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(From the Associated Press) - As his soon-to-be former team was about to take the floor against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Antawn Jamison sped out of the Verizon Center. Jamison, a Washington Wizards’ stalwart since 2004, was rumored to be traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and minutes before the game, he was informed that the trade, though not yet done, was nearing completion. Jamison’s last-minute substitution, Andray Blatche, then went out and helped the Wizards beat the Timberwolves 108-99 on Wednesday night. Blatche had a career-high 33 points and 13 rebounds to spark the Wizards, but it was Jamison, whose traded was officially announced about three hours later, who was on everyone’s minds...After Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson were traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday for Josh Howard, Gooden, Quinton Ross and James Singleton, it wasn’t a surprise that Jamison would be dealt...The trade left the Wizards in a temporary bind. Their hastily-assembled lineup featured Blatche and Mike Miller at forward and rarely used second-year player JaVale McGee at center, with Nick Young and Randy Foye at guard. Only Foye played in his usual position. “It’s like ‘Extreme Makeover Team Edition,”’ Miller said...Miller had 17 points and made all five of his 3-point shots. McGee had 14 points and 11 rebounds. Howard did not start but entered the game early in the first quarter. He scored 14 points in 26 minutes. Singleton had six points in 22 minutes, and Ross had three points. Minnesota made a trade of its own. At halftime, the Timberwolves announced they had dealt the seldom-used Brian Cardinal to the New York Knicks for Darko Milicic, the second overall pick in the 2003 draft. Al Jefferson led Minnesota with 18 points, and Ryan Gomes had 16. On Tuesday night after losing by 23 points in Detroit, Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis ripped into his team for a lack of effort. He saw lots of parallels.
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(From the Associated Press) - Rudy Gay’s timing was perfect for the Memphis Grizzlies. Gay scored eight of his 29 points in overtime and the Grizzlies beat the Toronto Raptors 109-102 on Wednesday night to snap a five-game losing streak...Zach Randolph had 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Marc Gasol had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who had lost seven of their last eight. O.J. Mayo scored 22 points for Memphis, and Mike Conley added 13 points and eight assists...The Grizzlies kept calling Gay’s number in overtime, taking advantage of a switch that saw him guarded by the smaller Jose Calderon...Chris Bosh had 32 points and 10 rebounds for Toronto, which had won eight straight home games and eight of nine overall. Andrea Bargnani had 14 points and 10 rebounds. Calderon had 12 points and nine assists, while Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems each scored 10 points for the Raptors, who topped 100 for the 18th straight game...“We’ve been struggling on the second end of back-to-backs, we’d hit a little slump,” Mayo said. “Tonight we easily could have quit. We kept believing and kept fighting and we did a great job. Once we got to overtime, we felt like it was a breath of fresh air.”...“We got off to a slow start and we were very sluggish,” Raptors coach Jay Triano said. “We had a hard time getting it going at all.” Toronto’s Hedo Turkoglu scored just one point in 29 minutes and missed all five shots he attempted.
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(From the Associated Press) - Ben Gordon emerged in the visiting locker room with a bandage around his left eye concealing three stitches. He can thank Dwight Howard, J.J. Redick and the suddenly fighting Orlando Magic. Howard had a season-high 33 points and added 17 rebounds, helping the Magic beat the Detroit Pistons 116-91 on Wednesday night with some physical play in the paint...The reigning Defensive Player of the Year added seven blocks in a dominating performance that gave Orlando its 11th win in the last 14 games. Howard was 11 for 13 on free throws, a refreshing reprieve for the Magic from his normal woes. “You can’t play a much better basketball game than he did tonight,” Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. Vince Carter finished with 20 points, and Jameer Nelson had 14 for Orlando. Richard Hamilton had 36 points, and Tayshaun Prince scored 13 for the Pistons, who had little help late with Ben Gordon ejected...Gordon was given a double-technical foul and ejected about halfway through the fourth quarter, extending his arm and hitting Redick near the face before arguing with the official. Gordon headed to the locker room with the Magic going ahead 96-83 on the free throws and essentially sealing the win...“I like that our team is starting to be physical back,” said Matt Barnes, who was called for a flagrant-one foul in the third quarter after he collided at full-speed as Jonas Jerebko tried to set a screen. “Early in the season, teams were trying to out tough us and out punk us and stuff like that. I can slowly see it changing. It’s just a thing—we’re not going to be dirty, but we’re not going to be pushed around. And I think we’re changing that.”
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(From the Associated Press) - A bit of rest and relaxation in Malibu was all a hobbled Tony Parker needed to start blowing by the competition again. Parker returned after missing San Antonio’s final game before the All-Star break because of a strained left hip flexor. Fresh off a four-day vacation with wife Eva Longoria, he scored 28 points to help the Spurs beat the Indiana Pacers 90-87 on Wednesday night...Tim Duncan had just eight points on 4-for-23 shooting, but had 26 rebounds and five assists. He had 10 rebounds in nine minutes in the fourth quarter...Duncan said it was possibly the worst shooting game of his career, but he made up for it by “going Mo Malone on them.” It was a reference to Moses Malone, the powerful post player who spent his best years with the Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers in the late 1970s and early 1980s...Manu Ginobili added 18 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Spurs. Danny Granger scored 23 points, Roy Hibbert had 14 points, seven rebounds and six blocks, and Troy Murphy added nine points and 16 rebounds for Indiana. The Spurs won despite shooting just 35 percent from the field. “If you would have told me we would hold them to 35 percent shooting, I would think we had a chance,” Pacers coach Jim O’Brien said. Duncan’s 11 offensive rebounds helped the Spurs take 16 more shots than the Pacers. “We played hard,” Granger said. “We got our hands on a lot of balls. We just got killed on the offensive boards. That’s kind of been the tale of our season.”
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(From the Associated Press) - Derrick Rose scored 27 points, Luol Deng added 23, and the Bulls beat New York 115-109 on Wednesday night to complete a home-and-home sweep. With trade rumors swirling around both teams, the Bulls rallied from a 15-point deficit to move above .500 at 27-26 and hand the Knicks their fifth straight loss...Brad Miller had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Taj Gibson finished with 14 points and a career-high 16 rebounds as Chicago outrebounded New York 52-40. Al Harrington scored 27 points, and Wilson Chandler had 26 for the Knicks. David Lee had 23 points and 12 rebounds, while Danilo Gallinari scored 19 points but was just 2 of 10 from 3-point range, including a pair of costly misses with a chance to tie in the final minute...“We came out more aggressive,” Rose said of the turnaround. “In the first half, we weren’t contesting their shots how we were supposed to, like yesterday, and they were getting wide-open looks. In the second half, we were contesting their shots, rebounding the ball and playing our regular uptempo-type game.” The Knicks played without Nate Robinson, who they said was home with flulike symptoms. However, various reports earlier Wednesday said the team was nearing a deal to send the backup guard to Boston, and an official within the league said the trade would be completed Thursday. Starting forward Jared Jeffries also played only 6 minutes before he left with what the Knicks said was a sore right knee. He has been mentioned in a rumored trade with Houston for Tracy McGrady, but team president Donnie Walsh declined comment on specifics of any of his uncompleted deals, saying all the reports of a deal with the Rockets were a “one-way pipeline” coming out of Houston. New York did complete one deal, sending the unhappy Darko Milicic to Minnesota for Brian Cardinal. The deal would open a roster spot for the Knicks to make another trade Thursday if they waive Cardinal, as expected. Walsh wouldn’t say if he planned to keep Cardinal, saying, “I think that’ll be clearer if things work out” Thursday...Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said the Knicks showed energy and if “they keep that attitude, then we’ll get better as a team and we’ll put some wins on.”
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(From the Associated Press) - For one game, the Miami Heat got by without All-Star MVP Dwyane Wade. They can only hope it’s not longer than that. Michael Beasley had 23 points and 11 rebounds and the Heat overcame the early loss of Wade to a sprained left calf by rallying to beat the New Jersey Nets 87-84 on Wednesday night for their season-high fourth straight victory...Jermaine O’Neal, who strained his lower back in a first-quarter fall, hit three free throws and had two blocks down the stretch. Quentin Richardson hit a big tying 3-pointer and Beasley had two big baskets and a shared block with O’Neal on layup attempt by Kris Humphries that could have put New Jersey ahead with 28 seconds to go...Richardson finished with 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, while O’Neal had nine points and seven rebounds in 22 1/2 minutes. Wade had eight points, snapping his streak of 148 straight games in double figures, the second-longest active streak in the NBA behind LeBron James (255)...Brook Lopez had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Nets, whose only basket in the final 4:56 came on a goaltending call at the buzzer. Devin Harris added 18 points. The Nets appeared to headed for their sixth win of the season when Keyon Dooling (14 points) converted a three-point play with 4:56 to play to put them ahead 80-74. The prospects looked even brighter when O’Neal missed two free throws on the Heat’s ensuring possession. However, the Nets went ice cold, missing 11 of their final 12 shots, and Miami just kept on coming...“When you let a team get momentum like that it puts a lot of pressure on yourself,” said Humphries, who said he should have dunked the ball. “With our track record we haven’t been able to handle those situations down the stretch, so it’s a tough one. We’re getting better. We’re right there.”
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(From the Associated Press) - Paul Millsap has decided to be more assertive about shooting, and the Utah Jazz aren’t about to argue with the results. Millsap hit 11 of 13 shots in a 24-point performance that led Utah past the New Orleans Hornets, 98-90 on Wednesday night for the Jazz’s 15th victory in 17 games...“When Paul is given a lot of minutes, he’s always produced,” said Jazz point guard Deron Williams, who had 16 points and 10 assists. “It’s on coach to find him some time to get him out there. If it’s Paul’s night, you’ve got to ride with him.” Carlos Boozer scored six of his 16 points in the last 3:06, helping Utah pull away after a 3-pointer by New Orleans’ James Posey had tied it at 85. Boozer also had 15 rebounds, and Mehmet Okur added 10 points for the Jazz, who shot 54 percent (38 of 70)...Rookie Darren Collison had 24 points and nine assists for New Orleans. Peja Stojakovic added 24 points, hitting 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Yet New Orleans struggled with its shooting overall, finishing at 38.6 percent (34 of 88)...The Hornets trailed for much of the second half, with several usual contributors having an off shooting night. Second-leading scorer David West, averaging 18.1 points coming in, sat for much of the first half with foul trouble, was 2 of 9 from the field and finished with only five points. Darius Songaila, who has shot about 50 percent this season, was 1 of 6, and left the game in the fourth quarter with a sprained right ankle. Morris Peterson, who started at shooting guard, also was 1 of 6. Marcus Thornton scored 14 points for New Orleans, but missed 10 of his 16 shots. Emeka Okafor had 10 rebounds, eight points and three blocks for the Hornets.
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(From the Associated Press) - The Houston Rockets have dealt with constant trade rumors about Tracy McGrady’s next stop. The swirling chatter is new for the Milwaukee Bucks, and they didn’t handle it well on the eve of the trading deadline. Trevor Ariza hit a career-high six 3-pointers, scoring 22 points, and the Rockets hit 16 shots from beyond the arc to rout the Bucks 127-99 on Wednesday night. “It will be nice when the deadline passes and we can settle in for the stretch run,” said Rockets forward Shane Battier, who was 6 of 6 from 3-point range and finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. “If they make a move, OK, these are our guys moving forward. There’s something comforting about that.”...Just before halftime, several reports said the Bucks had traded for John Salmons from the Chicago Bulls, a shooting guard who would be due a little over $5.8 million next season as part of a player option...The Bucks returned to the court in the second half and shot just 33 percent. Bucks center Andrew Bogut, who finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, said all the talk has been a distraction. “It’s no secret, we know which guys are rumored in trades,” Bogut said. “You don’t want (it) to distract the team but human nature says you’ve got guys that probably aren’t going to be here tomorrow or the day after.” Rookie Brandon Jennings scored 13 points to lead the Bucks, but scored Milwaukee’s first nine points before going to the locker room with an uncontrollable cough. He returned a few minutes later without the same shooting touch...While it appeared the Rockets might be the active team on the day before the 3 p.m. EST trading deadline with McGrady yet to be moved, Milwaukee was the one caught up in rumors. “The only thing that has been an issue at all is the fact that you make a deal for Tracy, it probably involves a couple other people,” Adelman said.
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(From the Associated Press) - Caron Butler spent the past few days trying to get accustomed to his new Dallas Mavericks teammates. It didn’t take the former Washington Wizards player long to figure out that Jason Kidd can help make that task a lot easier. Kidd had 18 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and a career-high seven steals, and Butler started a key third-quarter run in the Mavericks’ 107-97 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night. “He’s a Hall of Famer, one of the best to ever do it,” said Butler, who came to Dallas along with Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson in a seven-player deal Saturday. “I love playing with a guy like that. He gives you that confidence and makes the game that much easier.”...Butler scored 15 points and hit a jumper to open a 16-4 run in the third. Dirk Nowitzki added 10 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter for Dallas. Amare Stoudemire, who has been mentioned in trade rumors in recent days, had 30 points and 14 rebounds for the Suns, who had their five-game road winning streak snapped...Before the game, Stoudemire rated his chances of being traded before Thursday’s deadline as 50-50. Cleveland was considered the most likely destination if Stoudemire was dealt. But the Cavaliers moved on to their next choice, acquiring Antawn Jamison from Washington in a three-team trade Wednesday. “I think he’s put that all behind him and just played,” Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. Butler and Haywood were playing their first home game and second overall with the Mavericks. Haywood had 10 points, nine rebounds and five blocks starting in place of the injured Erick Dampier, who did not play after undergoing surgery Wednesday to close an open dislocation of his right middle finger...Jason Richardson scored 10 points during a 17-6 run that got Phoenix to 92-87 with 6:49 left. Terry, who scored 17 points, hit a jumper and 3-pointer to push it back to 103-91 with 2:29 remaining. Marion had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Dallas, which had lost six of eight coming in...Richardson had 19 points, Robin Lopez added 14 points and Steve Nash chipped in with 12 assists.
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(From the Associated Press) - With leading scorer Monta Ellis sidelined by a knee injury, C.J. Watson knew he would have to shoulder a lot more responsibility. Watson responded by scoring a career-high 40 points and Stephen Curry had a career-best 15 assists to help the Golden State Warriors break out to a 30-point first-half lead on the way to a 130-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night...The Kings weren’t successful at anything, suffering their most lopsided loss of the season. Rookie guard Tyreke Evans blamed trade rumors swirling around the team for the flat performance. ESPN.com reported that Kevin Martin will be dealt to Houston in a deal that involves Tracy McGrady. “I think that’s the reason why played the way we did, players worrying about being traded and not knowing what’s going on before the trade deadline,” Evans said. “Maybe whatever happens we can get through it and just try to play the way we’ve been playing.” Martin did not play in the second half. He told The Sacramento Bee after the game that “it was time for us to go in a different direction. … I think it’s good.” Watson scored 23 points in the first half, matching his season high for a game, and made 15 of his first 16 shots. He then missed six straight as he looked to top his previous career high of 38 points before converting on an off-balance layup in the closing minute...Evans had 17 points and 10 assists for the Kings, who have lost eight of 10. Jason Thompson added 17 points and 15 rebounds. Sacramento was looking for its first three-game road winning streak since the 2007-08 season. “We were embarrassed,” Kings coach Paul Westphal said. “Probably the first time this year that I was embarrassed by the way our team played. There’s not much spin you can put on it when the roof falls in like that.”...Anthony Morrow added 25 points and George had a season-high 16 for the Warriors.
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(From the Associated Press) - Al Horford and the Atlanta Hawks didn’t allow themselves to fall into that trap of underestimating a losing team in disarray after making two trades in less than 24 hours. Horford scored a career-high 31 points in his 200th NBA game, and the Hawks sent the wheeling-and-dealing Los Angeles Clippers reeling to their sixth straight loss with a 110-92 victory Wednesday night...Josh Smith had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Joe Johnson added 18 points for Atlanta. The Hawks have won four of five, including a 103-97 decision against the Clippers in Atlanta...Chris Kaman had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who are winless in five games since general manager-coach Mike Dunleavy handed the coaching duties to assistant Kim Hughes. Rasual Butler and Eric Gordon each had 18 points. Point guard Steve Blake made his Clippers debut, following the trade Tuesday that sent the Marcus Camby to Portland in exchange for Blake and Travis Outlaw. Blake had nine assists and three points in 33 minutes and was 1 for 6 from the field while starting for Baron Davis, who missed his first game of the season because of a sore lower back that plagued him during Tuesday night’s 109-87 loss at Portland...In another deal that was completed less than an hour before tipoff, Los Angeles acquired Drew Gooden from Cleveland in a three-team trade that sent Al Thornton to Washington and Sebastian Telfair to the Cavaliers. The Wizards had acquired Gooden on Saturday in a trade with Dallas. “This is it—but, hey, we’re open for business till 12 p.m. (PST) tomorrow. You never know what could happen,” Dunleavy said...The Clippers got as close as 81-75 on a 3-pointer by Butler with 3 seconds left in the third quarter, but the Hawks opened the fourth with a 14-2 run to open up a 95-78 lead. Smith capped the rally with an alley-oop dunk off a feed from Jamal Crawford with 8:08 remaining. Crawford, playing with a sore left shoulder, scored 12 points and is 28 away from 10,000. He has played 648 games in the NBA, the most by any active player who hasn’t gotten to the playoffs. But that should change this season, with the Hawks holding the third-best record in the Eastern Conference (34-18).
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(From the Associated Press) - As his soon-to-be former team was about to take the floor against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Antawn Jamison sped out of the Verizon Center. Jamison, a Washington Wizards’ stalwart since 2004, was rumored to be traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and minutes before the game, he was informed that the trade, though not yet done, was nearing completion. Jamison’s last-minute substitution, Andray Blatche, then went out and helped the Wizards beat the Timberwolves 108-99 on Wednesday night. Blatche had a career-high 33 points and 13 rebounds to spark the Wizards, but it was Jamison, whose traded was officially announced about three hours later, who was on everyone’s minds...After Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson were traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday for Josh Howard, Gooden, Quinton Ross and James Singleton, it wasn’t a surprise that Jamison would be dealt...The trade left the Wizards in a temporary bind. Their hastily-assembled lineup featured Blatche and Mike Miller at forward and rarely used second-year player JaVale McGee at center, with Nick Young and Randy Foye at guard. Only Foye played in his usual position. “It’s like ‘Extreme Makeover Team Edition,”’ Miller said...Miller had 17 points and made all five of his 3-point shots. McGee had 14 points and 11 rebounds. Howard did not start but entered the game early in the first quarter. He scored 14 points in 26 minutes. Singleton had six points in 22 minutes, and Ross had three points. Minnesota made a trade of its own. At halftime, the Timberwolves announced they had dealt the seldom-used Brian Cardinal to the New York Knicks for Darko Milicic, the second overall pick in the 2003 draft. Al Jefferson led Minnesota with 18 points, and Ryan Gomes had 16. On Tuesday night after losing by 23 points in Detroit, Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis ripped into his team for a lack of effort. He saw lots of parallels.
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(From the Associated Press) - Rudy Gay’s timing was perfect for the Memphis Grizzlies. Gay scored eight of his 29 points in overtime and the Grizzlies beat the Toronto Raptors 109-102 on Wednesday night to snap a five-game losing streak...Zach Randolph had 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Marc Gasol had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who had lost seven of their last eight. O.J. Mayo scored 22 points for Memphis, and Mike Conley added 13 points and eight assists...The Grizzlies kept calling Gay’s number in overtime, taking advantage of a switch that saw him guarded by the smaller Jose Calderon...Chris Bosh had 32 points and 10 rebounds for Toronto, which had won eight straight home games and eight of nine overall. Andrea Bargnani had 14 points and 10 rebounds. Calderon had 12 points and nine assists, while Amir Johnson and Sonny Weems each scored 10 points for the Raptors, who topped 100 for the 18th straight game...“We’ve been struggling on the second end of back-to-backs, we’d hit a little slump,” Mayo said. “Tonight we easily could have quit. We kept believing and kept fighting and we did a great job. Once we got to overtime, we felt like it was a breath of fresh air.”...“We got off to a slow start and we were very sluggish,” Raptors coach Jay Triano said. “We had a hard time getting it going at all.” Toronto’s Hedo Turkoglu scored just one point in 29 minutes and missed all five shots he attempted.
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(From the Associated Press) - Ben Gordon emerged in the visiting locker room with a bandage around his left eye concealing three stitches. He can thank Dwight Howard, J.J. Redick and the suddenly fighting Orlando Magic. Howard had a season-high 33 points and added 17 rebounds, helping the Magic beat the Detroit Pistons 116-91 on Wednesday night with some physical play in the paint...The reigning Defensive Player of the Year added seven blocks in a dominating performance that gave Orlando its 11th win in the last 14 games. Howard was 11 for 13 on free throws, a refreshing reprieve for the Magic from his normal woes. “You can’t play a much better basketball game than he did tonight,” Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. Vince Carter finished with 20 points, and Jameer Nelson had 14 for Orlando. Richard Hamilton had 36 points, and Tayshaun Prince scored 13 for the Pistons, who had little help late with Ben Gordon ejected...Gordon was given a double-technical foul and ejected about halfway through the fourth quarter, extending his arm and hitting Redick near the face before arguing with the official. Gordon headed to the locker room with the Magic going ahead 96-83 on the free throws and essentially sealing the win...“I like that our team is starting to be physical back,” said Matt Barnes, who was called for a flagrant-one foul in the third quarter after he collided at full-speed as Jonas Jerebko tried to set a screen. “Early in the season, teams were trying to out tough us and out punk us and stuff like that. I can slowly see it changing. It’s just a thing—we’re not going to be dirty, but we’re not going to be pushed around. And I think we’re changing that.”
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(From the Associated Press) - A bit of rest and relaxation in Malibu was all a hobbled Tony Parker needed to start blowing by the competition again. Parker returned after missing San Antonio’s final game before the All-Star break because of a strained left hip flexor. Fresh off a four-day vacation with wife Eva Longoria, he scored 28 points to help the Spurs beat the Indiana Pacers 90-87 on Wednesday night...Tim Duncan had just eight points on 4-for-23 shooting, but had 26 rebounds and five assists. He had 10 rebounds in nine minutes in the fourth quarter...Duncan said it was possibly the worst shooting game of his career, but he made up for it by “going Mo Malone on them.” It was a reference to Moses Malone, the powerful post player who spent his best years with the Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers in the late 1970s and early 1980s...Manu Ginobili added 18 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Spurs. Danny Granger scored 23 points, Roy Hibbert had 14 points, seven rebounds and six blocks, and Troy Murphy added nine points and 16 rebounds for Indiana. The Spurs won despite shooting just 35 percent from the field. “If you would have told me we would hold them to 35 percent shooting, I would think we had a chance,” Pacers coach Jim O’Brien said. Duncan’s 11 offensive rebounds helped the Spurs take 16 more shots than the Pacers. “We played hard,” Granger said. “We got our hands on a lot of balls. We just got killed on the offensive boards. That’s kind of been the tale of our season.”
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(From the Associated Press) - Derrick Rose scored 27 points, Luol Deng added 23, and the Bulls beat New York 115-109 on Wednesday night to complete a home-and-home sweep. With trade rumors swirling around both teams, the Bulls rallied from a 15-point deficit to move above .500 at 27-26 and hand the Knicks their fifth straight loss...Brad Miller had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Taj Gibson finished with 14 points and a career-high 16 rebounds as Chicago outrebounded New York 52-40. Al Harrington scored 27 points, and Wilson Chandler had 26 for the Knicks. David Lee had 23 points and 12 rebounds, while Danilo Gallinari scored 19 points but was just 2 of 10 from 3-point range, including a pair of costly misses with a chance to tie in the final minute...“We came out more aggressive,” Rose said of the turnaround. “In the first half, we weren’t contesting their shots how we were supposed to, like yesterday, and they were getting wide-open looks. In the second half, we were contesting their shots, rebounding the ball and playing our regular uptempo-type game.” The Knicks played without Nate Robinson, who they said was home with flulike symptoms. However, various reports earlier Wednesday said the team was nearing a deal to send the backup guard to Boston, and an official within the league said the trade would be completed Thursday. Starting forward Jared Jeffries also played only 6 minutes before he left with what the Knicks said was a sore right knee. He has been mentioned in a rumored trade with Houston for Tracy McGrady, but team president Donnie Walsh declined comment on specifics of any of his uncompleted deals, saying all the reports of a deal with the Rockets were a “one-way pipeline” coming out of Houston. New York did complete one deal, sending the unhappy Darko Milicic to Minnesota for Brian Cardinal. The deal would open a roster spot for the Knicks to make another trade Thursday if they waive Cardinal, as expected. Walsh wouldn’t say if he planned to keep Cardinal, saying, “I think that’ll be clearer if things work out” Thursday...Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni said the Knicks showed energy and if “they keep that attitude, then we’ll get better as a team and we’ll put some wins on.”
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(From the Associated Press) - For one game, the Miami Heat got by without All-Star MVP Dwyane Wade. They can only hope it’s not longer than that. Michael Beasley had 23 points and 11 rebounds and the Heat overcame the early loss of Wade to a sprained left calf by rallying to beat the New Jersey Nets 87-84 on Wednesday night for their season-high fourth straight victory...Jermaine O’Neal, who strained his lower back in a first-quarter fall, hit three free throws and had two blocks down the stretch. Quentin Richardson hit a big tying 3-pointer and Beasley had two big baskets and a shared block with O’Neal on layup attempt by Kris Humphries that could have put New Jersey ahead with 28 seconds to go...Richardson finished with 16 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, while O’Neal had nine points and seven rebounds in 22 1/2 minutes. Wade had eight points, snapping his streak of 148 straight games in double figures, the second-longest active streak in the NBA behind LeBron James (255)...Brook Lopez had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Nets, whose only basket in the final 4:56 came on a goaltending call at the buzzer. Devin Harris added 18 points. The Nets appeared to headed for their sixth win of the season when Keyon Dooling (14 points) converted a three-point play with 4:56 to play to put them ahead 80-74. The prospects looked even brighter when O’Neal missed two free throws on the Heat’s ensuring possession. However, the Nets went ice cold, missing 11 of their final 12 shots, and Miami just kept on coming...“When you let a team get momentum like that it puts a lot of pressure on yourself,” said Humphries, who said he should have dunked the ball. “With our track record we haven’t been able to handle those situations down the stretch, so it’s a tough one. We’re getting better. We’re right there.”
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(From the Associated Press) - Paul Millsap has decided to be more assertive about shooting, and the Utah Jazz aren’t about to argue with the results. Millsap hit 11 of 13 shots in a 24-point performance that led Utah past the New Orleans Hornets, 98-90 on Wednesday night for the Jazz’s 15th victory in 17 games...“When Paul is given a lot of minutes, he’s always produced,” said Jazz point guard Deron Williams, who had 16 points and 10 assists. “It’s on coach to find him some time to get him out there. If it’s Paul’s night, you’ve got to ride with him.” Carlos Boozer scored six of his 16 points in the last 3:06, helping Utah pull away after a 3-pointer by New Orleans’ James Posey had tied it at 85. Boozer also had 15 rebounds, and Mehmet Okur added 10 points for the Jazz, who shot 54 percent (38 of 70)...Rookie Darren Collison had 24 points and nine assists for New Orleans. Peja Stojakovic added 24 points, hitting 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Yet New Orleans struggled with its shooting overall, finishing at 38.6 percent (34 of 88)...The Hornets trailed for much of the second half, with several usual contributors having an off shooting night. Second-leading scorer David West, averaging 18.1 points coming in, sat for much of the first half with foul trouble, was 2 of 9 from the field and finished with only five points. Darius Songaila, who has shot about 50 percent this season, was 1 of 6, and left the game in the fourth quarter with a sprained right ankle. Morris Peterson, who started at shooting guard, also was 1 of 6. Marcus Thornton scored 14 points for New Orleans, but missed 10 of his 16 shots. Emeka Okafor had 10 rebounds, eight points and three blocks for the Hornets.
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(From the Associated Press) - The Houston Rockets have dealt with constant trade rumors about Tracy McGrady’s next stop. The swirling chatter is new for the Milwaukee Bucks, and they didn’t handle it well on the eve of the trading deadline. Trevor Ariza hit a career-high six 3-pointers, scoring 22 points, and the Rockets hit 16 shots from beyond the arc to rout the Bucks 127-99 on Wednesday night. “It will be nice when the deadline passes and we can settle in for the stretch run,” said Rockets forward Shane Battier, who was 6 of 6 from 3-point range and finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds. “If they make a move, OK, these are our guys moving forward. There’s something comforting about that.”...Just before halftime, several reports said the Bucks had traded for John Salmons from the Chicago Bulls, a shooting guard who would be due a little over $5.8 million next season as part of a player option...The Bucks returned to the court in the second half and shot just 33 percent. Bucks center Andrew Bogut, who finished with 12 points and seven rebounds, said all the talk has been a distraction. “It’s no secret, we know which guys are rumored in trades,” Bogut said. “You don’t want (it) to distract the team but human nature says you’ve got guys that probably aren’t going to be here tomorrow or the day after.” Rookie Brandon Jennings scored 13 points to lead the Bucks, but scored Milwaukee’s first nine points before going to the locker room with an uncontrollable cough. He returned a few minutes later without the same shooting touch...While it appeared the Rockets might be the active team on the day before the 3 p.m. EST trading deadline with McGrady yet to be moved, Milwaukee was the one caught up in rumors. “The only thing that has been an issue at all is the fact that you make a deal for Tracy, it probably involves a couple other people,” Adelman said.
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(From the Associated Press) - Caron Butler spent the past few days trying to get accustomed to his new Dallas Mavericks teammates. It didn’t take the former Washington Wizards player long to figure out that Jason Kidd can help make that task a lot easier. Kidd had 18 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and a career-high seven steals, and Butler started a key third-quarter run in the Mavericks’ 107-97 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night. “He’s a Hall of Famer, one of the best to ever do it,” said Butler, who came to Dallas along with Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson in a seven-player deal Saturday. “I love playing with a guy like that. He gives you that confidence and makes the game that much easier.”...Butler scored 15 points and hit a jumper to open a 16-4 run in the third. Dirk Nowitzki added 10 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter for Dallas. Amare Stoudemire, who has been mentioned in trade rumors in recent days, had 30 points and 14 rebounds for the Suns, who had their five-game road winning streak snapped...Before the game, Stoudemire rated his chances of being traded before Thursday’s deadline as 50-50. Cleveland was considered the most likely destination if Stoudemire was dealt. But the Cavaliers moved on to their next choice, acquiring Antawn Jamison from Washington in a three-team trade Wednesday. “I think he’s put that all behind him and just played,” Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. Butler and Haywood were playing their first home game and second overall with the Mavericks. Haywood had 10 points, nine rebounds and five blocks starting in place of the injured Erick Dampier, who did not play after undergoing surgery Wednesday to close an open dislocation of his right middle finger...Jason Richardson scored 10 points during a 17-6 run that got Phoenix to 92-87 with 6:49 left. Terry, who scored 17 points, hit a jumper and 3-pointer to push it back to 103-91 with 2:29 remaining. Marion had 14 points and 10 rebounds for Dallas, which had lost six of eight coming in...Richardson had 19 points, Robin Lopez added 14 points and Steve Nash chipped in with 12 assists.
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(From the Associated Press) - With leading scorer Monta Ellis sidelined by a knee injury, C.J. Watson knew he would have to shoulder a lot more responsibility. Watson responded by scoring a career-high 40 points and Stephen Curry had a career-best 15 assists to help the Golden State Warriors break out to a 30-point first-half lead on the way to a 130-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night...The Kings weren’t successful at anything, suffering their most lopsided loss of the season. Rookie guard Tyreke Evans blamed trade rumors swirling around the team for the flat performance. ESPN.com reported that Kevin Martin will be dealt to Houston in a deal that involves Tracy McGrady. “I think that’s the reason why played the way we did, players worrying about being traded and not knowing what’s going on before the trade deadline,” Evans said. “Maybe whatever happens we can get through it and just try to play the way we’ve been playing.” Martin did not play in the second half. He told The Sacramento Bee after the game that “it was time for us to go in a different direction. … I think it’s good.” Watson scored 23 points in the first half, matching his season high for a game, and made 15 of his first 16 shots. He then missed six straight as he looked to top his previous career high of 38 points before converting on an off-balance layup in the closing minute...Evans had 17 points and 10 assists for the Kings, who have lost eight of 10. Jason Thompson added 17 points and 15 rebounds. Sacramento was looking for its first three-game road winning streak since the 2007-08 season. “We were embarrassed,” Kings coach Paul Westphal said. “Probably the first time this year that I was embarrassed by the way our team played. There’s not much spin you can put on it when the roof falls in like that.”...Anthony Morrow added 25 points and George had a season-high 16 for the Warriors.
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(From the Associated Press) - Al Horford and the Atlanta Hawks didn’t allow themselves to fall into that trap of underestimating a losing team in disarray after making two trades in less than 24 hours. Horford scored a career-high 31 points in his 200th NBA game, and the Hawks sent the wheeling-and-dealing Los Angeles Clippers reeling to their sixth straight loss with a 110-92 victory Wednesday night...Josh Smith had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Joe Johnson added 18 points for Atlanta. The Hawks have won four of five, including a 103-97 decision against the Clippers in Atlanta...Chris Kaman had 21 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who are winless in five games since general manager-coach Mike Dunleavy handed the coaching duties to assistant Kim Hughes. Rasual Butler and Eric Gordon each had 18 points. Point guard Steve Blake made his Clippers debut, following the trade Tuesday that sent the Marcus Camby to Portland in exchange for Blake and Travis Outlaw. Blake had nine assists and three points in 33 minutes and was 1 for 6 from the field while starting for Baron Davis, who missed his first game of the season because of a sore lower back that plagued him during Tuesday night’s 109-87 loss at Portland...In another deal that was completed less than an hour before tipoff, Los Angeles acquired Drew Gooden from Cleveland in a three-team trade that sent Al Thornton to Washington and Sebastian Telfair to the Cavaliers. The Wizards had acquired Gooden on Saturday in a trade with Dallas. “This is it—but, hey, we’re open for business till 12 p.m. (PST) tomorrow. You never know what could happen,” Dunleavy said...The Clippers got as close as 81-75 on a 3-pointer by Butler with 3 seconds left in the third quarter, but the Hawks opened the fourth with a 14-2 run to open up a 95-78 lead. Smith capped the rally with an alley-oop dunk off a feed from Jamal Crawford with 8:08 remaining. Crawford, playing with a sore left shoulder, scored 12 points and is 28 away from 10,000. He has played 648 games in the NBA, the most by any active player who hasn’t gotten to the playoffs. But that should change this season, with the Hawks holding the third-best record in the Eastern Conference (34-18).
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