31-12-2009

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Another Game. Another Shoe. LeBron Drops 48 on 25th Birthday. »

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 3-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 on Wednesday night, the Cavaliers’ 11th victory in 12 games. Birthday Oh Boy! LeBron James scored the third most points of a player on his birthday in NBA history on Wednesday. James ended up with a season-high 48 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Cavs, but the MVP would have dropped to 0-4 in games on his birthday if not for Varejao. Other bday milestones:

• Shaquille O’Neal, 2000 – 61 pts – born: 03/06/72.
• Dominique Wilkins, 1987 – 53 pts – born: 01/12/60.
• LeBron James, 2009 – 48 pts – born: 12/30/84.
• Michael Jordan, 1992 – 46 pts – born: 02/17/63.

“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.” The shot was initially ruled a 2-pointer, but after reviewing the bucket on video, the officiating crew determined that Varejao’s feet were behind the line. After debuting the Black/White/Gold edition of the Nike Air Max LeBron VII in their previous game, King James sported yet another colorway of his newest Nike shoes. The White/Red version is a perfect match with Cavaliers’ Home uniforms, of course. You can find them in selected stores (NikeTowns) or order online at Eastbay or even pre-order below retail at shoetrends.com. Click here to see all of LBJ’s 2009-10 NBA Kicks… eleven different colorways so far.

Photos Copyright Notice: Copyright 2009 NBAE via Getty Images. Photos by Gregory Shamus/NBAE via Getty Images, David Liam Kyle/NBAE via Getty Images.