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An MRI examination of Nets’ forward Jarvis Hayes’ left thumb revealed partially torn ligaments, which he suffered during last night’s game at Dallas. Hayes will wear a splint for a week after which time his status will be reevaluated.
A key bench contributor for the 22-31 Nets this season, Hayes in 25.3 minutes per game is averaging 8.4 points and 3.8 rebounds per game.
The AP reports: Jason Kidd and Antoine Wright celebrated the first anniversary of their trade from the New Jersey Nets a day early Wednesday night, leading the Dallas Mavericks to a 113-98 victory over their former team. Kidd opened the game with three early 3-pointers and scored 23 points, one shy of his season high. He also had 10 assists and a quick-handed steal against Devin Harris—the youngster he was dealt for—during the game-breaking third quarter.. The Mavericks improved to 7-2 since Kidd was put in charge of the offense. This one was especially impressive as four starters cracked 20 points, and all five were in double figures. Josh Howard had 24 points and 10 rebounds, Dirk Nowitzki had 23 points and nine rebounds, and Erick Dampier scored 10.
The AP reports: The Houston Rockets made it look easy against the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday night. Yao Ming had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Shane Battier scored a season-high 19 points in the Rockets’ 114-88 rout. Von Wafer scored 19 points and Ron Artest added 18 for the Rockets, who outrebounded New Jersey 56-30 and set season highs in 3-point field goals (15) and assists (27) in their sixth straight win over the Nets… The Rockets improved to 13-6 without McGrady this season. Vince Carter scored 30 points and Brook Lopez added 21 for the Nets, who have lost three straight after a four-game winning streak.
Rockets guard/forward Tracy McGrady is a cousin of Nets guard Vince Carter.
Houston center Dikembe Mutombo played two seasons with the Nets (2002-03, 2003-04) prior to joining Houston.
New Jersey forward Eduardo Najera was selected by Houston in the second round of the 2000 NBA Draft.
Nets forward/center Stromile Swift played the 2005-06 season with the Rockets.
New Jersey forward/center Sean Williams is a native of Houston.
The Sports Business Journal (Daniel Kaplan and John Lombardo) reports: The NBA is set to borrow $175 million Feb. 26, marking one of the first league financings since the implosion of the credit markets last fall. The money, which will be available to 15 teams, supplements an existing $1.7 billion leaguewide credit facility that uses the NBA’s media contracts as collateral to secure loans for the clubs. The NBA surveyed its teams, and 15 responded they would like to tap into the new borrowing. While the league said it is pleased to borrow in an extremely illiquid credit market, the deal came at a cost, with interest rates up to 8.27 percent, hammering home the notion that the era of cheap money in sports is over. The 15 teams can use the money for any purpose, but covering operating losses may be high on the list.
InsideHoops.com editor says: Loan me three fiddy. I want some ribs.
The New York Daily News (Julian Garcia) reports: Sean Williams, the Nets’ top draft pick in 2007, was arrested Sunday at Boston College for violating terms of a restraining order against him. Williams, who played at BC, was taken into custody prior to BC’s game against Duke and charged with trespassing, a misdemeanor. An arraignment is scheduled for later this month. Williams was at practice at the Toyota Center here last night but said “no comment” several times as he tied his sneakers and headed to the court.
The New York Post (Fred Kerber) reports: Sean Williams was arrested Sunday for violating terms of a restraining order that banned him from the Boston College campus. Williams, who declined comment, nodded his head affirmatively when asked if he had been invited to the B.C.-Duke game. So he went but violated the restraining order. Williams, you’ll recall, was bounced from the B.C. team in ’07 for repeated team violations (read: marijuana). So by showing up he was guilty of trespassing, a misdemeanor. He faces a court hearing later this month.
The AP reports: Tim Duncan had 27 points, nine rebounds and eight assists and the San Antonio Spurs posted a 108-93 victory over New Jersey on Tuesday night, beating the Nets for the 13th straight time. Matt Bonner scored 13 of his 22 points in the opening 5 minutes of the third quarter in helping the Spurs win for the 15th time in 19 games since the start of 2009. Tony Parker added 20 points and Bruce Bowen came off the bench in the third quarter to help cool off a hot Vince Carter, who led the Nets with 25 points. Devin Harris added 21 points for New Jersey, which lost its second straight game after winning a season-high four straight. Brook Lopez added 18 points.
The Denver Post (Chris Dempsey) reports: Asked how the Nuggets expect to bounce back from their last game, a 44-point pounding at New Jersey, forward Carmelo Anthony had a simple response. “What game?” he said, smiling about Saturday’s game that at the time was no laughing matter. Said guard Chauncey Billups: “I forgot all about that game. I didn’t even know we played Saturday. As a matter of fact, we didn’t play Saturday.” Amnesia might be the best way for the Nuggets to move on from their worst loss this season, but as they practiced Monday at American Airlines Arena, they mixed forgetting with equal parts humor and trust.
The AP reports: Playing fewer minutes and sitting out key stretches, Dwight Howard had 30 points and 16 rebounds to lift the Orlando Magic to a 101-84 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Sunday night. Howard played a little more than 35 minutes, about seven fewer than he’d been playing over the past few weeks… Mickael Pietrus added 17 points, and Hedo Turkoglu scored 15 for the Magic, who rebounded from an ugly loss to Indiana on Friday and improved to 2-1 since All-Star point guard Jameer Nelson suffered a shoulder injury. Devin Harris had 28 points and 12 assists, and Brook Lopez added 19 points and 12 rebounds for the Nets, who had their four-game winning streak snapped a day after beating Denver 114-70 in maybe their most impressive performance of the season.
The AP reports: Devin Harris scored 14 of his 28 points from the free-throw line and the New Jersey Nets posted their second biggest victory in franchise history with a stunning 114-70 decision over the frustrated Denver Nuggets on Saturday night… Rookie Brook Lopez added 15 points and nine rebounds for New Jersey, while Carter had 12 points and eight assists. Carmelo Anthony had 15 points to lead the Nuggets on a night that the Nets refused to let them get to the rim, one of the staples of an offense that was averaging 104.7 points, fourth best in the league.