Times wires
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
ORLANDO — The uncertainty around the Magic couldn't have worked out better for the Mavericks.
Not that they've had a problem with anybody lately.
Caron Butler scored 20 points, Dirk Nowitzki had 17 and the streaking Mavericks became the latest team to topple the reconstructed Magic, 105-99 Tuesday night.
"We still know who they had," Nowitzki said of a Magic team that just overhauled its roster. "Dwight (Howard) is their focus. They have a bunch of shooters, Jameer (Nelson) and all those guys."
Nowitzki passed Celtics great Larry Bird for 25th on the NBA's career scoring list, finishing the night at 21,798 points, and the Mavericks pulled away in the fourth quarter for their 16th win in 17 games.
A night after snapping Miami's 12-game winning streak, they shot 50 percent from the floor, including 46 percent from 3-point range.
The Magic again looked like a team that hasn't had time to hold a practice since newcomers Gilbert Arenas, Jason Richardson and Hedo Turkoglu were acquired Saturday in a pair of blockbuster trades. It has lost the first two games since and dropped eight of its past nine.
The latest loss came on another monster night for Howard, who had 26 points and 23 rebounds but got little help from his teammates. Howard has had at least 20 rebounds in three straight games.
The Magic's struggles were a big reason it orchestrated the trades that brought Arenas from Washington and Turkoglu, Richardson and Earl Clark from Phoenix. It gave up Rashard Lewis, Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus and Marcin Gortat, plus a 2011 first-round draft pick.
The three biggest newcomers have been unspectacular. In their home debuts, Arenas had two points (1-for-6), Turkoglu nine (2-for-11) and Richardson 10 (4-for-13). "None of those guys are shooting the ball very well right now," coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I don't know if it's being in a new situation or putting too much pressure on themselves."
GAME HIGHLIGHTS: The Nets snapped a 10-game road losing streak with a 101-94 victory over the Grizzlies. Brook Lopez scored 26 points for New Jersey. … Derrick Rose and Luol Deng each scored 22 points, and the host Bulls beat the 76ers 121-76 for their eighth win in nine games.
Celtics: Starting center Kendrick Perkins, who had offseason ACL surgery on his right knee, is participating in on-court activity and may return to full-contact practice by January, ESPN reported.
Rockets: The team asked the NBA for a disabled player salary cap exception in the wake of Yao Ming's season-ending ankle injury. The exception would allow the Rockets to sign a free agent or trade for a player without having to match salaries up to the value of the midlevel exception, which is about $5.75 million. The league granted Houston the exception in 2009-10, when Yao sat out after foot surgery, and it used that money, about $5.7 million, to sign swingman Trevor Ariza.
Suns: New acquisition Vince Carter was scheduled to see a doctor about his left knee. He told the Arizona Republic swelling had returned after he injured it and he had "excruciating" pain Nov. 22, causing him to miss the ensuing three games. Carter said that on Saturday, the day he was traded from the Magic with Marcin Gortat and Mickael Pietrus, he was ready to tell the Magic he wanted an MRI.
Mavericks 105, Magic 99
DALLAS (105): Butler 8-14 0-0 20, Nowitzki 4-13 8-8 17, Chandler 7-7 2-3 16, Kidd 4-12 2-2 13, Stevenson 4-5 0-0 11, Haywood 2-3 0-2 4, Terry 5-10 2-2 13, Marion 2-7 3-4 7, Barea 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 38-76 17-21 105.
ORLANDO (99): J.Richardson 4-13 0-0 10, Turkoglu 2-11 4-4 9, Howard 11-19 4-4 26, Nelson 7-15 1-1 19, Redick 7-14 3-3 21, Arenas 1-6 0-0 2, Bass 3-5 0-0 6, Clark 3-3 0-0 6. Totals 38-86 12-12 99.
Dallas 27 22 27 29— 105
Orlando 21 24 27 27— 99
3-Point Goals—Dallas 12-26 (Butler 4-6, Stevenson 3-4, Kidd 3-8, Nowitzki 1-3, Terry 1-3, Marion 0-1, Barea 0-1), Orlando 11-29 (Nelson 4-7, Redick 4-9, J.Richardson 2-7, Turkoglu 1-4, Arenas 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Dallas 46 (Nowitzki 8), Orlando 44 (Howard 23). Assists—Dallas 28 (Kidd 12), Orlando 22 (Turkoglu 8). Total Fouls—Dallas 18, Orlando 22. Technicals—Dallas defensive three second. A—19,057 (18,500).
Thunder 99, Bobcats 81
OKLAHOMA CITY (99): Durant 8-13 14-16 32, Green 4-13 3-4 12, Ibaka 3-9 4-4 10, Westbrook 5-13 5-5 15, Sefolosha 0-4 1-2 1, Collison 3-4 1-2 7, Harden 5-8 0-1 13, Mullens 0-2 0-0 0, Maynor 1-3 2-2 5, White 2-2 0-0 4, Aldrich 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-71 30-36 99.
CHARLOTTE (81): Carroll 0-2 0-0 0, Diaw 5-11 2-2 13, K.Brown 3-4 3-6 9, Augustin 3-8 0-0 8, Jackson 7-17 6-6 20, Livingston 2-3 2-2 6, Mohammed 1-2 1-3 3, Henderson 0-3 0-0 0, McGuire 0-0 1-2 1, D.Brown 5-10 1-3 11, Collins 2-6 0-0 5, Thomas 2-9 1-2 5. Totals 30-75 17-26 81.
Oklahoma City 21 24 23 31— 99
Charlotte 23 17 29 12— 81
3-Point Goals—Oklahoma City 7-16 (Harden 3-4, Durant 2-4, Maynor 1-1, Green 1-5, Westbrook 0-1, Sefolosha 0-1), Charlotte 4-14 (Augustin 2-4, Collins 1-2, Diaw 1-3, Henderson 0-1, Carroll 0-1, Jackson 0-3). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Oklahoma City 56 (Collison 10), Charlotte 44 (Diaw 7). Assists—Oklahoma City 17 (Green 5), Charlotte 18 (Diaw 8). Total Fouls—Oklahoma City 24, Charlotte 27. A—16,876 (19,077).
Bulls 121, 76ers 76
PHILADELPHIA (76): Iguodala 8-12 0-2 17, Brand 2-9 2-2 6, Hawes 0-1 0-0 0, Holiday 3-12 3-4 9, Meeks 2-7 4-4 9, Williams 2-5 2-2 6, Young 5-12 2-3 12, Turner 2-11 2-2 6, Nocioni 1-3 2-2 4, Speights 1-4 0-0 2, Battie 1-2 1-2 3, Songaila 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 28-80 18-23 76.
CHICAGO (121): Deng 10-14 2-3 22, Boozer 7-12 2-2 16, Thomas 6-10 0-0 12, Rose 7-13 6-6 22, Bogans 0-0 0-0 0, Brewer 4-5 0-0 9, Asik 3-3 2-3 8, Watson 5-6 3-3 14, Korver 4-4 0-0 10, Johnson 2-4 2-4 6, Lucas 0-1 0-0 0, Scalabrine 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 49-76 17-21 121.
Philadelphia 19 24 11 22— 76
Chicago 33 28 31 29— 121
3-Point Goals—Philadelphia 2-15 (Iguodala 1-2, Meeks 1-5, Young 0-1, Turner 0-1, Holiday 0-1, Speights 0-1, Nocioni 0-2, Williams 0-2), Chicago 6-11 (Korver 2-2, Rose 2-4, Watson 1-1, Brewer 1-1, Scalabrine 0-1, Deng 0-2). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Philadelphia 43 (Brand 9), Chicago 45 (Boozer 11). Assists—Philadelphia 13 (Williams 4), Chicago 32 (Rose 12). Total Fouls—Philadelphia 14, Chicago 16. A—21,521 (20,917).
Nets 101, Grizzlies 94
NEW JERSEY (101): Outlaw 5-11 0-1 11, Humphries 6-11 0-0 12, Lopez 8-14 10-11 26, Harris 4-11 4-5 12, Graham 4-7 1-2 9, Favors 3-3 0-0 6, Farmar 3-6 0-0 7, Vujacic 6-8 2-2 16, Murphy 1-5 0-2 2. Totals 40-76 17-23 101.
MEMPHIS (94): Gay 4-16 2-2 11, Randolph 4-13 3-5 11, Gasol 6-10 7-10 19, Conley 5-12 2-3 13, Henry 5-6 1-2 11, Thabeet 1-2 0-0 2, Mayo 6-15 4-5 17, Arthur 2-5 0-0 4, Allen 1-4 1-2 3, Vasquez 1-5 0-0 3, Haddadi 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 35-88 20-29 94.
New Jersey 26 19 28 28— 101
Memphis 18 25 24 27— 94
3-Point Goals—New Jersey 4-13 (Vujacic 2-3, Farmar 1-3, Outlaw 1-5, Murphy 0-1, Harris 0-1), Memphis 4-13 (Conley 1-2, Vasquez 1-2, Gay 1-3, Mayo 1-6). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—New Jersey 57 (Humphries 15), Memphis 47 (Randolph 14). Assists—New Jersey 15 (Farmar 6), Memphis 16 (Conley 8). Total Fouls—New Jersey 24, Memphis 21. A—14,113 (18,119).
Restaurants Self-catering Chamonix The far right Coronation Street Public sector cuts
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