NBA ROUNDUP

Nuggets 108, Mavericks 105

DENVER — Chauncey Billups began his second stint in Denver with 15 points, Carmelo Anthony scored 28 and the Nuggets beat Dallas.

Grizzlies 109, Warriors 104

OAKLAND, Calif. — Hakeem Warrick had 19 points and 10 rebounds, rookie O.J. Mayo added 20 points, and Memphis had its best offensive performance of the season in a victory over Golden State.

Rockets 92, Clippers 83

LOS ANGELES — Ron Artest scored 23 points, reserve Carl Landry added six of his 20 points in the final 3½ minutes, and Houston sent Los Angeles to its sixth straight loss.

Jazz 104, Thunder 97

SALT LAKE CITY — Jerry Sloan became the first NBA coach to win 1,000 games with one team, getting 16 points and 12 rebounds from Andrei Kirilenko in Utah’s victory over Oklahoma City.

Kings 121, Timberwolves 109

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kevin Martin had 26 points and six assists, and Sacramento never trailed in a victory over Minnesota.

Nets 103, Pistons 96

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Devin Harris scored a career-high 38 points to lead New Jersey to a victory over Detroit, spoiling Allen Iverson’s debut with the Pistons.

Heat 99, Spurs 83

SAN ANTONIO — Tony Parker sprained his left ankle and could be out two weeks, and Miami took advantage of his absence to beat San Antonio.

Hawks 110, Raptors 92

ATLANTA — Mike Bibby scored all of his 19 points in the first half, making four 3-pointers during an 18-4 run that broke open the game, and unbeaten Atlanta routed Toronto.

Cavaliers 111, Pacers 107

CLEVELAND — LeBron James scored 27 points and Anderson Varejao added a career-high 18, including 10 in the fourth quarter, as Cleveland rallied to beat Indiana.

Bulls 100, Suns 83

CHICAGO — Reserve Ben Gordon scored 23 points, rookie Derrick Rose had 18 points, six assists and several dazzling plays, and Chicago beat Phoenix.

Celtics 101, Bucks 89

BOSTON — Paul Pierce had 18 points and 10 rebounds to help Boston beat Milwaukee.

Bobcats 92, Hornets 89

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Jason Richardson and Raymond Felton scored 20 points apiece, rookie D.J. Augustin spearheaded a late comeback, and Charlotte spoiled Chris Paul’s homecoming by beating New Orleans.

Knicks 114, Wizards 108

WASHINGTON — Jamal Crawford led a never-take-a-breath attack with 23 points, and New York spread the wealth with five players in double figures and 51 percent shooting in a victory over winless Washington.

Notes

KNICKS: Unable to make a comeback on the court, Allan Houston was given a front office position with New York, hired as the assistant to the president for basketball operations. Houston, the fourth-leading scorer in franchise history, was waived during preseason last month to end his second attempt to return to the game. He initially retired in October 2005 because of chronic knee pain.

Knicks guard Stephon Marbury backed off on a plan to practice with his old high school team while he’s not getting playing time with New York. Marbury had expressed interest Thursday in practicing with his alma mater, Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn, to stay in shape while he’s stuck on the bench for the Knicks.

“I’m not going to do it,” Marbury said Friday. “I spoke to the Players’ Association and they said it wouldn’t be a good idea.”

WARRIORS: Golden State fired assistant general manager Pete D’Alessandro and replaced him with assistant coach Larry Riley in another sign of big trouble for Chris Mullin, the club’s top basketball executive. In Mullin’s first five years of running the team, D’Alessandro had been his trusted lieutenant in the basketball operations department. But D’Alessandro might soon be followed out the door by Mullin, who is losing a power struggle with team president Robert Rowell.

Associated Press