The AP reports: Paul Pierce reached over and gave Kevin Garnett a hearty slap on the back as they laughed off the suggestion that now, with virtually everything going right, would be a good time to buy a lottery ticket. “I’ve got a lottery ticket already,” Pierce said after watching Garnett score 23 points and help shut down Dirk Nowitzki to lead Boston to its eighth straight win, 124-100 over the Dallas Mavericks… Reserve Eddie House also scored 23—including seven 3-pointers—and Ray Allen scored 20 of his 23 points in the first half as the Celtics opened a 27-point lead and coasted to their sixth straight double-digit victory… Jason Terry scored 27 for the Mavericks, who have won just three of their last nine games. Nowitzki had 18, but the Dallas 7-footer shot 4-for-17 from the field and had the ignominy of having his shot blocked by the 6-foot-1 House in the second quarter… Rajon Rondo had 13 points and 14 assists for the Celtics.
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Mavericks rout Pistons 112-91
The AP reports: The Dallas Mavericks bounced back from a humiliating loss in a big way. Dirk Nowitzki scored 26 points, Josh Howard added 22 and Dallas routed the Detroit Pistons 112-91 on Friday night, two nights after a 34-point loss in Milwaukee… Brandon Bass added a season-high 18 points, and Jason Kidd had 11 points and 10 assists for Dallas, which lost 133-99 to the Bucks… Richard Hamilton, coming off the bench for just the second time in his Detroit career, led the Pistons with 17 points, and Tayshaun Prince added 12— 10 from the free-throw line. Allen Iverson finished with 11 points on 3-of-9 shooting.
Villanueva, Redd lead Milwaukee to 34-point win over Mavs
The AP reports: Michael Redd scored 27 points, punctuated by a crossover, fadeaway jumper over Nowitzki, and Charlie Villanueva added 32 points and 10 rebounds, lifting the Bucks to a 133-99 victory over Dallas on Wednesday night… The Bucks shot 29 percent in the first quarter, but picked up the pace with 111 points over the final three quarters. Milwaukee made a season-best 13 3-pointers and committed nine turnovers… Ramon Sessions, who finished with 21 points, hit all seven of his attempts and Milwaukee shot 57.8 percent as a team.
Jason Terry having great season
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (Jan Hubbard) reports: Jason Terry has had a distinguished career, averaging 16.1 points for the Hawks and Mavericks in his first nine seasons. But this season, his 10th in the league, he’s taken it to a new level. Rick Carlisle has been consistent with Terry, preferring him to come off the bench rather than starting, even with the muddled situation at shooting guard. Terry has had to start seven games because of injuries, but his primary role has been as a reserve and he’s been nothing less than spectacular. Terry is the only non-starter in the league averaging more than 20 points a game, and considering that the majority of his points come from the perimeter, his 46.6 shooting percentage is solid. But even more significant is Terry’s willingness to accept his role. Most 20-point scorers in the league would pout if they did not start. But not Terry, who is averaging a career-high 20.6 points.
Mavericks in limbo
The Dallas Morning News (David Moore) writes: If this team was average at best, the decision would be easy. Tear it down. But the Mavericks are on pace to win 48 games after a slow start. It’s a significant drop from there to mediocre. Management can’t afford to get this wrong the way it did last year when it acquired Jason Kidd. The move was made because Cuban and Nelson clung to the idea of where the team had been 20 months earlier rather than accept what it had become. The Mavericks had deteriorated to the stage where one player was not enough to get them back to The Finals. Reality has sunk in this season. The problem is that it cost Devin Harris and two first-round draft picks for the Mavericks to have their eyes opened. That leaves Cuban and Nelson with precious few assets to offer heading into this trade deadline. Is this team at a crossroads? “That’s overstated,” Cuban said. “You just do the best you can and try to be opportunistic.
Nowitzki hits game-winner as Mavs beat 76ers 95-93
The AP reports: Despite missing 13 of his first 14 shots and 16 of 23 overall, the seven-foot forward (Dirk Nowitzki) hit a turnaround 17-foot jumper over Reggie Evans at the buzzer to give the Dallas Mavericks a 95-93 victory against Philadelphia, snapping the 76ers’ season-high seven-game winning streak… Nowitzki finished with 24 points, Jason Kidd had 22 points and 12 rebounds and Jason Terry added 20 for the Mavericks (24-17)… Lou Williams scored 25 points, while Andre Iguodala had 18 points and 12 rebounds for the 76ers (20-21), who are trying to climb above .500 for the first time since Nov. 23 when they were 7-6. Andre Miller added 12 points for Philadelphia, whose four-game home winning streak ended.
Nowitzki helps Mavs end 4-game skid and beat Jazz
The AP reports: Regardless of the source—or sources—of inspiration, Nowitzki gave a brilliant performance Saturday night, making 16 of 20 shots and scoring 39 points to carry the Mavericks to a 115-108 victory over the Jazz… He was 7-of-8 in the second half. He also was emotional all night, punctuating his toughest shots with screams or fist pumps… Kidd had 11 points, 15 assists and seven rebounds, Jason Terry added 22 points and Brandon Bass scored a season-high 17 to keep the Mavericks from matching their longest losing skid of the season… Deron Williams had 30 points and nine assists before fouling out in the last minute, and Mehmet Okur had 23 points and 11 rebounds for Utah.
NBA fines Mark Cuban 25k
The Denver Post (Benjamin Hochman) reports: The Cuban Missed Elbow Crisis has finally come to an end. The NBA decided to fine Mavericks owner Mark Cuban $25,000 for “improper interaction” with Nuggets players at halftime of Tuesday’s game at the Pepsi Center. Cuban walked onto the court and yelled at Nuggets guard J.R. Smith, who earlier threw an elbow that missed the face of Dallas forward Antoine Wright. Smith was not penalized for his actions.
The AP reports: Cuban was angered Tuesday in a 99-97 Denver victory over Dallas and stepped onto the court as the second quarter ended to complain about an elbow thrown by Smith that did not result in a foul, interaction that brought the fine. Cuban also had to be escorted off the court afte the game when he complained about a foul call that set up Chauncey Billups’ game-winning free throws in the final seconds.
Bobcats trade Matt Carroll and Ryan Hollins to Mavericks for DeSagana Diop
Charlotte Bobcats General Manager Rod Higgins announced today that the team has acquired center DeSagana Diop from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for guard Matt Carroll and center Ryan Hollins.
“DeSagana is the type of player that has a natural athletic ability to block shots, rebound and defend,” Higgins said. “This is a nice complement to our roster and someone we feel will add size, depth and experience to our power positions.”
The 7-0 Diop has appeared in 468 career NBA games spread between Cleveland, New Jersey and Dallas. He has career averages of 2.1 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks, while shooting .430 from the field. In 34 games with the Mavericks this season he averaged 1.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 13.3 minutes.
Originally drafted by the Cavaliers with the eighth overall pick in the first round of the 2001 NBA Draft, Diop had his best season as a professional during the 2005-06 season in Dallas, when he appeared in 81 games (45 starts) with averages of 2.3 points and 4.6 rebounds, while shooting a team-best .487 from the field and leading the Mavericks with 146 blocks. During that season he also ranked 14th in the NBA in blocks per game and set a career high with 16 rebounds and tied a career high with six blocks in 37 minutes of action versus Denver on Nov.15, 2005. Diop also appeared in 28 career postseason games in Dallas, with 22 of them coming during the Mavericks run to the 2006 NBA Finals before falling to eventual champion Miami in six games.
Carroll signed with the Bobcats as a free agent on Feb. 23, 2005 and has appeared in 289 games, averaging 8.4 points and 2.3 rebounds. His career three-point field goal percentage of .411 (302-735) coming into the 2008-09 season had him tied for 11th among the NBA’s all-time leaders and fifth among active players. In 34 games this season, he averaged 4.1 points and 1.6 rebounds in 13.9 minutes.
Hollins is in his third NBA season and averaged 3.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in 18 games played for Charlotte this season. In 105 career games, Hollins has averaged 2.6 points and 1.7 rebounds for the Bobcats, who selected him with the 50th overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft.
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No suspension for J.R. Smith
The AP reports: The NBA said Thursday that Denver Nuggets guard J.R. Smith won’t be suspended for throwing an elbow that angered Dallas Mavericks coach Mark Cuban. The excitable owner might still face punishment for going onto the court to voice his displeasure with Smith. NBA spokesman Tim Frank told The Associated Press on Thursday that Smith has been cleared of any wrongdoing and “Cuban is still being reviewed.” Cuban took offense when Smith threw an elbow that barely missed Mavericks forward Antoine Wright late in the first half of Dallas’ game at the Pepsi Center on Tuesday night.