LeBron James (photo. David Alvarez)

In our Hit List this past week, we couldn’t wait to see exactly how good Indiana was. They were 3-1 after last week, but had yet to play anyone better than the league’s ultimate scrubs. Finally last night, they checked into South Beach… and were obliterated by the Heat. Miami didn’t even have Dwyane Wade (out nursing his foot) and yet ran away from the Pacers by 35. James literally ran right through Indiana; On one three-point play, he jumped and bumped into Lou Amundson in midair. James came down. Sweet Lou ending on the floor with the photographers. So LeBron took care of the offense. You need defense? Miami was indescribable in the second quarter, allowing just one field goal and forcing 10 turnovers … We’re not sure people really realize how beastly James has been to start the year. His 209 points through seven games are the greatest start of his career, and incredibly, he’s shot at least 55 percent in every game. Last night’s line (33 points, eight rebounds, 13 assists) was only the fourth time he’s put up numbers like that in his career …. The only real drama came when James rolled his ankle on Paul George‘s foot on a fast break. He may not play against Atlanta on Thursday, and Wade is probably sitting out as well … Tyler Hansbrough‘s plus/minus was minus-43. We’re not sure we’ve ever seen that … Chris Paul (20 points, 10 assists) had one of those games where TV just doesn’t do it justice. With some of the Dime crew out in L.A., CP3 had 11 points and six assists in the first quarter alone as Los Angeles rang up 41 points through 12 minutes. From there, it wasn’t even close. It’s scary watching Blake Griffin go for 22 points and nine assists and realize he’s only just scratching the surface, even if he and DeAndre Jordan are catching lob after lob from Paul … Speaking of the Clippers, their game against Chicago last Friday was the most watched game in NBA TV history, which was a small part of the record viewership who turned out for NBA TV’s opening week. What lockout? … Some more of the Dime fam is out in Phoenix for the rest of the week, and checking out the Suns is kind of sad. Someone needs to save Steve Nash (15 points, 12 assists) before it’s too late. These aren’t your older brother’s Suns; They went into the fourth quarter of their 98-89 loss to the Mavs with more turnovers than assists. Jason Terry (18 points) told the media before the game that he always takes these matchups personally because he was the one who replaced Nash in Dallas. Then he went out and hit three straight triples in the second half that ultimately pushed the lead above 20, driving home the point that’s becoming increasingly clear: Phoenix is not a playoff contender … We thought the Knicks loss at home against Toronto was a low point. Last night, they repeated the offense, getting beat at their crib this time by Charlotte 118-110, only considered perhaps the worst team in the league at the start of the season. With the loss, the Knicks are now 16-22 since adding Carmelo Anthony (32 points), and against the ‘Cats, not even running, buzzer-beating threes from Amar’e Stoudemire (25 points, 12 rebounds) could make any difference. Amar’e had his best game of the season, but it doesn’t take anything special to see he’s struggling to find his place offensively. And on the other end? He just got lit up by Boris Diaw (27 points) and Byron Mullens (16 points) … Iman Shumpert (18 points) might’ve returned after missing some time with an injury, but still, how can a rookie coming off an injury be playing harder than everyone else on the team? … Keep reading to hear about more insane highlights from Ricky Rubio …