Sacramento’s Ron Artest could face possible surgery this week to remove chipped bone fragments in his right elbow, a team spokesman said. Artest missed his second straight game Sunday against the Phoenix Suns. The Kings are 2-7 without him in the lineup. He is averaging 19.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 19 games this season. Read Original Post Here
While Brandon Roy is Portland’s top scorer, the Trail Blazers look to Travis Outlaw in the fourth quarter. Outlaw, a reserve, was 1-for-7 from the floor for the first three quarters, but took over in the fourth as the Blazers went on a 21-0 run to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 97-72 on Sunday for their league-leading 13th straight win.
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Jim Boylan got a new job, then asked Ben Gordon to accept an old one. That’s two moves, two wins for the Chicago Bulls. Gordon scored 25 points in his second consecutive strong performance since returning to a reserve role, leading the Bulls to a 100-83 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday. Luol Deng added 17 points for the Bulls, who are 2-0 since Boylan became the interim head coach this…
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An injury to the team’s franchise player overshadowed a nice win by the SuperSonics. Wally Szczerbiak and rookie Jeff Green each scored 18 points, and Seattle overcame the loss of Kevin Durant to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 109-90 on Saturday night. The Sonics played the final three quarters without Durant, their leading scorer.
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Paul Pierce was angry and embarrassed after the first half. Pierce had no points and no rebounds in 19 minutes, 33 seconds, essentially leaving the Boston Celtics without one third of their “Big Three.” Pierce woke up at halftime and led the Celtics to their fifth straight victory, beating the Utah Jazz 104-98 Saturday night.
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The New Jersey Nets don’t have problems winning the close games. It’s the other ones that are giving them trouble. Vince Carter scored eight of his 23 points in the final 3:55, Jason Kidd added 11 of his 17 in the fourth quarter, and the Nets beat the Bucks 97-95 on Saturday night. The win pushed New Jersey’s record to 11-3 in games decided by five points or less.
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Yao Ming didn’t feel his best Saturday night, but wouldn’t let that stop him in the fourth quarter. Yao scored 17 of his 25 points in the second half and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead the Houston Rockets to a 91-79 victory over the Toronto Raptors. Yao has been battling flu-like symptoms recently and though it showed much of the game, as he had a season-high eight turnovers.
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A visit from LeBron James produced the first sellout in New Orleans Arena this season. The 17,623 fans who showed up perhaps noticed there was something else worth watching. Namely, their own team. David West had 27 points and 15 rebounds, leading the New Orleans Hornets to their fifth straight victory, 86-76 over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday night. Read Original Post Here
Tougher game, same result. Following a comfortable victory over Indiana on Friday, the Pistons had to work harder against the Pacers on Saturday before extending their winning streak to eight with a 98-92 victory “They came out tough, and we didn’t play quite like we did (Friday),” said Pistons guard Richard Hamilton, who scored 10 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter.
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Dwight Howard has been a one-man wrecking crew against Charlotte this season, but he welcomed some timely contributions from teammates on Saturday night. Hedo Turkoglu scored a season-high 28 points, Howard added 15 points and 21 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic beat the Bobcats 104-95 for their third straight victory.
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