Rumeal Robinson, who always said he could be a good NBA player if he got enough minutes to prove it, is starting to prove it with the New Jersey Nets.
Robinson had 21 points, eight assists and five steals in 36 minutes as the Nets won their third straight game with him starting at point guard, beating the Los Angeles Clippers 109-98 Wednesday night."He's a good player if he gets strong minutes," Nets coach Chuck Daly said. "I know he's a better player than he was coming off the bench for us. He's got a great burst to the basket, he finds people open, he's playing with confidence and he's making the shots. And when his conditioning improves, his defense will improve."
New Jersey is 3-1 since Kenny Anderson broke his left wrist and was lost for the season. Robinson, replacing Anderson as the starting point guard in the last three games, has 58 points and 29 assists and has averaged 33 minutes in the three victories.
New Jersey general manager Willis Reed acquired Robinson in exchange for Mookie Blaylock after Daly made Anderson the starter.
"We've got to play through this," Daly said. "I was saying to Willis two months ago, `What are we going to do if Kenny goes down?' So, we're reasonably protected, obviously."
Derrick Coleman added 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Nets, who won despite 24 turnovers, nine by Coleman.
Trail Blazers 124, Mavericks 96
Portland won at Dallas, handing the Mavericks their club-record 16th consecutive defeat behind Terry Porter's 24 points.
Dallas dropped 15 straight twice this season and once in 1980-81, the franchise's first season. The Mavericks are 4-54 and on pace for the NBA's worst record, 9-73 by the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers.
The NBA record for consecutive losses is 24 by Cleveland, spread over two seasons.
Suns 111, Warriors 100
Phoenix won its fifth consecutive game and improved its NBA-best home record to 25-2 as Charles Barkley scored 30 points and Dan Majerle 28 against Golden State.
The Suns led by 16 points after three quarters, but the Warriors started the final period with an 8-0 run. Majerle then scored nine points in the quarter, keeping Phoenix safely in front.
The Warriors, who had just nine players healthy for the game, lost their third straight.
Celtics 104, 76ers 100
Boston extended its winning streak to four as Reggie Lewis made four free throws in the final 26 seconds at Philadelphia, which lost its first home game since Fred Carter took over as coach.
Carter took over after the weekend firing of Doug Moe and won at Minnesota. But the loss to the Celtics was the Sixers' ninth in the last 11 games.
Xavier McDaniel led Boston with 23 points. Jeff Hornacek had 24 for Philadelphia.
Knicks 110, Lakers 104
New York snapped an eight-game, nine-year home losing streak against the Lakers as Patrick Ewing had 34 points and 12 rebounds.
The Knicks, who never trailed in the second half, won their 10th consecutive game at Madison Square Garden with their first triumph over the Lakers in New York since Jan. 3, 1984.
A.C. Green had 22 points, Sedale Threatt 20 points and a career-high 11 rebounds and Vlade Divac 18 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, who lost to former coach Pat Riley for the first time in three games since Riley took over the Knicks last season.
Nuggets 126, Bullets 112
Denver won for just the fifth time in 31 road games after rookie LaPhonso Ellis sparked a 41-point third quarter against Washington with 11 of his 20 points in the opening 4:44 of the second half.
Only Dallas, which hasn't won in 26 road tries, has won fewer games away from home this season, but the Nuggets have won 13 of 14 at home to pull within 31/2 games of the Clippers for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Magic 119, Pacers 106
Orlando handed Indiana its eighth straight road defeat as Tom Tolbert scored 10 fourth-quarter points, seven during a decisive 12-1 spurt.
Shaquille O'Neal led the Magic with 26 points and 11 rebounds and Tolbert finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds as Orlando remained ahead of Indiana and Atlanta in the three-team race for the last two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.