Jason Kidd did what Stephon Marbury rarely did in New Jersey — he got his teammates involved.
Kidd was at his unselfish best in his first game against his former team, accumulating 11 of his 13 assists before he even scored a point Wednesday night as the Nets beat Marbury's Phoenix Suns 106-87.
Kidd finished with six points, nine rebounds and four steals for the Nets, while the player he was traded for never got untracked offensively and finished with 15 points and seven assists.
Kerry Kittles scored a season-high 24 points, and Kenyon Martin added 22 as the host Nets snapped the Suns' five-game winning streak and remained in first place in the Atlantic Division.
Shawn Marion had 22 points to lead the Suns, who never recovered after a scuffle ignited the Nets late in the second quarter. New Jersey closed the first half with an 11-2 run and scored the first seven points of the third to take a 16-point lead.
Marbury received a mixed reception from the sparse crowd of 11,452 during player introductions. He spent 2 1/2 seasons with the Nets, never contending for the playoffs.
LAKERS 98, MAVERICKS 94: Shaquille O'Neal scored 46 points and Rick Fox made four free throws in the final 20 seconds as Los Angeles held off Dallas.
The Lakers, who have gone 39-2 dating to the final eight games of the last regular season and the playoffs, trailed much of the game against the Mavericks.
Dirk Nowitzki had 33 points and 14 rebounds for Dallas, which has not won on the Lakers' court since 1990, a span of 22 games.
WARRIORS 93, 76ERS 87: Larry Hughes scored 22 points against his former team, and Danny Fortson had 11 points and 15 rebounds as host Golden State snapped a four-game losing streak.
CELTICS 95, NUGGETS 80: Paul Pierce scored 21 of his 35 points in the third quarter, and Antoine Walker added 28 to lead host Boston to its fifth straight victory.
SPURS 120, HAWKS 112: Steve Smith scored 29 points, and visiting San Antonio held off Atlanta after building a 20-point lead in the first quarter.
Bruce Bowen and Tim Duncan scored 21 points apiece. Bowen, a defensive specialist, made all eight of his shots, including four 3-pointers.
PISTONS 95, SUPERSONICS 91: Chucky Atkins scored 23 points, and Jerry Stackhouse added 19 points and 11 assists for host Detroit.
Stackhouse matched his career high in assists, but his biggest play was a game-tying 3-pointer with two minutes to play.
MAGIC 102, BULLS 74: Mike Miller scored 21 points and rookie Steve Hunter had a career-high 17 as Orlando beat visiting Chicago.