poiner from the right wing with 26.5 seconds to make it 101-97.

Klay Thompson scored 39 points for Golden State. Andre Iguodala added 14.

THUNDER 119, NUGGETS 94

OKLAHOMA CITY – Russell Westbrook had 21 points and a career-high 17 assists, and Oklahoma City beat Denver without Kevin Durant.

Durant was out after a procedure Sunday to replace a screw that was causing soreness in his surgically repaired right foot. The reigning NBA MVP is expected to return this season.

Enes Kanter had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Thunder, who have won six straight and eight of nine. Serge Ibaka added 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

Ty Lawson scored 17 points for Denver. The Nuggets gave lost seven of eight.

GRIZZLIES 98, TRAIL BLAZERS 92

PORTLAND, Ore. – Marc Gasol scored 21 points, and Memphis overcame a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat Portland.

LaMarcus Aldridge was a late scratch for the Blazers because of a right thumb sprain. It was unclear how the four-time All-Star injured the thumb; he was out warming up with the team before the game.

The Grizzlies, off to the best start in franchise history at 40-14, were coming off a 10-day layoff because of the All-Star break.

Damian Lillard had 18 points for Portland.

MAVERICKS 92, HORNETS 81

DALLAS – Monta Ellis scored 15 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter and Amare Stoudemire had 14 points in 11 minutes in his Dallas debut in the Mavericks' victory over Charlotte.

Stoudemire made his first appearance in an NBA game since Feb. 11. He was signed by Dallas during the All-Star break after his contract was bought out by the New York Knicks.

Mo Williams scored 22 points for the Hornets. Williams, acquired from Minnesota on Feb. 10, also led Charlotte in scoring in his team debut Saturday night, finishing with 28 against Oklahoma City.

LAKERS 118, CELTICS 111, OT

LOS ANGELES – Jeremy Lin had a season-high 25 points, and Los Angeles beat Boston to snap a seven-game losing streak.

Wesley Johnson added a season-high 22 and Nick Young finished with 19 points, helping the Lakers win for only the second time in their last 18 games. The other victory came in double overtime at home against Chicago on Jan. 29.

Isaiah Thomas, making his Celtics debut after Thursday's trade from Phoenix, scored 21 points in 25 minutes before he was ejected with 5:03 left in regulation and Boston trailing 91-87.

Celtics guard Avery Bradley scored eight of his 20 points in the final 27 seconds of the fourth quarter, including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that sent the game to OT.

HAWKS 97, BUCKS 86

MILWAUKEE – Paul Millsap had 23 points and 16 rebounds, Kyle Korver added 12 points and Atlanta beat Milwaukee to avoid its first three-game losing streak of the season.

Korver hit three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter after Atlanta squandered an early 16-point lead.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton each had 19 points for Milwaukee. The Bucks had won four straight.

PISTONS 106, WIZARDS 89

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 26 points, Andre Drummond added 18 points and 16 rebounds and new-look Detroit beat Washington.

The Pistons are 2-0 since coach and president Stan Van Gundy traded four players to get Reggie Jackson and Tayshaun Prince at the trading deadline Thursday. Greg Monroe had 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Jackson finished with 17 points as Detroit put seven players in double figures.

Marcin Gortat had 24 points and 10 rebounds for the Wizards.

MAGIC 103, 76ERS 98

ORLANDO, Fla. – Nik Vucevic had 31 points and 14 rebounds, and Orlando beat Philadelphia for its first three-game winning streak of the season.

Victor Oladipo scored 17 points for the Magic, who nearly squandered a 12-point lead in the final five minutes. Willie Green had 16 points, and Channing Frye finished with 15.

JaKarr Sampson and Robert Covington had 16 points apiece for Philadelphia.

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