WASHINGTON _ LeBron James said earlier this season he likes it when the season turns difficult.
So Friday night's circumstances created the perfect storm.
The Cavaliers entered the game against the Washington Wizards in the midst of a four-game losing streak and a 1-5 record over their last six.
Earlier in the day, the Wizards' Bradley Beal and John Wall had provided a little extra fire.
Wall told ESPN's Rachel Nichols on The Jump that he believes the Cavs tanked at the end of the 2016-17 regular season to avoid meeting them early in the playoffs. In the same interview, Bradley Beal said he "firmly" believed the Wizards are the team to beat in the Eastern Conference.
Two tough weeks created doubt around the league about the Cavs' chances of reaching their fourth consecutive NBA Finals.
James almost single-handedly put that conversation to rest, scoring 57 points in a 130-122 victory at Capital One Arena.
James looked like he took Beal's and Wall's words personally. He looked like he was sick of the whispers, the doubts, the media's questions about the Cavs' 3-5 start.
With his fallaway jumper working to perfection, James turned in his highest point total since he returned to Cleveland in the 2014-15 season. He hit 23 of 34 field goals, 2 of 4 from 3-point range, and 9 of 9 free throws. He pulled down 11 rebounds and dished out seven assists.
He even waved to the crowd before sinking a free throw with 52 seconds left.
Since he poured in a career-high 61 points on March 3, 2014, for the Miami Heat, James' most points in his second incarnation with the Cavs had been 44 last December at home against Charlotte.
James also reached two more milestones. He became the seventh player in league history to reach 29,000 points, along with the youngest to reach that total (32 years, 308 days), passing Kobe Bryant (33 years, 199 days). He needed just eight points and reached that with a driving dunk off a J.R. Smith pass with 7:31 left in the first quarter.
Twenty-eight seconds later, James hit two free throws, extending his regular-season streak of double-figure scoring to 800 games. James became only the second player in league history to achieve the feat, joining Michael Jordan (866).
But as awed as the crowd was by James, he found an able wingman in Derrick Rose, who contributed 20 points. Jae Crowder added a season-high 17 points and seven rebounds. Moved back to center, Kevin Love had 11 points and eight rebounds.
The Cavs looked much more at ease offensively that they had during their losing streak. They hit 56 percent from the field and 44 percent from 3-point range, as compared to their 47 and 33 percent, respectively, coming in.
They still took their foot off the gas after opening a 92-75 lead with 4:55 left in the third quarter. But Channing Frye halted a 9-0 Wizards' run with a 3-pointer. The Wizards cut it to six at 97-91, but Kyle Korver answered with a 3 for the Cavs.
Picking up their pace as James zipped the ball downcourt in the opening minutes, the Cavs took a 42-36 first-quarter lead, their most points in a quarter this season and their first time with 40 or more.
On Thursday, coach Tyronn Lue said he hoped the offense would ignite the struggling Cavs' defense. Dwyane Wade observed that when he faced the Cavs in the past, their offense would bail them out when their defense faltered.
The defense wasn't exactly fixed, as the game at times was a scoring free-for-all. But the Cavs claimed a 74-66 lead at halftime, their first since Oct. 20 and only the third in their nine games.
At morning shootaround, James sounded like he couldn't care less about what the Cavs' critics were saying.
"We're not worried about the end of the season right now," James said. "We're definitely struggling right now which is OK. I felt that we would struggle at some point throughout the season. I think it's surprising to all of us that it's happening right now, but hey, it is what it is and it's exciting to see how we can turn this thing around.
"The injury to Tristan (Thompson), that's a big blow for us, but we have guys that are going to step up in his absence."
The Cavs were without guard Iman Shumpert (sore right knee) and center Thompson (left calf strain), the latter expected to miss three to four weeks. Those injuries contributed to 7-foot rookie Ante Zizic making his NBA debut. Zizic played seven minutes and scored two points with a blocked shot.
Meanwhile, the Wizards saw 6-foot-10 forward Markieff Morris return after undergoing sports hernia surgery on Sept. 22. He also had to serve a one-game suspension for leaving the bench Friday during an on-court altercation against the Warriors.
Morris was called for a flagrant 1 foul in the third quarter for wrapping up Crowder.
Even with the Wizards also in an early-season funk, losing four of their last five, it was easy to see what generated Wall's comment about the Cavs last season. After an April 5 victory at Boston, the Cavs lost their last four regular-season games, resting players and seemingly conceding the No. 1 seed to the Celtics.
"And I think if you look at last year, people might say they did or didn't," Wall told Nichols. "But I think they didn't want to see us, period, because we would have seen them in the second round. I think they wanted to see us in the Eastern Conference finals, and we fell one game short of it."
As for this season, Wall said, "We feel like we're their biggest threat. We just got to find a way to get over that hump and beat them and go to the Finals."
Wizards coach Scott Brooks isn't one of those whispering that the Cavs won't be playing for the championship again this season.
"LeBron has been in the Finals, it's like it's his Finals, it seems like every year he's there," Brooks said of James, who has been to seven consecutive Finals. "I can imagine there's no panic in their locker room because they've been there. Depending on where they seed, I'm sure they're confident enough all they have to do is win one road game in the playoffs and they get home court back."
