Saturday, December 1, 2012
Tonight's game won't be ordinary by any means. After a tumultuous season and split with center Dwight Howard, the Magic faces its former franchise star in his new uniform of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Opinions vary about the reunion.
Magic guard J.J. Redick deadpanned, "I would assume he would be excited to play the Magic."
Some are indifferent to playing against Howard, who stepped into another difficult situation. The Lakers fired coach Mike Brown after five games and have struggled under Mike D'Antoni without injured point guard Steve Nash.
"I don't care," the Magic's Glen Davis said. "Dwight's got his own problems, and we got our problems."
Asked if the Magic might have to match Howard's intensity, given the situation, Davis said, "Competing is competing, no matter how he feels."
Redick played with Howard from 2006-07 to 2011-12, but he said the trade drama plagued the entire team last season. "Last year was tough at times. The whole thing was a distraction. We've covered that," he said.
Redick said it won't be weird facing Howard.
"No, you have teammates and then you don't have teammates," he said. "There (will) be a day I won't play with Jameer (Nelson.)"
Arron Afflalo, who arrived from the Nuggets in the Howard transaction, said he's sure there will be "some hoopla and some leftover things here" in the matchup.
Coach Jacque Vaughn was asked if he was concerned about his players getting caught up in playing against Howard. "It's our next game. That's all I'm concerned about," he said.
Redick admitted that the loss of Howard was devastating to the franchise. He said if the Magic wants to contend again, as it did when it went to the 2009 NBA Finals, "We will need a player like that at some point. It's just the truth."
Spurs coach 'disappointed' by fine
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Gregg Popovich said he doesn't know if the Spurs will appeal a $250,000 fine from the NBA for sending his star players home to rest instead of playing them in Miami against the Heat.
Speaking publicly for the first time since commissioner David Stern handed down the fine Friday, the coach and team president said before Saturday's game against Memphis that he was "disappointed" in the decision.
"What I do from my perspective is from a coaching perspective," Popovich said. "And I think the league operates from a business perspective. And I think that's reflective in the action that they took."
Rather than play Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili — three of the NBA's biggest names — against Miami in a nationally televised game Thursday, Popovich put them on a plane and sent them home. It came at the end of a six-game road trip and after the Spurs had played five times in seven days.
Swingman Danny Green was also put on that early flight. Popovich justified his decision by saying he didn't want to subject Green and his aging three to so much wear-and-tear this early in the season.
Stern apologized to fans before the Miami game and vowed his office would hand down "substantial sanctions," which Stern delivered on the next day. He said he "concluded that the Spurs did a disservice to the league and our fans."
Popovich bristled when asked whether he might nonetheless do the same thing. "I don't have a crystal ball," Popovich said.
Teams are required to report as soon as they know a player will not travel because of injury. The league's statement said the Spurs were in violation of league policy reviewed with the board of governors in April 2010 against resting players in a manner "contrary to the best interests of the NBA."
Game highlights: Dwyane Wade scored a season-high 34, LeBron James added 21 and the host Heat rallied from a 14-point deficit to beat the Nets 102-89 Saturday. The Heat won its sixth in a row to remain atop the Eastern Conference. Miami held the Nets to 30 points in the second half. Andray Blatche scored 20 for Brooklyn, which had won five in a row. … Kevin Durant scored 20 as the visiting Thunder won its fifth in a row, 100-79 over the Hornets. … Patrick Patterson scored 20, Chandler Parsons and Jeremy Lin scored 19 apiece and the host Rockets beat the Jazz 124-116.
Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Heat 102, Nets 89
BROOKLYN (89): Wallace 5-11 2-4 13, Humphries 4-8 3-4 11, Blatche 8-12 4-7 20, Williams 3-11 3-5 10, Johnson 5-14 0-2 12, Bogans 0-1 0-0 0, Stackhouse 5-11 1-1 11, Evans 1-1 0-0 2, Watson 2-5 4-4 10, Childress 0-1 0-0 0, Taylor 0-0 0-0 0, Teletovic 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 33-75 17-27 89.
MIAMI (102): Lewis 1-4 0-0 2, James 8-15 4-6 21, Bosh 2-7 4-4 8, Chalmers 3-8 0-0 7, Wade 14-20 5-6 34, Allen 5-7 1-1 13, Haslem 0-2 0-0 0, Miller 1-3 0-0 3, Cole 5-10 1-2 12, Anthony 1-1 0-0 2, Pittman 0-0 0-0 0, Jones 0-1 0-0 0, Harris 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 40-78 15-19 102.
Brooklyn 24 35 19 11— 89
Miami 16 34 32 20— 102
3-Point Goals—Brooklyn 6-28 (Watson 2-4, Johnson 2-9, Williams 1-4, Wallace 1-6, Bogans 0-1, Stackhouse 0-4), Miami 7-20 (Allen 2-3, Cole 1-1, James 1-2, Miller 1-3, Wade 1-3, Chalmers 1-4, Jones 0-1, Lewis 0-3). Fouled Out—Haslem. Rebounds—Brooklyn 56 (Wallace 9), Miami 38 (James 9). Assists—Brooklyn 20 (Williams 12), Miami 20 (Wade 7). Total Fouls—Brooklyn 21, Miami 25. Technicals—Bogans, Brooklyn Coach Johnson, Allen, Miami Coach Spoelstra. A—19,961 (19,600).
Rockets 124, Jazz 116
UTAH (116): Carroll 2-8 0-0 4, Millsap 3-11 5-6 12, Jefferson 10-19 0-0 20, M. Williams 7-13 0-0 16, Foye 8-11 0-0 20, Kanter 3-7 0-0 6, Hayward 8-12 2-2 21, Watson 1-3 0-0 2, Burks 4-7 2-3 11, Evans 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 48-94 9-11 116.
HOUSTON (124): Parsons 7-12 2-2 19, Patterson 8-17 2-2 20, Asik 5-5 4-5 14, Lin 8-14 2-2 19, Harden 7-16 3-3 18, Smith 3-5 7-9 13, Delfino 5-7 0-0 13, Morris 0-2 0-2 0, Douglas 3-5 1-1 8. Totals 46-83 21-26 124.
Utah 28 21 37 30— 116
Houston 28 30 27 39— 124
3-Point—Utah 11-20 (Foye 4-6, Hayward 3-5, M. Williams 2-3, Millsap 1-2, Burks 1-2, Carroll 0-1, Jefferson 0-1), Houston 11-22 (Delfino 3-5, Parsons 3-5, Patterson 2-5, Douglas 1-2, Lin 1-2, Harden 1-3). Rebs—Utah 46 (Millsap 11), Houston 44 (Asik 12). Assists—Utah 25 (M. Williams 7), Houston 26 (Lin 8). Total Fouls—Utah 22, Houston 17. A—14,432 (18,023).
Thunder 100, Hornets 79
OKLAHOMA CITY (100): Durant 7-13 4-4 20, Ibaka 2-7 1-2 5, Perkins 5-6 0-0 10, Westbrook 8-18 0-0 18, Sefolosha 3-5 1-2 8, Martin 6-13 6-7 19, Collison 6-8 0-0 12, Thabeet 1-1 0-1 2, Maynor 1-5 0-0 3, Jackson 0-0 0-0 0, Liggins 1-1 1-1 3, Jones 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 40-79 13-17 100.
NEW ORLEANS (79): Aminu 4-12 0-0 8, Anderson 6-17 6-8 21, Lopez 6-9 0-0 12, Vasquez 2-8 0-0 5, Mason 4-7 1-1 11, Henry 1-3 2-4 4, Rivers 2-9 1-1 5, Smith 1-5 0-0 2, Roberts 3-5 2-2 8, Thomas 1-3 1-2 3, Miller 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 30-81 13-18 79.
Oklahoma City 30 24 30 16— 100
New Orleans 21 23 13 22— 79
3-Point Goals—OKC 7-16 (Westbrook 2-3, Durant 2-4, Maynor 1-2, Sefolosha 1-2, Martin 1-4, Ibaka 0-1), New Orleans 6-24 (Anderson 3-11, Mason 2-4, Vasquez 1-2, Roberts 0-1, Smith 0-1, Miller 0-2, Rivers 0-3). Rebs—OKC 48 (Durant 8), New Orleans 51 (Anderson 10). Assists—OKC 21 (Westbrook 10), New Orleans 18 (Vasquez 7). Total Fouls—Oklahoma City 17, New Orleans 16. Technicals—Anderson. A—14,547 (17,188).
Bulls 93, 76ers 88
PHILADELPHIA (88): Turner 6-17 0-0 12, T.Young 10-16 2-5 22, Allen 4-8 2-2 10, Holiday 9-17 4-6 23, Richardson 3-12 1-1 8, Wright 2-2 0-0 5, Hawes 2-7 2-2 6, Wayns 0-3 2-2 2. Totals 36-82 13-18 88.
CHICAGO (93): Deng 10-16 4-4 25, Boozer 5-14 2-4 12, Noah 6-15 0-0 12, Hinrich 2-6 1-2 6, Hamilton 6-12 3-4 15, Butler 1-1 0-2 3, Gibson 5-8 1-2 11, Robinson 2-5 2-3 7, Belinelli 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 38-81 13-21 93.
Philadelphia 19 22 23 24— 88
Chicago 22 19 26 26— 93
3-Point —Philly 3-12 (Wright 1-1, Holiday 1-3, Richardson 1-6, Wayns 0-1, Turner 0-1), Chicago 4-7 (Hinrich 1-1, Butler 1-1, Deng 1-2, Robinson 1-3). Rebs—Philly 43 (Allen 8), Chicago 59 (Noah 13). Assists—Philly 17 (Holiday, Turner 7), Chicago 28 (Deng, Noah 7). Fouls—Philly 19, Chicago 16. Technicals—Turner, Philadelphia defensive three second, Noah. A—21,607.
Blazers 118, Cavs 117, 2OT
PORTLAND (118): Batum 7-15 5-6 22, Aldridge 10-21 1-3 21, Hickson 4-5 3-4 11, Lillard 9-17 2-2 24, Matthews 3-12 4-4 11, Barton 3-5 0-0 7, Jeffries 1-1 0-0 2, Leonard 1-1 0-0 2, Smith 3-6 0-0 6, Babbitt 2-7 0-0 4, Freeland 3-4 2-2 8. Totals 46-94 17-21 118.
CLEVELAND (117): Gee 9-17 1-3 22, Thompson 5-8 0-0 10, Varejao 7-11 5-6 19, Pargo 3-12 4-4 13, Waiters 4-17 2-2 12, Zeller 6-11 2-2 14, Gibson 2-9 0-0 6, Casspi 4-9 0-1 11, Sloan 3-5 4-4 10. Totals 43-99 18-22 117.
Portland 21 26 23 21 12 15— 118
Cleveland 28 20 26 17 12 14— 117
3-Point Goals—Portland 9-25 (Lillard 4-7, Batum 3-4, Barton 1-3, Matthews 1-5, Smith 0-2, Babbitt 0-4), Cleveland 13-35 (Casspi 3-6, Pargo 3-6, Gee 3-8, Gibson 2-6, Waiters 2-8, Sloan 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Portland 49 (Aldridge 9), Cleveland 63 (Varejao 17). Assists—Portland 25 (Lillard 11), Cleveland 32 (Pargo 8). Total Fouls—Portland 21, Cle. 21. A—16,624.