No LeBron James-led team has ever started a season 10-1.
His Cavaliers will have a chance to become the first Wednesday after matching the best 10-game start in franchise history Tuesday with a 121-117 win over the Raptors, a game that lived up to its billing as a slugfest between two of the Eastern Conference's top teams.
Cleveland trailed 110-103 with 4:24 to play, but that's around the time Kyrie Irving got hot and scored eight of his 24 points in a two-minute flurry to help the Cavs pull away.
PREDICTIONS: Cavs are great, but Dubs will win it all
James did his part, finishing a rebound shy of a triple-double (28-14-9). He and Irving combined for 13 of Cleveland's final 18 points down the stretch.
Channing Frye chipped in 21 points off the bench, and double-doubles by Kevin Love and (19 points, 13 rebounds) and Tristan Thompson (15 points, 11 rebounds) overmatched the Raptors. Two of Toronto's three losses this season have come at the hands of its Eastern Conference finals conqueror from a year ago.
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Cleveland is clicking, showing no signs of a championship hangover. Through all the super teams in which James has taken part, it's hard to fathom this might be his best yet.
Stud of the Night
It has been an all-around forgettable start to the season for the Heat (2-8), who seem to miss Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh more than anticipated, but Hassan Whiteside has been a bright spot. The 7-footer collected a whopping 25 rebounds and tied for the team lead with 19 points in a 93-90 loss to the Hawks. He has a double-double in all but one game this season, with averages of 18.2 points and 15.9 rebounds.
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Duds of the Night
Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum can't do it all for the Trail Blazers, but the duo combined for 14-for-39 shooting in a 113-88 drubbing by the Bulls on their home court. Then again, Allen Crabbe was the only one of their teammates to reach double figures in the loss.
Highlight of the Night
Something about the Nets puts D'Angelo Russell in a shooting mood. The young Lakers guard put on a 3-point clinic in a 125-118 victory, hitting 7 of 11 from beyond the arc for a team-high 32 points. Russell sunk a career-high eight treys March 1 against the Nets; he hadn't made more than four in a game since then.
Take another look at #3Angelo connecting from deep 5 times in the first half #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/AoxnS3roF0
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) November 16, 2016
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Looking ahead
Warriors (8-2) at Raptors (7-3), 8 p.m. ET (ESPN) — The Raptors find themselves in the unenviable position of drawing both of last year's NBA finalists on back-to-back nights. Coming off a hard-fought loss to Cleveland, how much will Toronto have left for Stephen Curry and Co. at home?
