LeBron James scored 23 points on Friday (NZT) to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 114-88 victory over the Miami Heat that dimmed his former team's playoff hopes.
James passed former Knicks centre Patrick Ewing for 20th on the NBA's all-time scoring list with a hook shot in the first quarter.
His 23 points in the game gave him 24,837 for his career.
He also handed out seven assists and pulled down eight rebounds in the win over his former team, which turned even more damaging for the Heat with the departure of Dwyane Wade with a left knee injury in the second quarter.
Wade was dribbling near the baseline when his right foot slipped and his left knee buckled as he collapsed to the ground in pain.
The Heat said the injury was a bruised left knee.
Wade has battled knee trouble for several years and had just had the same knee drained last Saturday.
"It could have been worse," said Wade, who said he still hoped he'd be ready to play at Detroit on Saturday.
"I knew I was in trouble on my way down."
Any time without Wade will hurt the Heat, who have dropped two straight games as they take part in a five-team battle for the final two places in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Brooklyn, Miami and Boston are all on 34 wins, with the Nets holding a game in hand. Behind them are Charlotte and Indiana, who have 32 wins apiece.
In Oakland, the league-leading Golden State Warriors made it 11 wins in a row as they beat the Phoenix Suns 107-106 with a basket at the buzzer.
Trailing by one point with four seconds left, the Warriors inbounded the ball to a driving Harrison Barnes who made the basket with two-tenths of a second on the clock, triggering rapturous celebrations at Oracle Arena.
Steph Curry again led the scoring for the Warriors with 28 points as he shot six from 11 from beyond the arc, including a dagger three-pointer after Andrew Bogut collected a vital disputed rebound with eight seconds left on the clock to keep Golden State in the game.
In the day's other game and a possible preview of a first-round playoffs match-up, Houston moved into second in the West with a 108-101 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
James Harden had 24 points in the win, while Detroit outcast Josh Smith continued his rapid improvement at the Rockets with 15 points and 12 rebounds.
- AAP