LOS ANGELES - The overachieving Philadelphia 76ers have been posing as legitimate Eastern Conference contenders this season, but the Miami Heat is determined to be the real deal. Dwyane Wade scored 26 points and LeBron James had 19 with 12 rebounds and eight assists, as the visiting Heat went on a late game-breaking 15-0 run Friday night to pull away from the Sixers, 99-79.

"We wanted to come here and make a statement and we did that tonight," James said. "If we want to hold ourselves to a championship standard, we need to play as close to 48 minutes as possible."Tonight was probably the best game from start to finish as far as playing hard and communicating at both ends that we've had this season," James added.

Mario Chalmers scored 13 points and Chris Bosh had 12 for the reigning Eastern Conference Champion Heat (17-6 ), which has taken the last nine regular-season games in the series.

Thaddeus Young scored 16 points off the bench for the Sixers (16-7 ), while Jodie Meeks and Lou Williams contributed 13 points apiece. The Sixers had boasted impressive home wins this week against Orlando and Chicago until running into Miami.

"We knew there would be some rough times, but we'll be OK," Young said. "We know we're a good team. There won't be any heads down."

With the game knotted at 61 apiece, James scored Miami's final six points, giving the guests a 67-63 advantage after three quarters. The Heat blew the game open early in the final frame. Ahead 78-71 with eight minutes left, Miami ran off 15 unanswered points behind eight from Wade, including a pair of ferocious dunks, making it 94-79 with just over three minutes remaining, en route to the runaway win.

"We got stop after stop after stop and executed," James said. "That what it's all about.""They just overwhelmed us in the fourth quarter," said Sixers coach Doug Collins, whose club was outscored 32-16 in the final frame. "They put a push on us and we didn't have any resistance, so credit to them."

Elsewhere: Orlando Magic 102, Cleveland Cavaliers 94: Dwight Howard had 19 points with 16 rebounds and eight blocks, and the Magic beat the visiting Cavaliers for the seventh consecutive time. Omri Casspi scored nine points.

LA Lakers 92, Denver Nuggets 89: Andrew Bynum had 22 points with 10 rebounds, Kobe Bryant collected 20 points with nine assists, and the Lakers slipped past the Nuggets in the opener of a season-high six-game road trip. Al Harrington led Denver with 24 points, but missed the go-ahead three-pointer with two seconds left.

Indiana Pacers 98, Dallas Mavericks 87: Paul George drilled seven threes en route to a career-high 30 points, and the Pacers snapped a seven-game slide at Dallas by beating the Mavericks at American Airlines Center for the first time since 2004. German juggernaut Dirk Nowitzki paced the reigning NBA Champion Mavs with a season-high 30 points.

Oklahoma City Thunder 101, Memphis Grizzlies 94: Kevin Durant scored seven of his 36 points in the final minute, including the tie-breaking triple, and the Western Conference-leading Thunder (18-4 ) pulled away to beat the visiting Grizzlies. Spaniard Marc Gasol topped Memphis with 24 points.

Boston Celtics 91, New York Knicks 89: Paul Pierce scored 30 points while Kevin Garnett added 15 and the Celtics held off the visiting Knicks for their seventh win in the last eight games. Carmelo Anthony scored 26 points while Tyson Chandler had 20 points and 11 rebounds for the struggling Knicks, who have dropped 11 of their last 13 games.

Minnesota Timberwolves 108, New Jersey Nets 105: Nikola Pekovic scored a career-high 27 points, Luke Ridnour hit the tiebreaking three-pointer with 83 seconds left and the visiting Timberwolves withstood Anthony Morrow's personal-best 42 points to clip the Nets.

Detroit Pistons 88, Milwaukee Bucks 80: Rookie Brandon Knight scored 26 points, and the lowly Pistons (5-20 ) stopped a seven-game skid by bouncing the visiting Bucks.

Toronto Raptors 106, Washington Wizards 89: Brazilian Leandro Barbosa scored 19 points, while Spaniard Jose Calderon handed out a season-high 17 assists and the Raptors sent the visiting Wizards to their third straight loss.

Houston Rockets 99, Phoenix Suns 81: Kevin Martin scored 16 points to pace seven teammates in double figures and the Rockets rolled the visiting Suns for just the second time in the last nine meetings.

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The tag-team approach is back. And now no one is talking about LeBron James or Dwyane Wade being better by themselves. Not when they're playing this well in tandem. Not after these past three games.

With Wade back from the sprained right ankle that kept him out for six games, James and Wade have regained their common stride in victories against the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Hornets, part of the five-game winning streak the Heat carry into Wednesday's game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

 "It is at an all-time high right now, honestly," James said of the chemistry between the two. "It is just a chemistry that we have.  Last year was a blueprint for us.  It is not like we look for each other more than others, it kind of just happens.

"We're two of the fastest guys in the league when it comes to a break and it is kind of pick-your-poison with the defender, either allow me to get a dunk or allow D-Wade to get a dunk. We are two unselfish players. If a guy is open, we pass it."

 There has been plenty of ball movement between the two over the past three games, with nine Wade assists for James baskets and five James assists for Wade baskets. Many of those passes have resulted in spectacular plays. Mostly it's been Wade-to-James that has provided the ultimate theatrics.

 "If there was one guy that I've thrown the most lobs to in my life, it's been LeBron, from All-Star games, to Olympics, and obviously playing with the Heat," Wade said. I kind of have a feel for when he's coming. I hear him trucking out of the corner of my ear. I see him and he's the kind of guy that you can just throw it up and he'll get it."

Then Wade gets to witness. "He makes you look good," Wade said. "Just trying to reward him for running hard."James said he has a similar feel. "We both know," he said of the open-court feel for each other, "also knowing the game and knowing what is going on. "When a guy like D-Wade has a good rhythm, you have to keep feeding him."

Right now, the going is particularly good. "It is a residual of all these games and that even goes back to last year," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We played over 100 games and we had those few extra months, we were able to get much more comfortable with each other and get on the same page. "Those guys are such high-IQ players, it was a matter of time before they learned how to play off each other."Or, in this latest case, re-learned.

"They understand what our keys to success are: We have to defend. We have to play off misses. And that gives us an opportunity to play out in the open court," Spoelstra said. "They have been very explosive with that."Spoelstra said the two can be particularly explosive when he can keep their minutes down, which he did in Monday's rout of the Hornets. That becomes easier with the bench playing well recently, particularly forward Mike Miller. "We have depth right now, now that we are healthy," Spoelstra said. "We can take them out and put in other guys to really put the pressure on."

On the outs
The last time the Heat played the Bucks, veteran swingman Stephen Jackson was coming off a one-game benching for failing to make it to the shootaround the previous game against the New York Knicks. Now Jackson, the mercurial scorer, is coming off another benching, held out of the Bucks' Monday victory over the Detroit Pistons because of what coach Scott Skiles said was a rotation decision.

Jackson said Monday was the first time he had been held out of a game when healthy and not being disciplined. Factoring in is the recent upgraded play of Bucks guard Shaun Livingston, who previously had a brief stint with the Heat. Livingston has started the past seven games in Milwaukee's backcourt alongside Brandon Jennings.

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With the ING Miami Marathon backing up traffic Sunday, fans were advised to seek alternate routes to get to Sunday’s game against Chicago. LeBron James took that advice to heart. Rather than driving, James biked about 40 minutes from his house to AmericanAirlines Arena before Sunday’s game. James said he had biked to games “a few” times before.

“You guys drove here?” James asked media after the game. “You guys are crazy.”James is somewhat of a biking enthusiast. Every summer since 2005, James has hosted a bike ride for charity in his native Akron, Ohio. In 2007, James bought an ownership stake in the bicycle manufacturer Cannondale.

James’ pregame ride didn’t seem to affect him Sunday, as he still managed a game-high 35 points and 11 rebounds in the Heat’s 97-93 win.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK
James was named on Monday the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Jan. 23-29.

In four games last week, James averaged 29 points, 7.5 rebounds, six assists and one steal in 40.3 minutes. James ended the week with a trio of 30-point performances against the Pistons, Knicks and the Bulls. He leads the league with 11 30-point games.

The award marked the third time this season and the 34th time in his career James has garnered Player of the Week honors, the most of any player in NBA history. Among active players, Kobe Bryant is second with 29 Player of the Week awards.

It was Miami’s 36th Player of the Week honor in franchise history.

CURRY PROGRESSES
It might not seem like Eddy Curry is making progress. After all, since returning on Jan.19 from a strained hip flexor, Curry has recorded a total of six points. Curry played a season-high nine minutes last Wednesday in Detroit, but against the Bulls he picked up two fouls in two minutes.

Still, coach Erik Spoelstra said Curry is advancing, if gradually.

“It’s slow progress but we do see progress,” Spoelstra said. “Even [against the Bulls], it probably didn’t look like it to the average fan, but there was carryover from his drill work. That’s a positive sign.”

Spoelstra declined to give a goal for Curry’s minutes, but he said Curry’s playing time depends on his practice work and the matchup.

“It’s still a big picture outlook with Eddy,” he said.

Curry, who was the fourth pick of the 2001 draft, signed with the Heat this offseason for one year at the veteran’s minimum. Since training camp, Curry estimates that he has lost 60 pounds.

Not only has the weight loss revived Curry’s career, it has prompted wardrobe changes for the 7-footer. Curry said he had to go to a tailor to fit his clothes.

“I don’t know anybody bigger than what I was,” he said. “We found a lady that was pretty reasonable out here.”

THIS AND THAT

• The Heat has not had a player foul out in 72 consecutive games. That’s the longest streak in the shot clock era (dating back to the 1954-1955 season).

•  Dwyane Wade recorded one block against Chicago, giving him 566 in his nine-year career — the most by any guard during that span.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/01/31/2615787/lebron-james-bikes-to-work-to.html#storylink=cpy

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LeBron James scored 35 points, reigning NBA most valuable player Derrick Rose wasted two chances in the final 23 seconds and the Miami Heat escaped with a 97-93 win Sunday over the Chicago Bulls in Miami.

Chris Bosh had 24 points and 12 rebounds for the Heat, which never trailed in a rematch of last season's Eastern Conference finals. Dwyane Wade scored 15 points for Miami.

Rose scored 34 points for the Bulls but missed a pair of foul shots that would have given Chicago the lead with 22.7 seconds left. He had made all 28 of his free throws in the fourth quarter this season.

After James missed two free throws for Miami, Rose had a shot to tie it in the final seconds, but his short jumper bounced off the rim.

Bosh secured the win with two free throws with 0.1 of a second left for Miami, which has won five straight over the Bulls — counting the last four games of last season's Eastern title series.

at Dallas 101, San Antonio 100: Jason Terry scored a season-high 34 points, including four in the last 42 seconds of overtime, and the Mavericks rebounded after blowing an 18-point lead. Terry put Dallas back in the lead to stay when he took a pass from Dirk Nowitzki for a 12-foot baseline jumper with 42 seconds left, then hit two free throws with 17 seconds left to make it 101-98. Nowitzki, playing for the first time after a four-game hiatus to strengthen his sore right knee and do conditioning work, had 10 points on five-for-14 shooting with 13 rebounds. Vince Carter scored 21 for Dallas.

Cleveland 88, at Boston 87: Kyrie Irving scored 23 points, including the winning layup with 2.6 seconds left for the Cavaliers, who scored the last 12 points of the game. Ray Allen returned from an ankle injury and scored 22 points, but he missed a jump shot from the left corner when Boston still held a one-point lead on its second-to-last possession.

Indiana 106, at Orlando 85: Danny Granger scored 24 points, David West and George Hill each had 16, and the surprising Pacers (13-6) ended a six-game losing streak against the Magic and avoided losing consecutive games for the first time this season. Dwight Howard had 24 points and 13 rebounds but missed 11 of 15 free throws for Orlando, which lost its third in a row.

Atlanta 94, at New Orleans 72: Jeff Teague tied a career high with 24 points despite playing on a sore left ankle, and the Hawks won for the fourth time in five games while handing the struggling Hornets their most lopsided loss of the season.

Toronto 94, at New Jersey 73: DeMar DeRozan scored 19 of his 27 points in the second half, when the Raptors pulled away.

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There simply was no way around it. After sitting out the past six games to recover from a combination of ankle, foot and calf injuries, sooner or later Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade and forward LeBron James were going to have to discuss the most seamless way to reunite their dominant play.

After all, James and the Heat had redefined their playing style and rotation pecking order to the tune of a 5-1 record in the most recent stretch of games Wade missed. In that time, James found a productive comfort zone and strung together a run of MVP-worthy performances. He even started referring to his recent play as that of the Cleveland LeBron.

Well into their second season together in Miami, James and Wade still, at times, don't play as much with each other as they do around one another. Finding their Kanye West/Jay Z balance, their Miles Davis/John Coltrane rhythm - especially in the fourth quarter of close games - remains the final frontier yet to be crossed for this Heat tandem.

In some cases, you can play your way through it - feel your way along in game action - and eventually work out some of the kinks. At other times, it takes a conversation and clear communication. By all indications, James and Wade took the latter route before Wade made his emphatic return for Friday's 99-89 win against the New York Knicks.

Wade made several highlight plays and grabbed most of the attention in finishing with 28 points, five steals, four assists and two blocks in 33 minutes against the Knicks. But the underlying theme for the Heat was that James wasn't reduced - or, rather, didn't reduce himself - to a glorified spectator down the stretch. Even with Wade back, this was more about James and whether he would abandon Cleveland LeBron and return his relatively more routine Heat role.

James responded by continuing to put on a Cleveland clinic in Miami, closing out the Knicks with a game-high 31 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and - perhaps most importantly - another huge fourth quarter outburst to secure the win.

But the key to the dual dominance from James and Wade in their first game back together wasn't only how well they co-existed at the finish. It was also how openly and honestly they communicated before the start.

"D-Wade just told me to keep playing my game - even with him returning," James said of his talk with Wade, a message that was reinforced throughout the game against the Knicks. "I'm going to do that for sure. Last year was definitely a learning experience for myself, just trying to learn how to play alongside him."

That continues to be a work in progress as the Heat look toward Sunday's home showdown against the Chicago Bulls. But James and Wade will try to pick up where they left off in Friday's fourth quarter.

You want a blueprint that lays out exactly how lethal James and Wade can be when working as a cohesive tandem instead of mutually exclusive forces? Just take a snapshot of the final 12 minutes against the Knicks.

It started with rest. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra opened the period with Wade on the bench and James playing the first three minutes. He was free to revert to 'Cleveland LeBron' mode, and an assist on a Mike Miller jumper broke a tied game to give the Heat a lead they kept.

At the 9:13 mark of the fourth, James went to the bench and was replaced by Chris Bosh. During that same substitution, Wade replaced Shane Battier. It was Wade's time to lead and James' opportunity to rest - something he didn't get much of during the fourth quarters of close games when Wade was injured.

Wade's jumper and putback came during a stretch when the Heat pushed their lead to seven. At the 6:25 mark, James reentered for the finish. This was when James carried out Wade's pregame advice. James was the facilitator, Wade the finisher. There were at least two occasions when Wade crossed halfcourt and immediately wanted the ball. But James kept it, set things up and motioned for Wade to run off screens.

Wade's team? Wade's town? Those things don't matter. This was LeBron's show. It was his time to prove that the only adjustment he would make in Wade's return was to be even more like the player who clearly carried the team the previous six games. Wade's job was to fit in.

"They did a very good job of playing off each other," Spoelstra said. "Getting out in the open court, playing off each other on cuts in the half court, and one guy being aggressive, the other guy playing off that. LeBron really has (taken) another step forward in terms of his aggressiveness. Those are positive steps forward for us."

James insists he won't regress.

"I understand that down the stretch, I have to be aggressive, I got to get to the free-throw line, help us stop the clock and get easy buckets. Even with (Wade) playing as great as he did, I stayed into my offensive game."

The high-water mark came when James fed Wade for a lob dunk with about four minutes left in the game. It capped a quarter in which the two combined for 19 of Miami's 25 points and made nine of their 10 free throws. In fact, James' fourth quarter with Wade on Friday was no less dominant than his final period without Wade the other night in Detroit. That's when James finished off the Pistons with 10 points, three assists, two rebounds and made all eight of his free throws over the final 12 minutes of the 101-98 road victory.

Heat forward Chris Bosh is as cerebral as they come in the NBA. He knows this reunion moving forward won't always be as smooth between James and Wade as it was Friday night. But how it played out remains the ideal.

"We have to get back used to Dwyane's tendencies again," Bosh said. "We just have to get used to it again. We just have to continue to stay on the same page. We'll talk about it again (Saturday) and see how we can continue to get better and continue to execute on Sunday."

It takes more than talent for the Heat to work their way through this. It also requires talk. Real talk. And, a willingness to listen and take heed.

That's exactly what happened when Wade approached James and essentially told him not to change the way he's been playing these past few weeks. It was a discussion that could prove to be pivotal, a conversation that defines the rest of their season.

Was it the first step toward Wade, 30, quietly handing James, 27, the reigns as the closing catalyst in Miami? Or was it just a nice way of Wade promising not to step all over James' toes in his first game back?

The answer isn't clear. At least not yet, anyway. We'll see how this plays out in Sunday's game against the Bulls and into the playoffs when it really counts. It doesn't really matter if he's Cleveland LeBron or Miami LeBron right now. The truth is, no one doubts regular-season LeBron. It's Finals LeBron we wonder about.

But what does matter most right now is that James took Wade's advice and ran with it. Literally. And neither of them should turn back now. The Heat's script was flipped. And it was just the kind of assist Miami's best facilitator needed from the team's incumbent finisher.

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LeBron’s two most scrutinised areas of his game, his free throws and ability to perform in late game situations, were the keys to Miami’s win in Detroit last night as the Heat jumped to a record of 13-5.
James has been labelled as a choker, constantly shrinking and disappearing from the big moments. Regardless of the falseness of this, he made a statement last night, hitting 6/6 from the free throw line within the last 90 seconds of the game to ensure the young Pistons went home disappointed.

James put his entire repertoire on show, making plays for himself, for his teammates and getting stops on the defensive end. Austin Daye, the 6’11 small forward for Detroit, had a career night finishing with 28 points, but was unable to score down the stretch as LeBron tightened up on him, forcing others to make plays.

Chris Bosh continued his purple patch of form, contributing throughout the game and critically in the final 5 minutes, finishing with 27 points. Miami didn’t get the bench productivity they would have liked, their rebounding was horrible and were destroyed in that category, and their expert three point shooters (Battier, Jones and Miller) each finished without a triple.

Detroit meanwhile had breakout games from Daye, upcoming star Greg Monroe and rookie sensation Brandon Knight, and they thought they made have pulled off the season’s biggest upset thus far when the Jonas Brother hit a three with around 1:30 remaining. Unfortunately they were unable to keep LeBron out of the paint, who finished them off from the stripe and condemned the young Pistons to a league worst 4-15 record, with a frightening week of 5 games, 4 of which on the road, beginning on Saturday.

Miami host the struggling mess that is the New York Knicks (coming off a loss to the Cavaliers…yes the Cavaliers) tomorrow, then they have a days rest before Derrick Rose brings his Bulls to South Beach. Important few days for Miami to assess where they are at this point. Dwyane Wade is expected to return for the Bulls game, but is questionable for the Knicks visit.

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LeBron James was not at his best, and a game against his former team was slipping away. Chris Bosh made sure that didn't happen.

Bosh scored 17 points in the fourth quarter -- the biggest final period by any Miami player this season -- and finished with a game-high 35 points, carrying the Heat to a 92-85 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night. Bosh shot 10 for 16 and reached the 30-point mark for the fourth time this season as Miami improved to 4-1 against Cleveland since James joined the Heat.

"Whenever I play and I don't hesitate, good things happen," Bosh said. He was all about the points down the stretch, literally and figuratively. The 17-point final quarter matched the third-best of his career, and he capped the night with a pair of finger-wags -- one at one of his shots as it hovered on the rim before falling to begin a three-point play, the other at wife Adrienne after his jumper fell for an 84-76 lead and finally allowed Miami to exhale.

"I think he made the biggest adjustment with this whole situation," James said, referring to the moves that allowed he, Bosh and Dwyane Wade -- who sat out again with a sprained right ankle -- to team up in July 2010. "He's done it before."

The 35 points matched Bosh's high since joining Miami. Kyrie Irving -- Cleveland's No. 1 overall draft pick and heir apparent after James as the face of the Cavs' franchise -- scored 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting. Samardo Samuels made his first seven shots and finished with 15 points for the Cavs, who got an 11-point, 11-rebound night from Anderson Varejao and 10 points from Ramon Sessions.

"We kind of beat ourselves tonight," Irving said. "We had 22 turnovers and we lost by seven points."Former Cleveland State star Norris Cole scored 10 for Miami, and Udonis Haslem grabbed 10 rebounds for the Heat. Miami committed 18 turnovers, leading to 22 Cleveland points, but found a way -- thanks to Bosh -- down the stretch.

"Finally in the last three to four minutes, the ball started the move," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. Bosh made his sixth 3-pointer of the year with 4:26 left, giving the Heat some long-awaited breathing room at 75-67. And after Irving hit a pair of free throws to get Cleveland within three, Bosh went to work again.

He took a pass from James, drove the left side of the lane, got fouled and fell to the court as his shot dropped to set up a three-point play. A minute later, Bosh faked Antawn Jamison into the air and making an 18-footer for an eight-point edge, capped by that salute to his pregnant wife.

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LeBron James is playing some of his best basketball since joining the Miami Heat a season ago. All it took was an injury to the superstar who helped woo him from Cleveland in the first place.

It's foolish to suggest the Heat are a better team with Dwyane Wade out of the lineup -- although a 6-1 record in his absence is eye-opening. But with the shooting guard nursing a sprained right ankle, James has returned to the role in which he's most accustomed -- being his team's undisputed No. 1 option.
He's dominating the ball and the running the Heat offense from the wing, something Cavaliers' fans watched for seven seasons at The Q. They will likely see it again Tuesday night as the Heat (11-5) play the Cavaliers (6-9) in American Airlines Arena.

Miami coach Erik Spoelstra gave his club the day off Monday and James was not available prior to Sunday's 91-82 loss to Milwaukee, denying out-of-town reporters a chance to broach the subject. Needless to say, it's a sensitive topic for the high-profile club and not a new one.

Since the Big Three was birthed a year ago, questions have persisted as to whether James and Wade could coexist in the same offense. The fact they came within two wins of an NBA title is a compelling argument for the affirmative. But there's not another star tandem in the league with such a similar skill set. James and Wade are each slashers capable of carrying ateam offensively.

Wade already has won a title and is somebody who, despite the Finals setback against Dallas, enhanced his reputation as clutch playoff performer. James is missing both credits from an otherwise impressive portfolio. Chris Bosh, the Heat's third wheel, did James no favors in arecent GQ interview in which he said Wade is the teammate who should be taking the big shots at crunch time.
Why?

"Because of his success in the past, given what he's done," Bosh said. "He's a champ. He's an MVP, and he's hit a bunch of last-second shots. That's the time you have to put pride aside a little bit, and do what's best for the team. He's quickest, and he's gonna get a shot off. He relishes those moments."

James isn't going to alter that perception until he thrives in June and makes good on his promise to deliver championships. Until then, he can only keep building on his regular-season dominance. James is off to one of the finest starts of his career -- averaging 29.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 7.3 assists and shooting 56.4 percent from the field. All those numbers exceed his career totals. In his second season, teammates say James is also more relaxed in his surroundings a year removed from The Decision and the astonishing publicity it generated.

"He's a lot a more comfortable, a lot more himself," Heat center Joel Anthony said. "Obviously, it was a whirlwind of a season last year."Added Mario Chalmers: "He's not thinking as much on the court and the big thing is he's more energetic. [Getting through last season] has taken a lot of pressure off him. He doesn't seem to be worrying about what people say about him."

James told ESPN in the preseason his goals were to have more fun and eschew a villain's role born from a nationally-televised breakup with Cleveland and perpetuated by his post-Finals South Beach diatribe to his detractors: "They have to wake up tomorrow and have the same life that they had before they woke up today. ... They have the same personal problems they had today."Wade's ankle will be rehabilitated before James' image, but his coach appreciates how hard the Akron native continues to work.

"He's very committed and very focused as he was last year," Spoelstra said. "What I've said is if he happens to do that with a smile on his face this year I don't have a problem with that. ... He put a lot of time in over the summer to improve his game. Not many two-time MVPs really have that mindset to [say] 'Hey, I want more and to get greedy and improve more facets of his game' and he's arguably the most complete player already in this game for a long time.

"That has set a tone, a strong message to the rest of the team not to be satisfied with our Finals appearance last year."The Cavs get their first look at James this season on Tuesday. With his friend and teammate still on the mend, it's a look that resembles the player who flourished in a wine-and-gold uniform.

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Brandon Jennings scored 23 points, Ersan Ilyasova added 16 off the bench and the Milwaukee Bucks held Miami to 37 percent shooting on the way to beating the Heat 91-82 on Sunday night. It was the second straight road win for Milwaukee, which started the year 0-8 away from home. Andrew Bogut scored 13 points for the Bucks, who got 10 apiece from Shaun Livingston and Stephen Jackson. LeBron James finished with 28 points and 13 rebounds for Miami, which had won three straight. Chris Bosh scored 23 for the Heat, who got 12 from Mario Chalmers.

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Dwyane Wade should take as much time as he needs to get completely healthy. The way the Heat is playing right now, it doesn’t really need him.

The Heat improved to 6-0 in games without Wade on Saturday with a 113-92 victory against the young and talented Philadelphia 76ers. Chris Bosh and LeBron James combined to score 58 points, or eight more points than the 76ers’ five starters combined. It was arguably Bosh’s best game with the Heat, and James was simply incredible in the fourth quarter.

“Everyone has stepped up their play with D-Wade being absent, and we expect nothing less,” said James, who had another massive line: 28 points, nine rebounds, five assists, four steals and three blocks. “It’s great to get some home wins; it’s great to beat some really good teams, but we’ve got to continue to push forward.”

Wade, who missed his third consecutive game with a sprained ankle, watched from the bench as the Heat showed off its garish throwback uniforms of the 1971-72 Floridians. Nothing says 1970s Miami quite like magenta and orange vertical stripes and the duds made for a festive atmosphere.

Then James went disco inferno in the fourth quarter and burned the place down with his brilliance, scoring 12 points in a span of 4 minutes, 16 seconds. “That’s part of his genius,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

James was 12 of 17 from the field and Bosh had 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting and made 7 of 7 from the free-throw line. He also had seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals. It was one of Bosh’s most complete games in a Heat uniform — and he has scored 30 points in two of his past three games — but he shrugged off any notion that he’s thriving because Wade isn’t playing.

“It’s hard work, repetition and getting as many shots up as possible and forgetting the last play,” Bosh said. “I plan to do that when we get lucky and get Wade back.”The Heat (11-4) led by 19 to begin the fourth quarter, but the 76ers (11-5) quickly cut the lead to nine points with a 10-0 run to begin the period. A three-pointer from Jrue Holiday made it Heat 92-81 with 6:44 to play.

LeBron answered with four points in a row, and Bosh followed with a dunk, but consecutive three-pointers from 76ers sixth man Lou Williams kept the visitors within striking distance.

But James was simply too much. He scored 12 points in little more than four minutes to put the game away. His 17-foot fadeaway with 1:53 gave the Heat a 106-89 lead. With that, James and Bosh took well-deserved seats on the bench. Reserve guard Terrel Harris entered the game and finished off the 76ers with a three-pointer.

The Heat outscored the 76ers 32-23 in the final period. For the game, the Heat shot 54.3 percent and led in fast-break points (12-5) and second-chance points (14-9).

Offensively, Spoelstra said the “ball was popping.”The 76ers began the game shorthanded in the middle when center Spencer Hawes was cut from the active list with a strained Achilles’ tendon. Then rookie center Nikola Vucevic went down with a sprained knee, and Philadelphia was really hurting. The Heat outrebounded the Sixers 52-31. Udonis Haslem led the Heat with 10 rebounds off the bench, including four in the fourth quarter.

“They were sharp tonight from the start,” Sixers coach Doug Collins said. “We fought and hung around for a little bit, but they wore us down. We need our full arsenal and then some.”

The Heat was 7 of 16 from three-point range, with Mike Miller going 2 of 4 from behind the arc. Bosh, Mario Chalmers, Norris Cole and Harris also added three-pointers. Of Miller, Spoelstra said, “Every time he lets it go, you think it has got a chance.”

The Heat led by just three points in the third quarter when James Jones ducked inside the three-point line for a 19-footer. Facing harassing team defense, both Holiday and Vucevic missed shots on the next possession and James came down with the rebound. He hustled down the court and found Chalmers wide open in the corner for a three-pointer, and he drained it to put the Heat ahead 63-55.

It would take two more offensive waves from the Heat to put the Sixers away for good. The first came at the end of the third quarter, when Shane Battier’s three-pointer capped off a 12-4 run. The second, which came midway through the fourth quarter, was all James. He went 5 of 7 from the field in the period, scoring on drives to the basket and fadeaway jumpers.

“I’ve seen every defense,” James said. “I’ve seen them all, nothing surprises me. It’s always good when you can have an opportunity in the low post to go one-on-one because you have those shooters out there.

“I’m happy that we have them to be able to stretch the defense, and I use my strength and quickness in the post.”

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