Dec 21, 2014 4 min read

LeBron James and Kyrie Irving stepped aside and let one of their teammates polish off an opponent.

On Sunday, Dion Waiters finished Memphis.

Waiters scored 13 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter as the Cleveland Cavaliers handled one of the Western Conference’s best teams, beating the short-handed Grizzlies 105-91.

The Cavs have been waiting for the enigmatic and inconsistent Waiters to become more reliable. It’s still a work in progress but Waiters, who has frequently been mentioned in trade rumors over the past two seasons, is showing signs of developing into a steady scorer off the bench.

“He’s learning every day,” said James, who had 25 points and 11 assists.

“He’s a young guy. He hasn’t experienced much in this league, so for him to have a game like he had, we needed it.”

James scored 16 in the second half and the Cavs shot a season-best 61 percent from the field to improve to just 3-6 against West teams. Anderson Varejao scored 18 and Irving had 17 points and 12 assists for the Cavs, who are 11-3 since their sluggish 5-7 start.

Marc Gasol scored 23 and added 11 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who played without forward Zach Randolph. He’s nursing a sore and swollen right knee he injured in Friday’s loss at Chicago.

Jon Leuer added 16 points for Memphis, which dropped to 21-6.

Gasol refused to use Randolph’s absence as an excuse.

“We play who we have,” he said. “Whoever’s not here is not here. Trust me, we have enough talent in this locker room not just to win tonight but to win the same amount of games we’ve won so far.”

Toronto 118, N.Y. Knicks 108: Lou Williams and Kyle Lowry each scored 22 points and Toronto beat the New York Knicks 118-108 for their sixth consecutive win, all against Eastern Conference teams with losing records.

Toronto, which leads the East at 22-6, visits Chicago Monday, the first game on a season-high, six-game road trip that finishes with five against Western Conference opponents.

Miami 100, Boston 84: Luol Deng scored 23 points, James Ennis scored 10 of his 16 in the fourth quarter and the Miami Heat ended a five-game home losing streak with a 100-84 victory over the Boston Celtics.

Norris Cole scored 15 and Mario Chalmers had 11 points and 10 assists for Miami.

Tyler Zeller scored 22 for Boston, which had won three straight. Jeff Green and Kelly Olynyk added 13.

Phoenix 104, Washington 92: Eric Bledsoe and Markieff Morris each scored 17 points, Goran Dragic added 16 and the Phoenix Suns beat Washington 104-92 to end the Wizards’ winning streak at six.

The Suns finished 3-0 on their trip after losing six in a row. They opened the road swing in Charlotte Wednesday night and beat New York Saturday.

Sacramento 108, L.A. Lakers 101: DeMarcus Cousins had 29 points and 14 rebounds in his second start since returning from a serious illness, and the Sacramento Kings snapped a five-game losing streak with a 108-101 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.

Rudy Gay scored 24 points, and Ben McLemore added 23 points and eight rebounds to help the Kings pull away late. Sacramento had lost 10 of 12 games going 2-8 while Cousins recovered from viral meningitis and fired coach Michael Malone last week.

Philadelphia 96, Orlano 88: Michael Carter-Williams scored 21 points and the Philadelphia 76ers rallied in the second half to claim a 96-88 victory over the Orlando Magic.

The win, which ended a five-game losing streak, came as the Sixers began a seven-game road trip. All three of their victories this season have come away from home.

Brooklyn 110, Detroit 105: Mason Plumlee scored 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and the Brooklyn Nets held off a late rally for a 110-105 victory over the Pistons.

Joe Johnson added 16 points, including four free throws in the final 12 seconds.