Mark Cuban understands fine from NBA against Spurs

It’s not very often that Mark Cuban is on the same page with NBA commissioner David Stern.

But the Dallas Mavericks owner said Stern did the right thing Friday in fining the San Antonio Spurs $250,000 for not bringing Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Danny Green to Thursday’s nationally televised game in Miami against the Heat.

Cuban said where the Spurs went wrong is not bringing their marquee players to a game that was shown on TNT. If the Spurs had done the same thing in a game not played on national TV, Cuban said they likely would not have been issued a fine.

“Everybody who planned to watch San Antonio vs. Miami on TNT, we’ve got disappointed customers all over the place,” Cuban said before Saturday’s Mavericks home game against Detroit. “When I say our biggest customer, TV is our biggest customer.

“So I’m not saying San Antonio did the wrong thing. I’m just saying I understand exactly why the league did what they did.”

— Reported by Dwain Price of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Wade scores 34, Heat beat Nets

dwyane wade

Dwyane Wade scored a season-high 34 points, LeBron James added 21 points and the Miami Heat rallied from a 14-point deficit to beat the Brooklyn Nets 102-89 on Saturday night.

Ray Allen scored 13 and Norris Cole finished with 12 for the Heat, who won their sixth straight and remained atop the Eastern Conference. Miami held the Nets to 30 points in the second half.

Andray Blatche scored 20 points for Brooklyn, which had won five in a row. Gerald Wallace had 13 points, Joe Johnson added 12 and Deron Williams finished with 10 points and 12 assists.

The Nets were 10 for 31 from the field in the second half and lost to Miami for the 12th straight time.

Wade added seven assists and shot 14 for 20 for Miami. He reached the 30-point mark for the first time this season when he took an alley-oop pass from Allen and slammed the ball for a 90-81 edge with 5:14 left…

Brooklyn had just one field goal in the first 9:06 of the final quarter, missing 10 of 11 shots in that stretch as Miami – despite shooting 5 for 16 over the same stretch – pulled away.

— Reported by Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press

Blazers beat Cavs in double overtime

Blazers beat Cavs in double overtime

Nicolas Batum’s first attempt at making the game-winning shot didn’t count. He got it right the second time.

Batum’s 3-pointer with 0.2 seconds left in the second overtime gave the Portland Trail Blazers a 118-117 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night.

An apparent game-winning basket by Batum in the first overtime was disallowed because it came after time expired. The basket was first ruled good, but the call was changed after a video review. Batum, who celebrated after making that shot, got a chance to do it again and this time it was the winner…

Lillard led Portland with 24 points while Batum added 22. Alonzo Gee paced the Cavaliers with 22 points, but missed a free throw that would have given them a three-point lead before Batum’s shot.

Anderson Varejao had 19 points and 17 rebounds for his eighth straight double-double.

Portland put five players in double figures and improved to 1-4 on its seven-game eastern road trip. The Trail Blazers, who lost to Washington during the trip for the Wizards’ only win of the season, have been in search for something positive…

Cavaliers guard Dion Waiters left the game in the second overtime with an ankle injury. Varejao, the NBA’s leading rebounder, dislocated his right ring finger in the first quarter. X-rays were negative and he returned midway through the second period.

— Reported by Steve Herrick of the Associated Press

Parsons, Patterson lead Rockets past Jazz

patrick patterson

There’s a lot more to the Houston Rockets’ offense than just James Harden.

Patrick Patterson scored 20 points, Chandler Parsons and Jeremy Lin had 19 apiece and the Rockets beat the Utah Jazz 124-116 on Saturday night.

Harden finished with 18 points and seven assists for the Rockets, who shot a season-best 55 percent (46 of 83) and hit half of their 3-point shots at 11 of 22. Greg Smith and Carlos Delfino each scored 13.

Houston scored a season-high 39 points in the fourth quarter, and it’s averaging 113 points during a five-game home winning streak…

The Rockets finished with 26 assists, just shy of the season-high 30 they had in a 117-101 home win over Toronto on Tuesday. Houston had seven players score in double figures for the first time this year…

Omer Asik had 14 points and 12 rebounds for Houston. He briefly left the game after taking an elbow from Hayward, but returned for the final minutes.

Gordon Hayward had 13 of his 21 points in the second half and Al Jefferson and Randy Foye each scored 20 for Utah. The Jazz lost despite shooting 51 percent (48 of 94) overall and going 11 for 20 from 3-point range.

— Reported by Chris Duncan of the Associated Press

Bucks rally for 91-88 victory over Celtics

Scott Skiles wanted to insert Larry Sanders into the Milwaukee Bucks’ starting lineup for Saturday night’s game against the Boston Celtics. The coach relented when the high-energy forward said he preferred a reserve role.

It sure looks as if Sanders knows what’s best for him.

He had a career-high 18 points and 16 rebounds to go along with five blocked shots, and the Bucks rallied for a 91-88 victory after the Celtics scored the first 17 points of the game…

Monta Ellis had 17 points and seven assists for the Bucks, while Ersan Ilyasova added 15 points and five rebounds. Brandon Jennings made a big 3-pointer in the fourth quarter…

Paul Pierce paced the Celtics with 19 points, and Kevin Garnett added 17 points and seven rebounds…

Boston played without point guard Rajon Rondo, who served the second of his two-game suspension for his role in a scuffle during a game against the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday. Courtney Lee, who started in Rondo’s place, had 13 points, and Jason Terry finished with 15 points and 11 assists.

— Reported by the Associated Press

Spurs shrug off fine, beat Grizzlies

So that’s what $250,000 worth of rest looks like.

Tony Parker scored 30 points and Tim Duncan had 27 points and 15 rebounds, giving the San Antonio Spurs their money’s worth for the unprecedented fine from the NBA they absorbed for putting rest over the league’s business interests in a 99-95 overtime victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night.

Coach Gregg Popovich said before the victory he was ”disappointed” by the $250,000 fine levied by Commissioner David Stern after the Spurs sent Parker, Duncan and Manu Ginobili – three of the NBA’s biggest names – home from a road trip early instead of playing them against LeBron James and the Miami Heat on Thursday in a nationally televised game.

This might ease his frustration. Because chances are Popovich wasn’t second-guessing his decision while watching the 36-year-old Duncan put up his best game this season, Parker eclipsing 30 points for the third time in five games and Ginobili sinking the tying 3-pointer with under a minute left to force overtime…

Marc Gasol led Memphis with 20 points. Zach Randolph had 17 points and 15 rebounds and was one of three Memphis players with double-doubles.

Mike Conley had 18 points and 12 assists, and Rudy Gay had 15 points and 10 rebounds…

The Grizzlies played without Tony Allen for a second straight game because of an injured groin. It’s unclear when their starting shooting guard may return.

— Reported by Paul J. Weber of the Associated Press

Thunder recall DeAndre Liggins from D-League

The Oklahoma City Thunder has recalled guard DeAndre Liggins from the Tulsa 66ers of the NBA Development League, it was announced today by Executive Vice President and General Manager Sam Presti.

During his recent assignment with the 66ers, Liggins appeared in three games (all starts), averaging 11.7 points on .545 shooting from the field (12-22 FG), 7.0 assists (2nd in the D-League), 8.0 rebounds, 1.7 steals in 38.7 minutes per contest. On Nov. 23, he notched a triple-double in Tulsa’s 93-79 opening night victory over Texas after posting 15 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.

Liggins has appeared in four games with the Thunder during the 2012-13 season, logging a total of 11 minutes.

Warriors recall Kent Bazemore from D-League

The Golden State Warriors have recalled guard/forward Kent Bazemore from the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA Development League, the team announced today.  He will rejoin the NBA club in time for tonight’s home game versus the Indiana Pacers.

Bazemore was assigned to Golden State’s D-League affiliate yesterday and registered 27 points, nine rebounds, one assist, five steals and one block in 33 minutes of the team’s 101-95 season-opening victory at Reno last night.

Atlanta Hawks assign John Jenkins and Mike Scott to D-League

The Atlanta Hawks have assigned guard John Jenkins and forward Mike Scott to the Bakersfield Jam, their NBA Development League affiliate, Hawks President of Basketball Operations/General Manager Danny Ferry announced today.

Jenkins, the 6-foot-4 guard from Vanderbilt, has appeared in four games this season, scoring six points in 13 minutes. Scott, a 6-foot-8 forward from Virginia, has played 16 minutes in five games and totaled two points and four rebounds. Jenkins was selected with the 23rd overall pick of the 2012 NBA Draft while Scott was selected with the 43rd overall pick by the Hawks.

Both players will be available for the Jam’s next game on Monday night against Santa Cruz.

Spurs re-assign Cory Joseph to D-League

The San Antonio Spurs today announced that they have re-assigned guard Cory Joseph to the Austin Toros of the NBA Development League.

Joseph started the season with the Spurs before being assigned to the Toros on Nov. 15.  He was recalled on Nov. 21.  For the season, Joseph has appeared in four games for the Silver and Black, averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 assists in 7.8 minutes.

Last season Joseph had three stints with the Toros, averaging 13.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.29 steals in 32.9 minutes in 14 games, helping guide the team to the 2012 NBA D-League championship.