The Knicks led for most of the first half, but some hot shooting from guard Damon Jones gave the Cavs a five-point half-time lead.

James sparked the Cavs in the second half, netting 19 of his 29 points, keeping the Knicks winless at Madison Square Garden to start the season.

Jones ended up with 29 points, 24 of those in the first half, while guard Larry Hughes had 14 points of his own.

For the Knicks, second-year players Nate Robinson (19 points) and Channing Frye (17 points) were impressive, while Jamal Crawford netted 18 points.

In New Jersey, the Seattle Supersonics upset the New Jersey Nets holding off a late Nets rally to post a 119-113 victory.

Guard Luke Ridnour scored a career-high 32 points, and was ably supported by Rashard Lewis (27 points), Chris Wilcox (22 points) and Ray Allen (22 points).

Vince Carter scored a season-high 38 points for the Nets, as he nearly single-handedly erased a 28-point deficit to give the Nets the win.

Centre Nenad Krstic netted 21 points, while All-Star guard Jason Kidd was everywhere with 20 points, 12 assists and six rebounds.

In Boston, the Orlando Magic continued their excellent recent form with a 92-89 victory over the Boston Celtics.

Jameer Nelson scored a game-high 24 points for the Magic, veteran Grant Hill netted 18 points, while big-man Dwight Howard had 17 points and 15 rebounds.

The Magic almost squandered an 11-point third-quarter lead, as All-Star Paul Pierce tried to rally the Celtics.

Pierce finished the match with 21 points, while Wally Szczerbiak (14 points) and Delonte West (13 points) tried hard.

The victory was the Magic's fourth in the past five matches taking their season's record to 5-3, while the Celtics now have the worst record in the league with only one win from seven matches.

NBA results for Tuesday (AEDT):
Orlando 92 bt Boston 89
Seattle 119 bt New Jersey 113
Cleveland 102 bt New York 96