The Basketball Diaries

Phoenix Suns 122 Golden State Warriors 116

And with that, the already slim hopes of the Warriors making the playoffs have been dashed. The Suns blew a 17-point lead in the 3rd quarter, but were able to rally back in the 4th thanks to Amare Stoudemire, who scored 11 of his 28 in the final 12 minutes. Steve Nash also finished just shy of a triple-double with 13 points, 14 assists, and 9 rebounds. As for the Warriors, I think there will probably be a few questions asked on Don Nelson after he benched Baron Davis for the entire second half after a horrible first half. Sure, his shot was off, but when your playoff hopes are hanging by a thread, you don't put your team's heart and leader on the bench. Maybe Don has a vacation planned already, and doesn't want to reschedule.

Chicago Bulls 151 Milwaukee Bucks 135

Holy shit, what the hell happened here? I know the Bucks aren't exactly a defensive powerhouse, but giving up 151 points to the Bulls? Damn. Though, as he just has a knack for doing, Joakim Noah said it best afterwards. "It definitely wasn't a playoff atmosphere. Put it this way, if people were playing for something right now, like a playoff berth, the score would have never been like that." Oh, and Milwaukee rookie Ramon Sessions finished the game with 20 points and 24 assists. The first time a Buck has put up a 20-20 in points and assists in franchise history, and what a glorious history it is!

Utah Jazz 105 Houston Rockets 96

This was a huge victory for the Jazz, because even though it only ties them with Houston record-wise out west, it gives them the tiebreaker over the Rockets at the same time. So should the two teams meet in the first round of the playoffs (which they would if the season ended riiiiiiight....NOW), the Jazz will have the home-court advantage which is a huge bonus for Utah. They're 37-4 in the land of the Mormons, and only 17-23 in Christian America.

Elsewhere...

• Cavs 91 Sixers 90
• Wizards 117 Pacers 110
• Raptors 91 Heat 75
• Celtics 99 Knicks 93
• Spurs 101 Kings 98

The Basketball Diaries

Denver Nuggets 115 Golden State Warriors 104

Normally a battle for the 8th and final spot in the playoffs is a pointless exercise. Odds are the team that does win it is going to end up getting their asses kicked in the first round anyway, but not this year. This year in the West the 8th seed is just as good as the 1st seed, and the Nuggets went a long way in helping make sure they lock it up. By overcoming an early 16-point deficit to beat the Warriors in Oakland on Thursday night, the Nuggets put themselves a game ahead of the Warriors in the battle for the final spot. Allen Iverson had 33 points, Carmelo had 25, and J.R. Smith contributed off the bench with 24 of his own. "Everybody knew what was at stake," Iverson said. "It's easy for players to say it's just another game. But everybody knows it wasn't just another game. It was a game that both teams felt they had to have." Even more important than that one game lead is the fact this win also gives Denver the tie-breaker if they should finish with the same record as Golden State. All Denver needs to do is win two of their last three and it's theirs, though it won't be that easy with a trip to Utah next, and two home games against Houston and Memphis. Okay, so Memphis will be easy.

Dallas Mavericks 97 Utah Jazz 94

The reason there's only one spot left out west to play for is because Dirk Nowitzki's three-pointer with 0.9 seconds left (which answered a game tying three by Deron Williams seconds earlier) gave the Mavs a big win over the Jazz, and clinched a playoff spot. Nowitzki finished the game with 32 points, and Jason Terry scored 21, but the duo was responsible for 25 of Dallas' 4th quarter points. "I heard people say we wouldn't even make the playoffs, but now we're in," Terry added. "Tonight, we took another step in the right direction. We have to treat all these games like playoff games. We have a long way to go but winning games like these is big for us." And I'll fully admit I was one of those people who said Dallas would miss the playoffs, and I was wrong. It happens from time to time, kind of like Haley's Comet, except rarererererer.

Los Angeles Lakers 116 Los Angeles Clippers 78

The Clippers have long been the red-headed stepchild of the LA basketball scene (behind both UCLA and USC, not just the Lakers), and the Lakers beat them like it on Thursday night. The 38-point victory gave the Lakers a series sweep over the Clippers this season, and moved them within 1.5 games of New Orleans for the top spot out west. Luke Walton led the Lakers with 18 points as every single Lakers starter sat out the 4th quarter, save for Lamar Odom. Kobe finished the night with a rather pedestrian 16, but who cares, take away his points and the Lakers still win by 22.

The Basketball Diaries

New Orleans Hornets 108 Golden State Warriors 96

I understand the reasons for it, but it still amuses me that while everyone talks about how the Spurs, Lakers, Suns, or Jazz will win the West, everybody keeps ignoring the fact that the Hornets still have the best record in the conference. It's not a new phenomenon, either, as they've been on top, and stayed on top for a while. They're one of only two teams in the West that have a winning record against the playoff contenders (Utah being the other team) and they have Chris Paul, who's awesome. Paul had a triple-double(16 points, 13 assists, 10 rebounds) on Sunday to lead the Hornets to a win over the Warriors. For Golden State, the loss knocked them out of the playoff picture temporarily, but if Denver lost in Seattle they'd be tied again. So what did Denver do?

Seattle Sonics 151 Denver Nuggets 147 2OT

They lost! To Seattle! I could go into details on how many points were scored by whom, but damn man, look at that score. Everybody had 20 points. Was there a new rule enforced before the game that said teams were only allowed to use three players on defense? Kevin Durant led Seattle with 37 points, 8 boards, and 9 assists to spoil the efforts of Carmelo Anthony(38 points, 11 rebounds) and Allen Iverson (26 points, 13 assists). For Denver right now, every game is a must win, but losing to Seattle is an especially big blow. Especially to start a 4-game road trip that has stops in Oakland and Utah.

Dallas Mavericks 105 Phoenix Suns 98

The Mavs are good all of a sudden. Not only are they finally beating good teams, but they're doing it on the road. Dallas overcame a 13-point deficit in the 4th quarter by outscoring the Suns 27-9 in the final period. Dirk Nowitzki finished with 32 points, and the Mavs look like, well, the Mavs again. "Every team we'd played so far we were right there, on the road or at home," Nowitzki said. "So it feels great to get finally over the hump. I think everybody in the locker room was pretty hyped up that we had finally pulled this one out. Hopefully this could build some momentum."

Elsewhere...

• Pacers 105 Bucks 97
• Pistons 91 Heat 75
• Spurs 72 Blazers 65
• Grizzlies 113 TWolves 101
• Knicks 100 Magic 90
• Lakers 114 Kings 92
• Rockets 105 Clippers 79

The Basketball Diaries

Dallas Mavericks 111 Golden State Warriors 86

Stop the presses! The Mavericks have beaten a team with a winning record! Dirk Nowitzki returned to the lineup after missing the last four games with a high ankle sprain, and scored 18 points to help the Mavs get a big victory in the Western Conference playoff race. Though Dirk's return was nice for Dallas, it was probably the 31 points from Jason Terry that helped more than anything. The Warriors, meanwhile, now find themselves on the outside of the playoffs looking in, as they trail the Nuggets by a game for the eighth and final spot.

New Orleans Hornets 106 Miami Heat 77

One sign that the Hornets are a good team is that they win every game that they're supposed to. Sure, they've suffered a few losses in Detroit, Boston, and Houston, but they take care of business everywhere else. For a lot of young teams in New Orleans' position, Wednesday night's game against the Heat would have been a trap game. Not for New Orleans. The Hornets started and finished strong, outscoring the Heat 58-25 in the 1st and 4th quarters. Tyson Chandler didn't miss a single shot, and finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds, David West had 22 points, and some guy named Chris Paul had 14 points and 10 assists.

Elsewhere...

• Hawks 127 Raptors 120 OT
• Celtics 92 Pacers 77
• Bucks 110 Wizards 109
• Cavs 118 Bobcats 114
• Grizzlies 130 Knicks 114
• Jazz 117 TWolves 100
• Clippers 102 Sonics 84
• Lakers 104 Blazers 91

The Basketball Diaries

Unfortunately for Aaron Gray, the reason he's on the bench is because that's the only way he knows how to play defense.

Boston Celtics 106 Chicago Bulls 92

I write this recap with full disclosure: Now that baseball season has begun, I don't plan on watching another Bulls game this season. This means that I didn't watch this game, but I'll bet I can tell you what happened anyway. The Celtics were led by Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce as they toyed with the Bulls and their feeble attempts to stop any of them. Am I way off? I do see that Tyrus Thomas had a nice game, leading the Bulls with 24 points, and even impressed Garnett with his play. "Tyrus has a lot of potential. Obviously, that's no secret. It's all going to be about what he wants to do in this league, if he's able to listen and follow direction and have a work ethic." Well, 0-for-3 ain't bad!

Denver Nuggets 126 Phoenix Suns 120

The Suns and Nuggets met in another defensive slugfest for the second consecutive night, but this time it was the Nuggets who prevailed and moved back into the Western Conference's final playoff spot. Allen Iverson had 31, Carmelo Anthony had 25, Kenyon Martin had 18, and J.R. Smith finished with 17 points to lead the Nuggets. Of course, just because they've won their 9th straight game at home, and 9th in their last 12 games overall, the Nuggets realize that they still can't relax in the ultra-competitive west. "One loss and you're back down the totem pole," J.R. Smith said. "We can't be too excited about this. We've got to just keep playing our game."

San Antonio Spurs 116 Golden State Warriors 92

The reason the Nuggets moved back into the playoffs? The Spurs dominated the Warriors on Tuesday night in San Antonio to pick up their 8th straight win. Tony Parker led the way with 26 points, but Tim Duncan added 17 and 12 rebounds while Manu Ginobili dropped in 16 more to help pace San Antonio. "On offense Tony did another great job running the show for us and distributing and scoring," said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "Timmy was great in the hole. I thought everybody really contributed and knocked down shots and moved the ball well." The win puts San Antonio in a virtual tie with New Orleans for first in the west, but since the Hornets have played two less games, they're still ahead on percentage points.

Elsewhere...

• Hornets 98 Magic 97
• Sixers 108 Nets 99
• Bucks 119 Knicks 115 OT
• Pistons 94 TWolves 90
• Kings 99 Rockets 98

The Basketball Diaries

Detroit Pistons 110 Phoenix Suns 105 OT

The Suns had recently seemed to figure it out, winning their last seven games, but they couldn't figure out how to stop Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups on Monday night. Sheed kept the Pistons out front early with a barrage of three-pointers, finishing the night 5-of-9 behind the arc for 23 points, while Billups scored 9 of his 32 during overtime to lead Detroit to victory. Also stepping up were rookie guards Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo as the Pistons had to make do without both Rip Hamilton and Juan Dixon. "This game is another vindication for the young guys," said Billups. "I have an unbelievable amount of confidence in those guys." Amare Stoudemire led Phoenix with 33 points.

Philadelphia 76ers 95 Boston Celtics 90

They've been doing it under the radar, but the Sixers have been playing very good basketball as of late. Something tells me their win over the Celtics on Monday night may help garner more attention, as the Sixers have now won 12 of their last 15 games and are over .500 for the first time this season. The key last night was a 19-0 run in the fourth quarter after facing a double-digit deficit. Andre Iguodala, who led Philly with 28 points, is pleased with the win but doesn't feel the Sixers have accomplished anything yet. "It shows how hard we've worked to get back," said Iguodala. "But I think we still have to have that mentality like we're a team that's still under .500 and still fighting. It's not over yet. We've gotten to a point where we want to be, which is over .500, but we still don't have an 'X' by our name" to signify a playoff berth.

Elsewhere...

• Heat 78 Bucks 73
• Nets 106 Knicks 91
• Nuggets 120 Grizzlies 106
• Rockets 108 Kings 100
• Sonics 97 Blazers 84
• Lakers 123 Warriors 119 OT
  

The Basketball Diaries

San Antonio Spurs 88 Dallas Mavericks 81

The Mavericks are in trouble. Not only did they lose to another winning team on Sunday (Since the Jason Kidd trade, the Mavs are 0-8 against teams with winning records) but they also lost their best player for a few weeks. Dirk Nowitzki landed awkwardly on his leg during the 3rd quarter, and had to be helped off the court. The way things are in the west, that's long enough for the Mavs to fall out of the playoffs. "I fell awkwardly and my left leg got caught underneath of me," Nowitzki said in a statement. "I am going to get re-evaluated in the morning and I hope to have more information then." Manu Ginobili had 26 points, and Tim Duncan had 19 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Spurs.

Golden State Warriors 115 Los Angeles Lakers 111

The game was a lot closer than the Warriors would have liked, as they nearly blew a 26-point lead, but Stephen Jackson hit two 3-pointers in the final 30 seconds of the game to help Golden State hold the Lakers off. Those final 6 points gave Jackson 31 on the night. "He has made big shots for us all year," Warriors coach Don Nelson said. "I don't know how he does it. We put him in a good position where he was open." Kobe Bryant did everything he could for the Lakers, finished with 36 points, 14 rebounds, and 8 assists, but it wasn't enough.

Denver Nuggets 109 Toronto Raptors 100

Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony were the stars of this game, as they scored 36 and 33 points respectively, but Kenyon Martin was the real reason the Nuggets beat the Raptors on Sunday. His defense on Chris Bosh in the 4th quarter was the key as he held the big man scoreless in the final 12 minutes. "Kenyon Martin's defense on Bosh was incredible and got better as the game went on," George Karl said. "You win games with stops more than making shots. I thought Kenyon was the star of the game." Of course, Bosh is so good that even with Martin's defense, he finished only one assist shy of a triple-double (17 points, 12 rebounds, 9 assists).

Elsewhere...

• Wizards 95 Pistons 83

The Basketball Diaries

Phoenix Suns 123 Golden State Warriors 115

The Suns seem to have found the formula for winning with Shaq on the team. What they did on Thursday night was simple, yet effective. They just didn't play him. Instead, the Suns reverted to their former selves and spent all night running up and down the court with the Warriors, and it paid off with a win. Amare Stoudemire had 36 points and 11 rebounds, and Steve Nash had 21 points and 13 assists to lead Phoenix. "We're still in a training camp mode really for the rest of the year," Nash said, "but we're learning. I think we're getting more accustomed to playing both ways and how we can change on the fly and be comfortable and efficient." Baron Davis finished with 38 points for Golden State.

Washington Wizards 101 Cleveland Cavaliers 99

What a day for Caron Butler. Not only was it his 28th birthday on Thursday, but he got to play in his first game in over a month for the Wizards. Butler finished with 19 points with the Wizards, as all five of Washington's starters finished in double digits. "Swag at an all-time high," said Butler, sporting a sharp suit with a purple-and-white tie and matching handkerchief after the game. "Feeling good. Good win. Birthday. Going to go out with the team into the city and celebrate right now." LeBron James scored 25 points for Cleveland, but he missed a three-pointer at the buzzer that would have won the game for Cleveland.

Sacramento Kings 96 Portland Trailblazers 85

It's hard to have a meaningless game between two Western Conference opponents, but it's going to happen once in a while, and Thursday night was once in a while. Ron Artest had 22 points to lead the Kings to a win, but no closer to a playoff berth. "I wanted to come out with energy and try to set the tone," said Artest, who had a season-high six steals. "This time of year you have to fight through fatigue, play hard, and see what happens."

The Basketball Diaries

Houston Rockets 94 Washington Wizards 68

See, Yao Ming was holding the Rockets back. The Rockets were able to win their 13th straight game only hours after learning that the face of the franchise and communists everywhere, Yao Ming, is out for the season with a broken foot. The 41-year old Dikembe "Who wants to sex" Mutombo started in Yao's place, and scored 4 points, grabbed 8 rebounds, and blocked 4 shots. In other words, Houston better feed Tracy McGrady like crazy the rest of this season if they think they're going to have any chance of making the playoffs now. Which they won't.

Miami Heat 107 Sacramento Kings 86

The only bigger longshot in the NBA than the Rockets making the playoffs at this point is the Miami Heat winning a game. That never happ....what the? Holy shit! The Heat actually won a game. I guess that means the Rockets have a chance after all. (Just kidding.) The Heat's victory over the Kings on Tuesday night was their first in a month, snapping an 11-game losing streak. "I know we've had it in us," a visibly relieved Heat coach Pat Riley said. "I don't know where it's been. But tonight, we played extremely well. We just played a complete game for 48 minutes. I feel like a mosquito in a nudist colony. I know what to do. I just don't know where to start." You know, it's weird. That's exactly what I was thinking too.

Golden State Warriors 105 Seattle Sonics 99

One of the team's poised to feast on the rotting corpse that is the Rockets playoff chances is the Warriors, and they did their job on Tuesday night. Monta Ellis had 30 points, Baron Davis had 20 points and 10 assists, and Austin Croshere (!?) scored 14 points to lead Golden State over the Sonics. Croshere has played like 3 minutes all season, yet there he was in the third quarter scoring all 14 of his points without missing a shot. "The last few years, my role has been to be ready, not knowing if you're going to get a DNP or play 27 minutes," Croshere said. "That's tough for younger players, but I've been doing it for a while now. ... It felt good to be out there. I didn't really do anything special. We've got four great scorers out there, so I was just reading the double-teams and getting to the basket." I didn't even know he was still alive.

Elsewhere...

• Magic 102 Nets 92
• Bucks 105 Cavs 102
• TWolves 111 Jazz 100
• Suns 127 Grizzlies 113
• Lakers 96 Blazers 83

The Basketball Diaries

Denver Nuggets 124 Boston Celtics 118

Finally, the Celtics have fallen to a Western Conference opponent. Kevin Garnett played for the first time since January 25th, and he played like somebody who hadn't played in a month. KG scored only 4 points for the Celtics on 2-of-7 shooting. Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson showed no such rust for Denver, scoring 29 and 28 points respectively. "Winning this game puts a lot of pressure on us, because if you can beat a team like this, then you can beat all the other teams," Iverson said. "We have enough talent to scare some people, but we just have to bring it night in and night out."

Utah Jazz 119 Golden State Warriors 109

The Utah Jazz exploded on the Warriors on Tuesday night. Utah scored 77 points in the first half as neither the Jazz or the Warriors seemed to remember how to play defense after the All-Star layoff. Deron Williams had 29 points and 12 assists for the Jazz, both Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur had double doubles, and Andrei Kirilenko had 18 points as Utah completed a season sweep of the Warriors. "The only good thing about the game tonight for us is that this is the last time we have to play in Utah," Golden State coach Don Nelson said.

Orlando Magic 103 Detroit Pistons 85

It seems Dwight Howard left his Superman costume in New Orleans, because he was far from the man of steel on Tuesday night. The reigning slam dunk champion scored only 8 points for Orlando, but that didn't stop them from ending the Pistons 10-game win streak. Orlando hit 65% of their three-pointers, making 13 of the 20 they attempted. Also, just because Dwight was contributing on offense, that doesn't mean he didn't sway the game in the Magic's favor. "Dwight had eight points and eight rebounds, and there's been other nights when he's gone 20-20, but this might have been his best game of the season," he said. "In the third quarter, he made it virtually impossible for Detroit to get any offense going inside. He changed every shot."

Elsewhere...

• Rockets 93 Cavaliers 85
• Knicks 113 Wizards 100 OT
• TWolves 104 Sixers 88
• Spurs 85 Bobcats 65
• Kings 104 Blazers 95
• Sonics 108 Grizzlies 101
• Lakers 122 Hawks 93

The Basketball Diaries

Chicago Bulls 114 Golden State Warriors 108

Maybe it was the fact that the he knew he'd get a lot of playing time with Ben Gordon, Kirk Hinrich, and Luol Deng in street clothes, or maybe he was just pumped up about Duke's win over North Carolina on Wednesday, but Chris Duhon brought his A-game last night. Duhon scored a career-high 34 points as the Bulls beat the Warriors in Oakland for the first time in ten years on Thursday night. "I took open shots, got my rhythm, and they continued to keep falling," Duhon said. "Being the only guard tonight, it gives you extra confidence knowing that you could be a little bit more aggressive. Even if you miss a few shots and make a couple of mistakes, Coach is going to continue to keep playing you, so you just play a little bit more loose and don't play mind games with yourself."

Houston Rockets 92 Cleveland Cavaliers 77

Tracy MacGrady spent most of his Thursday night seemingly looking around for a bucket to throw up in. Luckily for Tracy, Yao Ming and Rafer Alston were able to pick up the slack for their sick teammate. Yao scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, while Rafer Alston scored 17 points. LeBron scored 32 points for Cleveland, but the Cavs severely missed Drew Gooden, as the Rockets killed them on the boards all night.

Elsewhere...

• Sixers 101 Heat 84

The Basketball Diaries

Minnesota Timberwolves 83 Chicago Bulls 67

I didn't bother watching this game, Tuesday night's was enough for me, and judging by the score I have to say I made the right decision. I got a text from Silvio asking me if I was watching it, and when I told him I wasn't I got the reply that 8 minutes into the first quarter the score was 3-2. After the game, Jim Boylan wasn't very happy. "I'm really disappointed in the way we performed in the second half and the way we just, some guys out there just seemed to shut it off," Bulls interim coach Jim Boylan said. "That was disappointing to see. Just shut it off. Stopped playing with energy. They stopped playing with focus. They went into their own little worlds and were acting kind of childish at times instead of doing what we know we need to do against a team like this. We let the game get away from us."

Golden State Warriors 116 New Orleans Hornets 103

A note to Hornets fans: Don't boo Baron Davis. Everytime Baron, a former Hornet, touched the ball on Wednesday night the New Orleans crowd booed him. Baron then responded by scoring 23 points, including a three-pointer late that put the game out of reach for the Warriors. "Nobody likes to get booed," Davis said. "It wasn't really motivation. It was kind of distracting, but at the same time you've just got deal with it. I expected it, so I just dealt with it." Chris Paul had 28 points and 12 assists for New Orleans.

Cleveland Cavaliers 84 Portland Trail Blazers 83

LeBron James just took over the fourth quarter in this game. In the final period, Kind James scored 17 of his 37 points. Portland scored 15. After being blocked twice by Joel Przybilla, LeBron took the game over and it was his reverse layup with less than a second remaining that gave Cleveland the victory. He also took the time to grab 14 rebounds. "I just wanted to take every possession like it was our last and be aggressive," James said. "I don't know when the turning point happened, but we were able to ride the wave and get a win."

Elsewhere...

• Magic 107 Heat 91
• Sixers 112 Bucks 69
• Raptors 122 Wizards 83
• Nuggets 106 Grizzlies 1o2
• Jazz 100 Knicks 89
• Kings 105 Bobcats 91
• Clippers 95 Hawks 88

The Basketball Diaries

San Antonio Spurs 90 Miami Heat 89

Oh those poor Miami Heat. There they were on Thursday night riding their 14-game losing streak, at home against the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. Nobody would have cared had they just packed it in, and took the night off. Let's face it, when you've lost 14 in a row, what's one more? Instead they showed up with every intention of winning, and jumped out to an early lead on Spurs. Dwyane Wade's 27 points and 9 assists seemed like they'd be enough to get Miami a W, but, alas, Manu Ginobili's layup in the final minute gave the Spurs the lead for the first time all night. They didn't relinquish it, and the Heat now sit two more losses shy of tying the franchise record. I'll be rooting for them!

Milwaukee Bucks 104 Indiana Pacers 92

Michael Redd hasn't been getting many shots lately, but he made up for it on Thursday against the Pacers. He took 29 of them, and luckily 13 went in, so Michael ended up with 37 to lead the Bucks to victory. "There's nobody on our team I'd rather have taking an open shot than Michael," Bucks coach Larry Krystkowiak said."It's the time when maybe he carries the burden on his shoulders a little bit and takes some forced shots," he said. "I don't want to rob anybody of feeling like they can't take shots when they're open." It's the Pacers third loss in four games since losing Jermaine O'Neal, which has become a winter tradition in Indianapolis.

Golden State Warriors 121 New Jersey Nets 119

I'm kind of pissed off I forgot to record this game, because I don't mind watching Jason Kidd and Baron Davis on the court together. Unfortunately, since there's no AP report up about this game as I write this, I have no idea what happened yet. Maybe Panger will fill you in later.

The Basketball Diaries

Golden State Warriors 130 San Antonio Spurs 121 OT

Wow. What a basketball game. How unfortunate that I missed the start of it because I was still watching OSU lose to LSU. I tuned in in time though to see the Spurs overcome a 6-point deficit in the final minute, including Tony Parker's three-pointer with 6 seconds left that tied the game and sent it to overtime. Then I got to see the overtime in which Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson just took things over for the Warriors. Baron Davis had 34 points and 14 assists to lead Golden State, and during the final five minutes of regulation and the overtime, I don't think Golden State scored a basket that Baron didn't have something to do with. "I thought our spirits were really down, but somehow we got it back together," coach Don Nelson said. "And I think we can thank Baron for this one." Stephen Jackson finished with 29 points for the Warriors, while Tim Duncan led San Antonio with 32 points and 13 rebounds.

Phoenix Suns 137 Denver Nuggets 115

So there wasn't much defense played in the NBA on Monday night. The Suns fell one three pointer shy of setting a new NBA record, finishing with 20. Shawn Marion hit five of them for Phoenix to finish with 27 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks. Phoenix just couldn't miss in the first half, and opened up a 25-point lead in the second quarter, and never relinquished it against a Nuggets team playing it's fourth game in five nights. "They got happy and they got cocky and they rubbed our faces in the game a little bit," Denver coach George Karl said. "It will be fun the next time we play them."

The Basketball Diaries

Boston Celtics 90 Toronto Raptors 77

Whether it's Ray Allen or Tony Allen starting for the Celtics, all they ever do is win. After beating Toronto on Sunday, the Celtics have now won nine straight games, the longest Celtics win streak since 1993. They're also 20-2 on the season. Could the Bulls mark of 72 wins be in jeopardy? I'm going to have to say yes, so from this point on I'm rooting for disaster to strike Boston. Paul Pierce had 18 points while Kevin Garnett had 16, but it's how the Celtics are playing on the defensive end that's gotten them off to such a good start. "That's going to be our staple pretty much all year long," Pierce said. "We're going to take pride on the defensive end. When you get 12 guys committed and on the same page, night in and night out, anything is possible. That's what we have right now."

Detroit Pistons 109 Golden State Warriors 87

The Pistons took advantage of both weather and timing on Sunday in Detroit. With the Warriors having to fly across country to Detroit to play a game at 12:30PM in the middle of a blizzard was a bit too much for them to handle, and it was obvious on the court. "We weren't ready to play, and we got our butts kicked," Stephen Jackson said. "This is definitely uncalled for -- we're a professional team. This is terrible -- you start a road trip and get blasted like this." Tayshaun Prince led Detroit with 23 points while Chauncey Billups had 19 and Antonio McDyess had 14 and 11 rebounds.

Los Angeles Lakers 113 Los Angeles Clippers 92

Just in case the Clippers forgot that the Lakers own LA, they got a nice reminder on Sunday night. Kobe Bryant wasn't sure he was going to be able to play after hurting his groin on Friday night, but in the end he decided there was no way he could miss a chance to torture the Clippers. Kobe would finish the game with 32 points, while Sasha Vujacic scored all 14 of his points in the 4th quarter to lead the Lakers to victory. "It's sore, but you play through it," Bryant said. "We did a good job staying on top of it and making sure that it was good enough for me to go out there and play and help the team. I didn't sleep. I was doing therapy for 24 hours, iced it down, had a weight-training session for my legs, kept stretching and doing what I needed to do. I can't really open up my stride as much as I'm used to, so I've got to take shorter, choppy steps as opposed to opening my gait. So if I can just keep it in my mind to keep my stride short, I'll be all right."

Elsewhere...

• Blazers 116 Nuggets 105

The Basketball Diaries

Detroit Pistons 104 Charlotte Bobcats 85

The Pistons had a pretty easy time with the Bobcats on Sunday. They had a double digit lead halfway through the first quarter, and they never gave it up from there. Charlotte had just ended a seven game losing streak on Saturday night before having to turn around and play a Pistons team on a day of rest. Being a good coach, Sam Vincent sensed an opportunity to use that as an excuse, and he went for it. "We ran out of gas in the first five minutes of the game," Charlotte coach Sam Vincent said. "Right now, it is tough for us in back-to-back situations, because we just don't have the depth. We played a tough game last night and then had to get on a plane and come here."

Los Angeles Lakers 123 Golden State Warriors 113

Make no mistake about it, Golden State is the L.A's bitch. The Lakers win on Sunday night was their ninth straight over the Warriors. Kobe had 28 points, 20 of which came in the second half, to lead the Lakers but it wasn't a one man show. Andruw Bynum took advantage of his size all night and tied his career high with 20 points. He also had 11 rebounds and 5 blocks. "It's a game of matchups," said Bryant, who had six rebounds and a season-high eight assists. "They pride themselves on playing small ball. We match up pretty well with them."

New Orleans Hornets 91 Seattle Sonics 88

Chris Paul had a career high 43 points in the last game he played on Friday night against Memphis, but on Sunday night he chose to go team route. Along with hitting a 28-foot three to beat the shot clock late in the fourth quarter that iced it, he also scored 26 more points and handed out 10 assists. Paul's had to carry more of the load without Peja Stojakovic and Morris Peterson in the lineup, and he's handling it pretty well. And he's getting lucky too. "I love the shots with the shot clock running down," Paul said, winking. "Nobody expects me to make them. "It was probably like a lucky shot," Paul added. "I knew once the shot clock was running down, I was going to shoot it and luckily I made one. If that doesn't go, the whole tempo of the game may change. Crazy stuff happens and I'll take it."

Elsewhere...

• Raptors 93 Rockets 80
• Heat 100 Clippers 94
• Blazers 117 Bucks 113 OT
• Wizards 104 Nets 89

The Basketball Diaries

Washington Wizards 110 Dallas Mavericks 98

Who needs Gilbert Arenas? On the same day that the Wizards found out they'd be without their superstar for the next three months, they handed the Dallas Mavericks their first home loss of the season. Caron Butler led the way for Washington, scoring 35 points and making all five of his three-pointers while playing 44 minutes on Monday night. Antawn Jamison also had 27 points as the Wizards improved to 4-2 without Arenas. "Never underestimate our will," Butler said. "Guys were aggressive and stayed positive. It's not going to be one individual [replacing Arenas]. We've just got to continue to keep this thing going."

New York Knicks 113 Utah Jazz 109

Isiah Thomas and Stephon Marbury are in love now only two weeks after Thomas benched Marbury and Stephon left the team on a west coast trip. Marbury scored 28 points last night to lead the Knicks to victory over the Jazz at Madison Square Garden on Monday night. "I thought Marbury was great," Thomas said. "His leadership throughout the game, during the course of the game, his decision-making, his defense, his shot-making ability. Just from start to finish he was great. "Overall a good team effort, but No. 3 was really good tonight." Carlos Boozer had 30 and 16 for Utah, while Deron Williams had 26 points.

Golden State Warriors 129 Phoenix Suns 114

A defensive struggle, this was not. The Suns had their 8-game win streak snapped in Oakland last night thanks to Stephen Jackson and Baron Davis. Jackson had 32 points, while Davis had 28 points along with 10 assists. Monta Ellis also scored 15 straight points in the 4th quarter to finish with 31 of his own. "Me and Baron just stuck to running that screen," Ellis said of the simple play that set up most of his shots. "My shot was going, so I just kept shooting it. ... It was a great win to get back to ourselves. If we start doing the things we were doing at the end of last year, we'll win a lot of games no matter who we're playing. We came out, starting quickly, and finished it off."

Elsewhere...

• TWolves 103 Hornets 94
• Magic 85 Blazers 74
• Kings 112 Spurs 99
• Rockets 88 Clippers 71

The Basketball Diaries

Chicago Bulls 97 Detroit Pistons 93

And the Bulls finally put one in the win column. It would only figure that after losing to heavyweights like the Sixers, Clippers, and Bucks, the Bulls would get their first win against the Pistons. Tyrus Thomas had another big night, leading the Bulls with 19 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Unfortunately he couldn't do much on the defensive end to stop Rasheed Wallace, but of course, nobody on the Bulls could stop Rasheed. Wallace finished with 36 points for Detroit, but he did miss a couple of crucial baskets late. The biggest surprise of this game though? Kirk Hinrich didn't get into foul trouble. And guess what? He played well on top of it! What a coincidence. Hinrich only scored 8 points, but he did hand out 14 assists while committing only 3 turnovers. Joe Smith also hit some big shots for the Bulls down the stretch, and though I wasn't very excited by the Bulls signing him, he's proven to be the team's most consistent player this season. Now whether or not his knees hold up all season, that's a different story. Joakim Noah had another game in which he didn't light up the stat sheet, but he definitely brought an energy level to the game that the Bulls needed. And he kept his mouth shut after the game. I should probably also point out that Ben Wallace didn't see a second of playing time in the 4th quarter. Whether it's because his ankle was bothering him, or that Skiles felt more comfortable with Tyrus, Joakim, and Smith, I don't know. Neither is great news.

New Jersey Nets 87 Washington Wizards 85

The Nets are off to their best start in five years, as a win over the Wizards moved them to 4-1 in their first five games this season. Richard Jefferson had 25 points, but it was his offensive rebound late that won the game for New Jersey. Jefferson was fouled and went to the free throw line where he made the two shots that made the difference in this game. "Your eyes get real big sometimes when it's a tied game and someone takes a shot," Jefferson said. "A lot of times people turn around and look at the ball. No one boxed me out and I had a free run at it and the ball bounced perfectly to me." Vince Carter contributed 24 points to New Jersey's cause as well. Gilbert Arenas scored 23 points for the Wizards, and Antawn Jamison had 24, but it wasn't enough to keep the Wizards from falling to 0-4. What kind of crap team starts the season 0-4?

Elsewhere...

• Mavs 120 Warriors 115
  

The Basketball Diaries

Los Angeles Clippers 97 Chicago Bulls 91

Are they ever going to win? If there's anything good to take from the Bulls latest loss, it's that they actually looked alive last night. So if this was kindergarten, the Bulls would have gotten a gold star. Cuttino Mobley would have gotten the biggest gold star of them all after scoring 33 points for the Clippers on 13 of 17 shooting. I don't know when Mobley became good enough to drop 33 on somebody, but the absence of Elton Brand does strange things I guess. Corey Maggette returned home to Chicago and added 18 points and 10 boards for LA. Luol Deng led the Bulls with 22 points. Joakim Noah also made his debut last night, and scored two points with 4 rebounds and 3 blocks in 19 minutes.

Houston Rockets 89 San Antonio Spurs 81

The Rockets ended their four-game losing streak to the Spurs in Houston last night thanks to Yao Ming. Yao scored 28 points and grabbed 13 boards to help the Rockets improve to 4-1 on the young season. Tracy McGrady only managed 12 points after struggling from the field all night, but he did manage to grab 9 boards and dish out 6 assists. The real reason the Rockets won this game though was that they cleaned up on the glass. The Rockets grabbed 25 offensive rebounds on Tuesday night. San Antonio could only manage 4. "It was a huge advantage that we gave up," Manu Ginobili said. "It's pretty hard to win like that."

Cleveland Cavaliers 108 Golden State Warriors 104

Whatever it as that the Warriors were doing at the end of last season, and against Dallas in the playoffs that made them so good, they're not doing it now. The Warriors are now 0-4 on the year after losing to LeBron and the Cavs on Tuesday night. LeBron nearly pulled off a triple-double, coming up just one assist short. He'd finish with 24 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assists. A decent effort, I guess. He did it all with a swollen eye after catching an elbow in the face during the first quarter. "It bothered me some, and it's bothering me now, but I had to be there for my teammates," said James. "If I could barely see, I still had to be out there."

Elsewhere...

• Suns 115 Bobcats 83
• Nets 87 Hawks 82
• Knicks 119 Nuggets 112
• Bucks 112 Raptors 85
• Magic 111 TWolves 103
• Kings 104 Sonics 98
• Hornets 118 Lakers 104

The Basketball Diaries

Houston Rockets 95 Los Angeles Lakers 93

Kobe Bryant was booed by Lakers fans during the player introductions, but those boos turned into cheers the second he made his first basket. It was the first of many Kobe would make, as he scored 45 points on opening night. Of course, the Lakers still lost. The Rockets nearly blew it though before they were saved by Shane Battier. The Rockets had a 92-80 lead with 1:30 left, and the Lakers went on a 12-0 run to tie the game at 92 on a shot by Derek Fisher. The Rockets then responded with a three-pointer by Shane Battier with 2.5 seconds left. Battier wasn't finished either, as he was smart enough to foul Kobe Bryant the second he touched the ball on the following inbound. So Bryant had to shoot two free throws instead of attempt a tying three. Bryant made the first free throw, and missed the second on purpose, but couldn't gain control of the ball before Rafer Alston knocked it away and the Rockets escaped with a win. "He's hit big shots in the past, so it's good it went to him," new Rockets coach Rick Adelman said of Battier. "We wanted to foul before he [Bryant] took the shot and we definitely did that. He hadn't even turned around yet when Shane fouled him." Tracy McGrady had 30 for Houston, and Yao Ming chipped in 25.

San Antonio Spurs 106 Portland Trail Blazers 97

On the same night the Spurs raised their championship banner, and handed out their shiny new rings, they went out and did what they always do. They won. Tim Duncan had 24 points and 13 rebounds to lead San Antonio. Tony Parker added 19, while Manu Ginobili had 16 points and 8 assists. We already know the Spurs are good though, so I kept my eye on the Blazers most of the night. I don't think they're going to be a playoff team in the West this season, but it's the first time in a while I can remember seeing promise in Portland. LaMarcus Aldridge scored 27 points to help prove he can pick up the Zach Randolph slack. We're only one game into their season and I'm already thinking about Aldridge being teamed up with Oden next season.

Utah Jazz 117 Golden State Warriors 96

The Utah Jazz were the team that finally ended the Warriors unexpected run in the playoffs last spring, and they picked up where they left off last night. All the talk in the West is still about the Spurs, Suns, and Mavericks, but don't sleep on the Jazz again. Deron Williams had 24 points and 8 assists, alot of which went to Carlos Boozer who finished with 32 points and 15 rebounds. Andrei Kirilenko even showed up! AK47 filled the stat sheet with 9 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists and five blocks. Baron Davis led Golden State with 25.