Denver is currently deadlocked with idle Dallas for the No. 2 seed in the West, four games behind the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers.

Most recently for the Nuggets, Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points and grabbed 12 rebounds on Tuesday, as Denver battled back to upend the Washington Wizards, 97-87, at the Pepsi Center.

The Magic have been on a roll recently and are currently the second seed in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt as well as the leaders of the Southeast Division, four games ahead of Atlanta. Orlando also comes into tonight's game having clinched their fourth playoff berth in as many years after a host of teams lost on Tuesday.

The Heat, meanwhile, are battling for a playoff berth and currently are seventh in the East, 3 1/2 games over ninth place Chicago. If the Magic and Miami both stay in their current positions, the two teams would meet in the first round of the playoffs.

Monta Ellis scored 28 points and tied a career-high with 13 assists, while Reggie Williams notched 22 points and Chris Hunter put in 17 as Golden State avoided the season sweep with only its second win in the last nine games.

The Hornets were led by David West's 36 points and season-high 15 rebounds, while rookie Darren Collison added 20 points and 14 assists to help build a seemingly comfortable 87-66 lead with 5:36 to go in the third before dropping their fourth game in the last five.

Carlos Boozer had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Mehmet Okur chipped in 14 and Wesley Matthews provided 10 points.

Deron Williams dished 11 assists to pair with nine points for the Jazz, who won for the sixth time in eight contests. Korver reached a season-high in points by hitting 7-of-9 shots, while Millsap added 11 boards in the rout -- with both performances originating from Utah's bench.

Brooks broke the team record for most triples in a game without a miss for the Rockets, who won their season-high fourth straight contest.

Luis Scola aided in the winning effort with 20 points and seven rebounds, while Kevin Martin netted 18.

Both teams came in having won eight of nine, but it was the Magic who never trailed in a game they dominated from start to finish. Rashard Lewis added 20 points, while Jameer Nelson and J.J. Redick each poured in 10.

Dwight Howard contributed with nine points and seven rebounds for Orlando, which has won three straight over San Antonio for the first time in franchise history.

J.J.

Barea registered 15 points for Dallas, which won for the 14th time in 15 games.

Kevin Garnett added 22 points on 9-of-11 shooting for the Celtics, who have strung together a pair of wins after dropping three of four.

Kendrick Perkins grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo handed out an equal number of assists.

James, who is now three points shy of 15,000 for his career, added three steals and two blocks for the Cavs, who have won five straight to capture back-to-back division titles for the first time in franchise history.

Antawn Jamison added 17 points and nine rebounds, while J.J. Hickson and Anderson Varejao each had 13 in the victory, Cleveland's 24th in 28 games.

Bosh had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Andrea Bargnani totaled 22 points and 11 boards for the Raptors, who snapped a five-game losing streak. They continue to hold onto the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.

Jamal Crawford scored a season-high 33 for the Hawks, but he missed a potential game-winning jumper at the end of regulation. Al Horford chipped in 18 points and 14 rebounds for Atlanta, which won its previous three games.

Stephen Graham tied a career-high with 19 points -- set on Tuesday -- and Raymond Felton scored 17 with seven assists for the Bobcats, who had a season- high six-game winning streak cut short Tuesday in Indiana.

Boris Diaw chipped in 13 points and Tyrus Thomas 11 with nine boards. Bobcats star forward Gerald Wallace missed a third straight game with an ankle injury.

Jrue Holiday netted 19 and Elton Brand added 12 points and eight boards as the Sixers swept the four-game season-series with the Nets.

Willie Green, Lou Williams and Rodney Carney each tallied 11 points for the Sixers, who snapped a five-game slide.

"We felt it was in the organization's best interest to move in a different direction at this time," Trail Blazers President Larry Miller said. "This was not an easy decision, as Tom has played an integral role for us the past three seasons.

We thank him for his contributions and wish him the best in the future." Penn took over as the Trail Blazers assistant general manager in 2007 after serving as the assistant GM and legal counsel for the Vancouver/Memphis franchise.

Nope, I'm all about the next level and trying to project which players have the athletic skills and basketball smarts to flourish in the NBA, and which ones are the frauds, manufactured in the Dick Vitale/Jay Bilas ESPN-generated hype-machine (think J.J. Redick).

If you are looking for talent, it's usually a good idea to find John Calipari, the coach that mentored both Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans at Memphis for a season before they burst onto the NBA scene.

Jordan and MJ Basketball Holdings, LLC reached an agreement to purchase the majority of the team from Bobcats owner Bob Johnson in late February, but was awaiting official approval by the league.

"We are pleased that Michael Jordan's purchase of majority ownership of the Bobcats was approved by the NBA's Board of Governors and closed in such a smooth and expeditious fashion," said NBA commissioner David Stern. "We look forward to the continued growth of the Bobcats, on and off the court, under his leadership." Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television, became the first black American to be the principal owner of a North American major-league sports franchise when Charlotte began play in 2004.

The Bucks, who are kicking off a three-game road trip tonight, earned their sixth straight win on Sunday, when Jerry Stackhouse finished with a team-high 20 points off the bench as Milwaukee escaped with a 98-94 win over the Indiana Pacers at the Bradley Center.

Andrew Bogut donated a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Luke Ridnour chipped in with 13 points in a reserve role for Milwaukee, which finished 4-0 versus Indiana this year. The Bucks swept the season series with the Pacers for the first time since 1981-82.

New Orleans has already topped the Warriors three times this season and will be aiming for its first sweep of Golden State since 2001-02.

The Hornets improved to 1-1 on their trek Monday in Los Angeles, where rookie Marcus Thornton hit a pair of three-pointers during a big New Orleans run in the fourth quarter and the Hornets pulled away late to beat the Clippers, 108-100.

The Jazz, who are currently the fourth seed in the West, snapped a rare two- game skid on Monday with a win over another also-ran, the Washington Wizards. Carlos Boozer led the way in that one with 23 points and nine rebounds as the Jazz sent the reeling Wizards to their eighth consecutive defeat, a 112-89 setback, at EnergySolutions Arena.

Deron Williams added 17 points and 11 assists, but sat out the fourth quarter for the Jazz after landing awkwardly in the waning moments of the third. Sundiata Gaines totaled a career-high 15 points as the Jazz had seven players score in double figures.

Historically the Grizzlies haven't had a lot of success in Houston and have fallen in their last seven trips to the city, including a 104-79 blowout loss back in November. However, Lionel Hollins' club has won seven straight on the road coming into tonight's contest, a franchise record.

Currently both clubs are on the outside looking in for the Western Conference playoff picture, with Memphis standing 4 1/2 games behind Portland for the eighth and final postseason spot and Houston five games behind of the Trail Blazers.

Toronto heads home having lost five straight and nine of its last 10 contests and now holds a tenuous grasp on the eighth and final postseason seed in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors currently own a 1 1/2-game edge on the similarly-struggling Chicago Bulls for that spot.

The last four setbacks came during a West Coast road trip that ended with Sunday's 109-98 loss at Portland.

The Pacers have lost eight in a row as the visitor since a 125-115 decision over Houston on February 20 and own a poor 7-29 road record for the season. Indiana's winless drought has been even longer in Cleveland, where the club hasn't bested the Central Division-rival Cavs since a double-overtime triumph on November 3, 2004.

Cleveland has downed the Pacers nine straight times at Quicken Loans Arena and has taken three straight and 12 of the last 13 overall matchups between the teams as well.

The Bulls have also dropped five in a row as the visitor, including the first three tests of a four-game road trip. In a 104-97 loss at Memphis last night, Ronald Murray led the way with 25 points and Hakim Warrick chipped in 22 points off the bench for Chicago, which is 12-22 away from the Windy City and 1 1/2 games behind Toronto for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East.

"There's a lot of basketball left, but we can't keep saying that," Bulls head coach Vinny Del Negro said. "We're in a really tough stretch right now. We have to come back to the drawing board." Acie Law had a season-high 18 points, as the Bulls played without forward Luol Deng (calf) and guards Derrick Rose (wrist) and Kirk Hinrich (suspension). All three are questionable for Wedn

Both clubs enter tonight's clash mired in five-game losing streaks, with the Sixers suffering their 10th defeat in 11 outings with Monday's 94-84 home setback to the New York Knicks.

Philadelphia saw an 11-point halftime lead evaporate in their latest loss after being outscored 29-14 by the Knicks in the third quarter. The 76ers shot a woeful 27.3 percent from the field in the second half and just 38.4 percent for the game.

San Antonio is still trying to solidify a postseason spot in the West and is currently seventh in the conference standings, just a half-game behind Phoenix and a full game in back of Oklahoma City. Utah is only two games ahead in the fourth spot.

The Spurs kept their chances of moving up the charts by recording their fourth straight win with Tuesday's 88-76 victory at Miami in the opener of a short road trip. Manu Ginobili scored 22 points, George Hill added 16 and Tim Duncan checked in with 12 points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio, which is 8-1 in the previous nine contests.

Boston rebounded from a loss to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers over the weekend by routing the Detroit Pistons, 119-93, on Monday in Beantown. Paul Pierce was one of three Boston players to record at least 15 points, while Ray Allen and newcomer Michael Finley also pumped in 15 for the Celtics, who had dropped three of four games before the recent triumph and pushed their home mark to 20-12 this season.

"We were a totally different team today, came in with a lot more energy, a lot more aggressive," said Celtics center Kevin Garnett, who posted 14 points and eight rebounds. "We had five guys who were aggressive. I thought that our bench was aggressive also. We had to talk amongst each other, and we just game out and played." Glen Davis scored 13 points