LeBron James had a big bash to celebrate his 25th birthday. Anderson Varejao delivered his gift before the party started. Varejao made his first career three-pointer with 17.2 seconds left — as the 24-second shot clock was about to expire — to give Cleveland a disputed 106-101 victory over the Atlanta Hawks Wednesday night, the Cavaliers' 11th victory in 12 games. James scored a season-high 48 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Cavs, but the reigning MVP would have dropped to 0-4 in games on his birthday if not for Varejao. “That's a great gift,” James said. “I had Andy in the gift exchange and so he paid me back. That's what friends are for.” With the score tied at 101 and the shot clock down to its final tick, Mo Williams passed the ball to Varejao on the left wing. The 6-foot-11 forward, who missed his first 18 career three-pointers, stepped up and drilled his long shot just before the horn sounded. When he ran to the other end of the floor, James rushed into his arms. “I saw that Mo got kind of tied up and I just tried to get open,” Varejao said. “I just shot it.” A birthday swish for James. “That's what I told him,” Varejao said. “Happy birthday.” The shot was initially ruled a two-pointer, but after reviewing the bucket on video, the officiating crew determined that Varejao's feet were behind the line. Nets 104, Knicks 95: Brook Lopez had 21 points and 14 rebounds as host New Jersey snapped a 10-game losing streak. Yi Jianlian added 22 points as the Nets (3-29) ended their second double-digit losing streak of the season. They set an NBA record by opening the season with 18 straight losses. Al Harrington scored 25 to lead the Knicks and native St. Louisan David Lee added 24 points and 15 rebounds for them. Magic 117, Bucks 92: Vince Carter scored 25 points, rallying host Orlando past Milwaukee. Carter ignited a 17-2 run that helped the Magic pull away. Jazz 107, Timberwolves 103: Deron Williams (Illinois) had 21 points and a career-high 12 rebounds to lead Utah to victory at Minnesota. Raptors 107, Bobcats 103: Chris Bosh had 33 points and 13 rebounds, Andrea Bargnani matched his season high with 28 points, and host Toronto beat Charlotte for its season-high fifth straight victory. Hornets 95, Heat 91: David West scored six of his 21 points in the last 55 seconds, and host New Orleans held on to beat Miami. Grizzlies 121, Pacers 110: Rudy Gay scored 31 points as visiting Memphis handed Indiana its eighth straight loss. Former Illinois star Luther Head tied a career high with 30 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, for the Pacers. Suns 116, Celtics 98: Amare Stoudemire and Channing Frye scored 26 points apiece, and host Phoenix handed what was left of the Celtics their third straight loss. Boston was without injured Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce on the final stop of a four
