Bryant silences Cuban
Heat extend streak
LOS ANGELES: Feb 25, (Agencies): Kobe Bryant fired back at Dallas owner Mark Cuban with 38 points as he lifted the Los Angeles Lakers past the Mavericks 103-99 on Sunday.
After Cuban recently suggested the Lakers should consider waiving Bryant and his league-high salary next season, the five-time NBA champion showed his worth with an artistic display of clutch shooting and all-around effort that included 12 rebounds and seven assists.
Dallas (25-30) led 90-87 midway through the fourth quarter but visiting Los Angeles nosed ahead with a sevennil run led by Bryant and Steve Nash who finished with 20 points.
The victory was the third straight for Los Angeles (28-29) who moved within 2-1/2 games of a Western Conference playoff spot that Bryant has guaranteed the team will secure.
The Mavericks, 10th in the West, are also battling for a spot and Dirk Nowitzki put up 30 points and 13 rebounds.
Cuban’s comments centered around the NBA’s “amnesty clause,” which allows a team to release a player and avoid paying taxes on their salary.
The Mavericks owner has said that his suggestion was just hypothetical, while the Lakers released a statement saying such talk was “inappropriate.”
Bryant silenced all talk in the fourth where he made three straight difficult jump shots to leave the Dallas crowd murmuring.
Bryant and Nash combined for 11 of the last 12 Lakers’ points to make up for a quiet day from Dwight Howard who battled foul trouble and had nine points and 13 rebounds.
Heat 109, Cavaliers 105 In Miami, LeBron James scored 28 points, Dwyane Wade scored 11 of his 24 in the final five minutes, and the Miami Heat extended the NBA’s longest current winning streak to 11 games, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-105 in a back-and-forth matchup.
Mario Chalmers scored 16 points, Shane Battier added 14 and Ray Allen had 11 for the Heat, who took a 22-point lead early in the second half, then prevailed despite being outscored by a whopping 30 points over a 17-minute stretch.
Spurs 97, Suns 87 In Phoenix, Patty Mills and Kawhi Leonard scored 16 points apiece to lead six San Antonio players in double figures, and the Spurs ended their nine- game road trip with a win over Phoenix.
The Spurs, with Tony Parker out because of a sore right triceps, finished their annual long journey — caused by a rodeo back home — at 7-2 to boost their NBA-best record to 45-13.
Tiago Splitter scored nine of his 14 in San Antonio’s 35-point second quarter.
Knicks 99, 76ers 93 In New York, Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points, Amare Stoudemire had a season-high 22 and New York snapped its longest losing streak of the season at four with a win over Philadelphia.
Anthony made 16 of 18 free throws and also was called for a flagrant foul for the fired-up Knicks, who have fallen behind Indiana into third place in the Eastern Conference and allowed their Atlantic Division lead over the Brooklyn Nets to shrink to one game.
Thunder 102, Bulls 72 In Oklahoma City, Russell Westbrook scored 23 points, Kevin Durant had 19 points and 16 rebounds, and Oklahoma City held Chicago to the worst shooting performance in the NBA this season.
The Thunder, who had allowed an average of 113 points over their previous four games, broke out of a rough defensive patch by limiting Chicago to 29.1 percent shooting.
Grizzlies 76, Nets 72 In New York, Zach Randolph had 16 points and 14 rebounds, Marc Gasol scored 14 points and Memphis won its seventh straight game with a victory over Brooklyn.
Tony Allen added 12 points, including two free throws with 19.5 seconds left for a 74-72 lead.
Deron Williams, who led Brooklyn with 24 points, turned the ball over as he attempted to pass it to Mirza Teletovic. Williams then fouled Mike Conley, who sealed it with a pair of free throws.