NBA schedule: LeBron stays red-hot as Heat finish off Lakers

Heat 107, Lakers 97

The Lakers (24-28) got off to a fast start, leading by as many as seven points on several occasions in the second quarter. But the Heat (34-14) chipped away at that lead and went into the break tied at 53. The game went back and forth for much of the third quarter before James finished the frame with a flurry, scoring seven points in the last 44 seconds to give Miami a five-point lead heading into the fourth.

Via USA Today Sports, a fan sitting nearby’s take:

“Random guy yelled at Lil Wayne at #MiamiHEAT game. Weezy looked back, gave him a mean stare & gestured he had a gun,” tweeted Danny Vega, who said he was at the game and sitting near Lil Wayne. “Weezy just got into argument with security at the #MiamiHEAT game. He got kicked out for gun gesture.”

SNOWBOUND AND DOWN -- Over a 24-hour period from Friday to Saturday afternoon, the greater Boston area got around 2 feet of snow dumped on our doorstep. It was a weird time in the Hub. Friday was a ghost town and Saturday was a giant neighborhood après-ski at the only bar that opened so everyone could kill three to four hours, which is about how long it took for each round to be poured. Nobody really cared because we were all thankful to have some place to go and everyone knows Monday will be terrible.

The T still wasn’t working on Sunday, there’s no place to park and side roads are profoundly f---ed. I spent several hours digging out my car and there’s no way in hell I’m moving it now. Some people resort to laying out rocking chairs, traffic cones and cement blocks to preserve their work, but I’d rather wait until March.

We cannot stress this enough, people. If you sit courtside, you must keep your eye on the ball. It doesn’t matter if you just returned to your seat. I don’t care how many margaritas you’ve consumed out of tiny plastic cups. Pay attention folks. The life you save might be your own.

Brooklyn led 35-25 at the end of the first quarter and 57-51 at halftime, but the Spurs’ defense tightened up in the second half.

Some high-(low?)-lights:

It’s an ugly one, folks. At least those throwbacks are awesome.

via assets.sbnation.com

I’m going to get out of the way of LeBron and let him dunk. Most defenders would be wise to follow my lead.

That was so close to a visible “whoa,” but Kobe’s the Black Mamba, and he doesn’t say whoa. He gets close, though. It’s hard not to, watching a classic LeBron James takeover.

Felton walked off slowly under his own power a few minutes later and headed to the locker room, assisted by Knicks trainers. Felton had 12 points and four assists so far in the game. He had missed an extended period of time earlier in the season with a hand injury, and the Knicks’ play as a team suffered.

UPDATE: Felton is back on the floor in the fourth quarter. He was just suffering from whiplash, not a concussion. Carry on.

Miami has won four games in a row leading into its home game against the Lakers. Meanwhile, Los Angeles has won seven of its past nine games despite the drama and injury.

More of stuff like this, please.

Jan. 12, 2004: Lakers, 89, Cavaliers, 79

Their first matchup, and not a particularly impressive one. The Cavs team LeBron’s rookie year is the only sub-.500 team LeBron ever played on, and hahahahahahahahah remember that Lakers team with Gary Payton on it? Eeesh, he went 5-for-22. Kobe didn’t play in the second matchup between these teams this year.

Here’s the info on the game:

Time: 1 p.m. ET