DALLAS — Jason Kidd and Antoine Wright celebrated the first anniversary of their trade from the New Jersey Nets a day early Wednesday night, leading the Dallas Mavericks to a 113-98 victory over their former team.
Kidd opened the game with three early 3-pointers and scored 23 points, one shy of his season high. He also had 10 assists and a quick-handed steal against Devin Harris — the youngster he was dealt for — during the game-breaking third quarter. Wright hit three 3-pointers and scored 13 of his 20 points in the period.
Josh Howard had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Dirk Nowitzki had 23 points and nine rebounds for Dallas, 7-2 since Kidd was put in charge of the offense. New Jersey lost its fourth straight, all by at least 15 points.
HORNETS 117, MAGIC 85: At New Orleans, Chris Paul had 36 points and 10 assists, and New Orleans handed Orlando its worst loss of the season. Rasual Butler added 15 points, and David West had 14 for the Hornets. Rashard Lewis had 17 points, and J.J. Redick 14 for Orlando, which shot poorly from the field and free-throw line.
TIMBERWOLVES 111, HEAT 104: At Miami, Sebastian Telfair had 30 points and eight assists, Ryan Gomes added 20 points, and Minnesota hit a season-high 14 3-pointers to spoil Jermaine O'Neal's debut in Miami. Dwyane Wade finished with 37 points and 12 assists for Miami. O'Neal, who sustained a right eye injury in the third quarter and missed 13 minutes, had 13 points in his first game since being acquired from Toronto last week.
CAVALIERS 93, RAPTORS 76: At Toronto, LeBron James had 20 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 22 points for Cleveland. Needing two rebounds and one assist in the final quarter for his 21st career triple-double, James had six points but only one rebound before leaving the game for good with just over 3 minutes remaining. Mo Williams added 17 points for the Cavaliers, 6-2 in their last eight games. Joey Graham had 15 points for Toronto.
NUGGETS 101, 76ERS 89: At Philadelphia, Carmelo Anthony had 26 points and 14 rebounds, Chauncey Billups added 22 points for Denver in the Nuggets' third straight victory. Billups scored 17 points in the third quarter — 13 during a 24-4 run that erased a 10-point deficit. Andre Miller led Philadelphia with 17 points, but strained his right calf with about 7½ minutes left in the third quarter.
BOBCATS 103, PACERS 94: At Charlotte, N.C., Gerald Wallace had 25 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, and Raymond Felton added 16 points for Charlotte. Troy Murphy had 18 points and 16 rebounds for the Pacers. All-Star forward Danny Granger left after spraining his right foot early in the second quarter.
BULLS 113, BUCKS 104: At Milwaukee, Kirk Hinrich scored a season-high 31 points, and Luol Deng added 21 for Chicago, playing with a short bench after trading four players to Sacramento. Richard Jefferson tied a season high with 32 points for Milwaukee.
TRAIL BLAZERS 94, GRIZZLIES 90: At Portland, Ore., Brandon Roy had 24 points, including two key layups in the final minutes, and the Trail Blazers held off Memphis.
HAWKS 105, KINGS 100: At Sacramento, Calif., former Sacramento guard Mike Bibby scored 29 points to help Atlanta beat the short-handed Kings. Kevin Martin had 32 points and 11 rebounds for Sacramento.
SUNS 142 CLIPPERS 119: At Los Angeles, Amare Stoudemire had 42 points and 11 rebounds, shooting 15-for-20 from the field and leading Phoenix to a rout of the Los Angeles Clippers. Steve Nash had 21 points and 12 assists for the rejuvenated Suns.
LAKERS 129, WARRIORS 121: At Oakland, Calif., Kobe Bryant scored 30 points, Pau Gasol added 24 points and 13 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers roared from behind in the final 5 minutes for their 13th victory in 15 games. Lamar Odom scored 22 points for the Lakers, who improved the NBA's best record to 44-10.