Dallas Mavericks rookie Rodrigue Beaubois’ playing status is in question after the guard suffered a bruised back during a hard fall against the Utah Jazz on Monday night.


Beaubois soared to try to swat away a layup attempt by Utah’s Paul Millsap on a fast break. The Mavs’ first-round draft pick fouled Millsap but got the worst of the collision, crashing to the hardwood and landing with a thud.

Coach Rick Carlisle said Beaubois might have been able to return in the first half, but the rookie’s back stiffened up during halftime of the Mavs’ 104-92 loss. He’ll spend Tuesday getting treatment in Dallas.

“Hopefully by Wednesday, he’ll be OK,” Carlisle said.

Click here to read the full article – By Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com

Dirk Nowitzki became the 34th player in NBA history — and the first European — to hit the 20,000-point milestone.

The Dallas Mavericks’ perennial All-Star power forward passed the milestone at the 10:57 mark of the fourth quarter Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers, the 876th game of Nowitzki’s career. He hit a 14-foot baseline jumper off a pass from Jason Terry, giving him 17 points for the game and 20,001 in his career.

Lakers star Kobe Bryant is one of five other active players with at least 20,000 points. The others are Cleveland’s Shaquille O’Neal, Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson and Boston’s Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen.

Click here to read the full article – By Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com

Tracy McGrady has been cleared to take an indefinite leave from the Houston Rockets after the former All-Star’s representatives and Rockets management agreed to work together in search of a trade for the disgruntled guard, according to sources close to the situation.

Sources close to the process told ESPN.com that multiple phone discussions Monday between Rockets general manager Daryl Morey and coach Rick Adelman in conjunction with McGrady’s lead agent, Arn Tellem, led to a mutual agreement that both sides would try to hatch a workable trade before the league’s annual trading deadline on Feb. 18.

McGrady was allowed to return to Houston over the weekend, while the team completed a road trip, when his request for increased minutes in his comeback from microfracture knee surgery was denied by Adelman.

When McGrady’s camp pressed Monday for firm promises about when his playing time would be extended — McGrady has averaged just 7.7 minutes in his six appearances this season — sources say that the Rockets were not prepared to make any such commitments, leading both sides to conclude that combining their efforts to try to facilitate a trade was the best option.


Click here to read the full article – By Marc Stein of ESPN.com

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Aaron Brooks kept looking to see when Luis Scola was going to come back to the Houston bench. Once the game was finally over, he realized why the Rockets’ starting forward never did.


Gouged in the right eye only 22 seconds into the Rockets’ 100-91 victory against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday night, Scola sported a bandage over his eye in the locker room.

“At first I didn’t think it was that bad. I’d seen some blood and I’d seen a cut, but you never know how bad it was. To come in here and he looks like Captain Hook, you kind of feel bad for him,” said Brooks, who scored 18 of his 21 points in the second half. “So, I hope he gets back, and we had to pull it out for him.”

Scola was hurt on a freak play as the Thunder’s Etan Thomas dunked with his right hand, simultaneously smacking Scola in the face with his left.

Click here to read the full article – By Associated Press of ESPN.com

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The San Antonio Spurs won their fifth straight behind franchise centerpiece Tim Duncan.


The Philadelphia 76ers lost their sixth straight while hounded by speculation that their former star, Allen Iverson, might come back to rescue a deepening dismal start.

Duncan led San Antonio in scoring for the sixth time in eight games with 22 points, and the Spurs beat the Sixers 97-89 on Sunday night to extend their longest winning streak since pulling themselves out of a similar early slump last December.

“We really shouldn’t care that much about winning five in a row,” Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said. “It’s always good. It helps your confidence, and of course your standings, but we still believe we’ve got a long way to go.”

Click here to read the full article – By Associated Press of ESPN.com

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Win, lose or draw, the Mavericks’ fate lately always seems to come down to Dirk Nowitzki.

And as long as he’s on, the Mavericks can lack all the style points in the world and still have a great chance to win.

The game in Milwaukee proved it.

Wednesday night’s 99-94 victory over the Spurs reaffirmed it when Nowitzki tipped in the basket that ended up getting the Mavericks to overtime.

The Mavericks slogged around for three quarters, couldn’t find the basket with a GPS and basically looked like they should be losing instead of up by four points, which they were.

Click here to read the full article – By Eddie Sefko of dallasnews.com

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Tim Duncan has a swollen left ankle that will keep him on the bench with Tony Parker.


The Spurs announced before Monday’s game against the Toronto Raptors that MRI tests on Duncan revealed no structural damage. Duncan played a season-high 35 minutes and scored 14 points in a loss at Portland on Friday.

Parker was already out with a left ankle injury of his own. He rolled the ankle in the second quarter against the Trail Blazers and did not return to the game.

Click here to read the full article – By Associated Press of ESPN.com

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The Houston Rockets say there is no definite timetable for the return of Tracy McGrady, despite the star saying he’s got a date in mind.

“While we are all encouraged by the fact that Tracy’s rehabilitation has been ahead of schedule, we must remain vigilant through the next stages of his recovery,” Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said in a statement on Monday. “No timeline has been set for his return. He will return when team doctors, officials and Tracy all agree it is best. We will refrain from further public comments.”

McGrady told Yahoo! Sports on Monday that he has targeted the Nov. 18 game against the Minnesota Timberwolves for his return from knee surgery.

“Excited to get back and compete at a high level again,” McGrady reportedly said in an e-mail to Yahoo! Sports. “For a full year I had to play on one leg against the best and I couldn’t compete with anybody the way I was feeling. It’s gonna be a relief to get out there and play knowing what I went [through] last season and this summer.”


Click here to read the full article – By of ESPN.com

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Donnie Nelson wasn’t about to shy away. The Mavericks’ general manager believes his team is better than any he’s helped put together in more than a decade in Dallas.

Even better than the 2006 club that reached the Finals. Even better than the group that won 67 the following season. Even better than any of the teams that won at least 50 the last nine years.

“I’ll leave the grading up to you guys,” Nelson said, “but this doesn’t take a backseat to any group we’ve had in here.”

The backseat is exactly where the Mavericks want to leave their first official outing together. Opening at home Tuesday night, Dallas was shut down in the second half in an 11-point drubbing by Gilbert Arenas and the Wizards. The Mavericks looked flat-footed and one-dimensional, struggling to find scoring from anyone not of German descent.


Click here to read the full article – By Art Garcia of NBA.com

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When DeJuan Blair stole the ball at midcourt, drove to the basket and rose up for a two-handed thunder slam that shook the Erwin Center rafters, the entire San Antonio Spurs bench jumped up and began slapping high fives.

Fortunately, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich restrained himself, and general manager R.C. Buford muzzled any giggles from behind the bench.

Their self-restraint has been remarkable in the preseason, considering they probably engineered the biggest NBA steal since the Lakers ripped off the Grizzlies for Pau Gasol.

No one would blame San Antonio for beating its chest because on the virtual eve of the opening of the NBA regular season, it seems the consummate NBA franchise hoodwinked the rest of the league when it drafted the Pittsburgh power forward with an attitude in the second round.


Click here to read the full article – By KIRK BOHLS of statesman.com

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