James inspires Cavs to victory

LeBron James entered the record books with his first career triple-double on Wednesday as the Cleveland Cavaliers eased past the Trail Blazers in Portland, 107-101.

Twenty days after his 20th birthday, James became the youngest player in NBA history to achieve the feat, hitting for 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

The previous youngest triple-double was achieved by Lamar Odom at 20 years, 54 days.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas added a double-double to Cleveland's tally, scoring 21 points with 11 rebounds to send the struggling Trail Blazers to their fifth consecutive loss.

In Phoenix, Bonzi Williams had 16 points and Stromile Swift added 14 as the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the fading Suns 88-79, handing them their fifth straight defeat.

With the loss, the 31-9 Suns can no longer lay claim to the league's best record, giving way to the San Antonio Spurs, who improved to 32-9 with a win over the Los Angeles Clippers.

Without injured all-star guard and league assist leader Steve Nash directing play, the Suns were held to a season-low points tally by the streaking Grizzlies, who have won four straight and 10 of their last 11.

In Los Angeles, Chucky Atkins stepped in for the injured Kobe Bryant, scoring 25 points and grabbing 11 boards to lead the Lakers to a 93-90 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

In East Rutherford, Vince Carter had his best game in a New Jersey uniform to lead the Nets past the Milwaukee Bucks 96-90.

Carter, who was obtained in a trade with the Toronto Raptors last month, finally appeared comfortable in his new surroundings, scoring 33 points, nine assists and nine rebounds.

In Miami, Dwyane Wade matched Shaquille O'Neal with 25 points as the Heat pounded the Atlanta Hawks 111-92 in a match-up of the Eastern Conference's best and worst teams.

In San Antonio, French guard Tony Parker drained 25 points, including a game winning lay-up, to lift the Spurs to an 80-79 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

In New Orleans, Lee Nailon had 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Hornets edged the Indiana Pacers 90-87.

Dan Dickau added 17 points, including a go ahead free throw with five seconds to play, while Rodney Rogers knocked home a rebound to secure the Hornets' sixth win of the season.

In Boston, Paul Pierce hit 28 points and snared 11 rebounds to lead the Celtics to a 92-83 victory over Chicago, snapping the Bulls' seven-game unbeaten run.

In Toronto, Jalen Rose scored 24 points to spark the Raptors to a 98-81 win over the slumping New York Knicks, who lost for the eighth time in nine games.

In Charlotte, Allen Iverson registered 24 points as the Philadelphia 76ers held on to claim a 107-105 win over the Bobcats.