The AP reports: Brandon Roy figured his shots had to start falling eventually—and they did. He wound up with 31 points and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the New Jersey Nets 109-100 on Friday night… Nicolas Batum hit a 3-pointer to make it 101-96 with 29 seconds left and seal it. The rookie from France had a career-high 20 points. LaMarcus Aldridge added 19 points and 10 rebounds for Portland. Devin Harris scored 27 points for the New Jersey, which has lost five of seven. The Nets were coming off a 116-112 loss at Golden State which denied them a chance to move into playoff position.
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Jackson leads Warriors to 116-112 win over Nets
The AP reports: Monta Ellis returned to the lineup after missing seven games to attend to a family emergency. It was though he never left. “Monta is a great player and I am not surprised at anything,” Warriors forward Stephen Jackson said after scoring 29 points in Golden State’s 116-112 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday… Ellis and center Andris Biedrins bolstered the Warriors with their return to the lineup, and Jamal Crawford scored 15 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter as the Warriors, who ended a three-game slide, delivered a blow to the Nets’ playoff chances. Biedrins, who missed the past five games, contributed 10 points and 13 rebounds. Corey Maggette added 18 points. Devin Harris had 31 points and 12 assists for the Nets, who have lost five of six on the road and missed a chance to move into eighth place in the Eastern Conference.
Eduardo Najera done for season
The New York Daily News (Julian Garcia) reports: The Nets found out Monday that they’ll have to go the rest of the season without Eduardo Najera. The veteran forward, who signed with the Nets in the offseason, has a sports hernia and will have surgery sometime over the next week or so. Frank said Najera would not be ready for at least six to 10 weeks, meaning the Nets would have to advance deep into the postseason for him to have a chance to play again. In 27 games, Najera averaged 2.9 points and 2.5 rebounds. He hadn’t played since Jan.31.
Harris scores 35, Nets beat Knicks 106-101
The AP reports: No way the New Jersey Nets could lose another close one. Not the way the New York Knicks bungled away the closing minutes. Devin Harris had 35 points and 10 assists, and the Nets ended a frustrating stretch of narrow defeats by edging the Knicks 106-101 on Sunday. Vince Carter added 25 points for the Nets, who had lost three of four, failing to pull out tight games against New Orleans, Boston and Orlando. This time they made the plays down the stretch, while the Knicks melted down amid an ugly combination of missed shots and turnovers in the final 2 1/2 minutes… David Lee had 19 points and 14 rebounds for the Knicks, who opened a five-game trip with their fifth loss in six games. Nate Robinson scored 17 points and fellow reserve Danilo Gallinari added 15.
Howard scores 26 as Magic top Nets 105-102
The AP reports: The Orlando Magic are getting back in a groove, and just in time. Dwight Howard had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and the Magic rallied to beat the New Jersey Nets 105-102 on Friday night. Up next: Sunday at Boston, which is second in the Eastern Conference and three games ahead of Orlando… Rashard Lewis added 21 points, and Hedo Turkoglu scored 13 for the Magic, who won their third straight game and fourth in their last five. Devin Harris had 25 points and nine assists, and Vince Carter had 19 points for the Nets, who went 1-for-8 over the last 6:16.
Pierce shines, Celtics beat Nets 115-111
The AP reports: Paul Pierce scored 31 points and hit a game-winning 17-footer with 20.9 seconds to play—the last of three perfect plays down the stretch—to lead the Celtics to a 115-111 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday night… Devin Harris, who had 25 points and 11 assists for New Jersey, missed a floater with 45.6 seconds to go and that set the stage for Pierce’s game winner… Rajon Rondo added 20 points as the Celtics shot 61.2 percent from the field in beating the Nets for the third time this season. Perkins had 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Suns sign Stromile Swift
The Phoenix Suns today signed free-agent forward Stromile Swift for the remainder of the season, the club announced. Swift became available after being waived on March 1 by the New Jersey Nets and as a result is eligible for postseason play.
“We are very pleased to be able to add a player of Stromile’s caliber at this late date,” said Suns President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Steve Kerr. “We believe that his athleticism, length and experience will be valuable to us as we head down the stretch run.”
The 6-10, 225-pound Swift was originally the second overall pick of the 2000 NBA Draft by the Vancouver Grizzlies and has spent his nine-year career split between Vancouver/Memphis, Houston and New Jersey. Swift owns career averages of 8.5 points and 4.7 rebounds in 20.0 minutes in 534 games.
The Louisiana State product is an athletic and versatile forward who enjoyed his best professional campaigns in his first stint with the Grizzlies (2000-05), including four-straight seasons of at least 9.4 points and 45 percent shooting from the field beginning with his sophomore season in 2001-02.
Swift, 29, has made two career playoff trips, both with Memphis (2004, 2005), including the Grizzlies’ 2005 first-round series against the Suns, in which he averaged a career playoff-high 9.3 points in 16.0 minutes in three appearances.
A 2001 NBA All-Star Slam Dunk competitor as a rookie, Swift averaged 3.8 points, 2.2 rebounds and 10.7 minutes in six games with the Nets this season.
Swift will be in uniform tonight when the Suns return to action against the Miami Heat at 5:30 p.m. at AmericanAirlines Arena. The game can be seen locally on MY45 and heard on Sports 620 KTAR.
Brook Lopez shines, Nets beat Bucks 99-95
The AP reports: Vince Carter kept shooting. When it came down to the end, he deferred. Jarvis Hayes hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer off a pass from Carter with 18 seconds left and rookie Brook Lopez scored 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lift the New Jersey Nets to a 99-95 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night. With the Nets needing wins, the bench provided a bigger-than-expected boost after Carter and Devin Harris struggled, going a combined 8-of-34 from the field. But both provided offense down the stretch… “They caught fire. That’s what great teams do,” said Ramon Sessions, who had 19 points for the Bucks.
West scores 32, Hornets beat Nets 99-96
The AP reports: The quick hands of Chris Paul helped the New Orleans Hornets steal a victory from the New Jersey Nets. David West scored 32 points and Paul made two key steals in the final minute in the Hornets’ 99-96 win Sunday night… Rasual Butler had 22 points for the Hornets, who extended their winning streak to four. Offensively, Paul finished with 14 points and nine assists. Harris and Vince Carter each had 26 to pace the Nets, winners of their two previous games… Harris also had 14 assists while Jarvis Hayes added 13 points.
Harris scores 42, Nets beat Bulls 111-99
The AP reports: Devin Harris scored 19 of his 42 points in the fourth quarter and carried the New Jersey Nets for the second straight game in a 111-99 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night… Reserve Bobby Simmons added 18 points and rookie Brook Lopez had 13. Vince Carter had 11 points and nine rebounds. The Nets set a franchise record hitting all 25 of their free throws. Their previous best was 23-of-23 in 1999, also against the Bulls. Ben Gordon had 17 points and recently acquired John Salmons added 15 points to lead the Bulls, who were a woeful 7-for-25 from the field in the final quarter, including one of their first 11.