The AP reports: Antoine Wright scored 23 points, his best scoring game in nearly three months, Josh Howard also had 23 points, and the Mavericks won 118-100 over Sacramento on Tuesday night to make the Kings the first NBA team guaranteed to have a losing season… Dirk Nowitzki added 21 points, Jason Kidd had 15 points and 12 rebounds, and Erick Dampier had 16 rebounds. J.J. Barea, the primary fill-in for Terry, had 10 points and four assists without a turnover in 25 1/2 minutes… Kevin Martin had 18 points, though he missed nine consecutive shots at one point for Sacramento. John Salmons had 16 and Shelden Williams 15.
Gordon leads Bulls over Pistons, 107-102
The AP reports: Ben Gordon then buried the free throw to complete the go-ahead four-point play, Derrick Rose and Tyrus Thomas made strong contributions late, and the Chicago Bulls rallied to beat the Detroit Pistons 107-102 on Tuesday night… The Pistons were without Allen Iverson, who had the flu. Even so, they appeared to be in good shape… Richard Hamilton, who scored 30, was at a loss to decipher this one, too… Rose, who finished with 23 points, scored nine in the final 4 minutes and started that 9-0 run with two free throws… Tyrus Thomas, who finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds, added a put-back basket and blocked a layup by Stuckey during that spurt.
No Charles Barkley in Phoenix All-Star
The East Valley Tribune (with wire reports) reports: Charles Barkley will sit out TNT’s coverage of All-Star weekend in Phoenix after his arrest in Scottsdale on suspicion of drunken driving. Barkley was expected to return to the air sometime in the second half of the season. Barkley took a leave of absence from his TV responsibilities last month, the day tests showed that his blood-alcohol level was at .149, nearly twice the legal limit of .08 in Arizona.
Timberwolves adjusting to life without Al Jefferson
The St. Paul Pioneer Press (Brian Murphy) reports: With star center Al Jefferson sidelined indefinitely because of a knee injury, the Timberwolves improvised an offensive scheme Tuesday that will be sketched in pencil the rest of the season. Rebounding savant Kevin Love absorbed more responsibilities as the 20-year-old rookie replaced Jefferson against the Toronto Raptors at Target Center. Sliding into Love’s power forward position was Ryan Gomes. That reopened a spot in the rotation for sharpshooter Mike Miller, who was plagued by a sprained ankle and shooting slump that forced him to come off the bench the previous 19 games… “We’re not dead. We’re not out. Everybody just needs to step up,” Love said. “We’ve all stepped up our game a little bit, but it’s going to have to be more. Different productivity from different players, including myself.”
Shaq says Kobe is better than LeBron
The Cleveland Plain Dealer (Jodie Valade) reports: If Sunday’s Cavaliers-Lakers game wasn’t enough evidence, take Shaquille O’Neal’s word for it. Kobe Bryant is better. LeBron James? He’s pretty good, too. But Kobe is the best the Big Diesel has ever played with. “Kobe’s probably a 10,” O’Neal said Tuesday night. “LeBron’s a 9.7, 9.8. He’s a fabulous player who does it the right way and gets everybody involved. Those guys [Cavaliers] are playing at a very, very high level right now because of him.”
Kobe Bryant hits 23,000 points
The Los Angeles Daily News (Elliot Teaford) reports (via blog): When Kobe Bryant made a free throw with 3:21 remaining in the first half, he reached 23,000 points for his career. He hit the milestone faster than any other player in NBA history at 30 years, 171 days. Wilt Chamberlain did it in 30 years, 176 days.
InsideHoops.com editor says: I’m a better player than both guys mentioned above. It just doesn’t show on the stat-sheet.
Kapono steps up, Raptors beat Wolves 110-102
The AP reports: Jason Kapono is locked and loaded for another 3-point title. The two-time defending 3-point contest champion scored 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting as a reserve to rally the Toronto Raptors to a 110-102 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night. Both teams were missing their big stars. Randy Foye had a career-high 33 points and eight rebounds for the Wolves, who played the first game of the rest of the season without center Al Jefferson. And that future looks grim. Jermaine O’Neal had 22 points and eight rebounds and Joey Graham scored 24 for the Raptors, who rallied from 13 down in the third quarter in their third straight game without All-Star forward Chris Bosh.
Nuggets top Heat for eighth straight time, 99-82
The AP reports: Chauncey Billups scored 13 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, Carmelo Anthony finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, and the Denver Nuggets swept the series with Miami for the fourth consecutive year, beating the Heat 99-82 on Tuesday night. Kenyon Martin had 18 points and 10 rebounds, while J.R. Smith scored 10 for Denver, which wasted much of a 20-point first-half lead before pulling away late and defeating Miami for the eighth straight time. Dwyane Wade scored 33 points on 12-for-22 shooting for Miami, which has lost five of its last seven games. Shawn Marion scored 14 and Mario Chalmers added 10 for Miami.
Duncan dominates, Spurs beat Nets 108-93
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.
Johnson scores 22, Hawks rock Wizards 111-90
The AP reports: Joe Johnson scored 22 points and the Hawks led from start to finish, erasing the memory off a dismal blowout by the Los Angeles Clippers with a 111-90 rout of the undermanned Wizards on Tuesday night. Atlanta raced to a 9-1 lead before most of the sparse crowd had even settled into its seats… Mike Bibby, who didn’t play against L.A. because of a sprained foot, scored 12 points and doled out six assists in 26 minutes… Caron Butler scored 22 points, but the last-place Wizards were outmanned, as they are on most nights without Gilbert Arenas, Brendan Haywood and Etan Thomas.