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NBA team reports for Eastern conference teams, updated each week, exclusively on InsideHoops.com. Includes Jan. 17 games.

ATLANTA HAWKS: The Hawks enjoyed one of their better weeks by winning two of four games. They have yet to win consecutive games this season but have won two games in a week twice. Saturday's 103-95 win over the Bobcats might have been their best all-around effort as they shot 51.2 percent (42-of-82). It also led to a proclamation by Antoine Walker, who told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the Hawks know they're not the worst team. The win came after the Hawks became the latest team to endure flight problems, arriving from Boston at about 3 am. Walker finished 21 points and 11 rebounds for his seventh straight double-double. Despite shooting 3-of-18 in Monday's 85-84 loss to the Nets, he kept his streak going with 14 points and 11 rebounds. ... Guard Tony Delk, who has been out since January 6 with a sprained left hand, has begun practicing and is wearing a padded black glove to protect his hand. ... The Hawks rank last in the NBA in free-throw shooting at 65.6 percent and coach Mike Woodson is trying to get his team to believe in themselves. "They just have to believe they can make free throws," he told the Journal-Constitution. "A lot of times you start playing tentative when you're struggling from the free throw line because you're worried about getting fouled and having that pressure on you. I don't want to think like that with this team." ... Walker made his second return to the FleetCenter Friday and nearly recorded a triple-double with 21 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists. Walker is a free agent following this season and Rivers offered some insight about the former Celtic, "He's a great post-up player," the first-year coach and former Hawks guard told the Journal-Constitution. "The problem is he doesn't like to be fouled because then he has to go to the line. That's why he doesn't like to play down there so much. But he could be a great post-up player." ... Last Tuesday's 103-80 victory was the Hawks most lopsided of the season and at one point they had a 29-point lead, matching their largest of the season. ... Although he has 53 dunks, rookie Josh Smith isn't itching to particpate in the dunk contest at the All-Star weekend in Denver next month. "I'm really a game dunker," he told the Journal-Constitution. "I don't really have stuff like Richard Jefferson and all those other people. All the stuff they do, I can't do it."

BOSTON CELTICS: The Celtics have won seven of their last eight at home and have allowed under 100 points in three of their last five home games, doing it to the likes of Golden State, New Orleans and Atlanta. Friday's 106-94 win over former Celtic Antoine Walker and the Hawks wasn't a pretty one in the eyes of coach Doc Rivers but it had some good enough stretches. "I didn't think we played great," he told the Boston Globe. "I thought we played good in stretches." ... Walker got a nice reception from the sellout crowd at the FleetCenter and Paul Pierce enjoyed the reunion by scoring 21 points, tying a career best with 15 rebounds and collecting seven assists. Asked about his seven years in Boston and six with Pierce, Walker told the Globe - "I've got a lot of good friends here. It was a good run. I mean, it's always special playing in Boston. But right now I want to play for [the Hawks] and win." ... Ricky Davis scored 30 points and helped Boston's reserves outscore the other team for the 18th time in 19 games. ... The Celtics have allowed 100 points in 24 of 37 games and 15 of their last 18 games. The most recent game to fall in that category was Wednesday's loss in Toronto, which totally aggrevated Piere. "This is the first time in my Celtics career that we've given up so many 100-point games," he told the Globe. "Even Rick Pitino wouldn't give up 100. Wednesday's loss was preceded by a 119-101 win over Orlando, a game that saw the Celtics finish with a season-high 30 assists and a season-best eight players in double figures. ... Since scoring a season-high 18 points in Detroit on January 2, rookie Tony Allen has reached double figures just twice in his last seven games, including a pair of outings in which he went scoreless. ... Rookie Delonte West was cleared to practice last Thursday and ran through a full session later that day and began doing pull-ups Friday. He is currently wearing a protective leather glove on his right hand and doesn't believe he has fallen behind. "I've been there every day in practice," he told the Boston Herald. "It's just a matter of (coach Doc Rivers) regaining his trust in me out there." ... The Celtics held an open practice Sunday and Davis was tossed out by Rivers when the guard began complaining too often. But it was not a big deal according to him as he apologized to teammates and then took part in one of the best practices of the year. "No big deal," Rivers told the Globe. "It wasn't that big of a deal"," Davis added to the newspaper. ... Gary Payton has been given permission to fly to California to be with his ailing mother, who has cancer.

CHARLOTTE BOBCATS: The Bobcats are second in the East with 26 losses and 13 have been by 10 points or fewer. But after going through their first two months without losing by 20 points, three of Charlotte's last six losses have been by that margin. They suffered 23 and 20 point beatings in Miami and Orlando but following their worst home loss, a 109-89 defeat to the Grizzlies on Friday, coach Bernie Bickerstaff was a little peeved, describing the loss to the Charlotte Observer as a "sad commentary of a basketball game on our part. The next night, Bickerstaff's team responded with a 103-95 loss at Atlanta that had some ugly numbers. The Hawks outrebounded the Bobcats by 20, the Bobcats were 9-of-20 from the line and Emeka Okafor was rested, playing just six minutes in the second half. But Bickerstaff's mood was more accepting "We're somewhat spoiled," he told the Observer. "But we're stil an expansion team. But if you can face reality, you're still OK. This is who we are." ... Okafor had one his worst games of the season, totaling just four points in 24 minutes while grabbing just six rebounds and shooting 1-of-8. It was the second time in three games he failed to reach double digits in points since doing so in his previous 24 games. ... Rookie Bernard Robinson, the team's second-round pick out of Michigan was activated from the injured list January 11 after being out since November 29 with a right foot injury.

CHICAGO BULLS: The Bulls have won seven straight, their longest streak since 1997-98 when they won 13 in a row. They have taken advantage of their schedule to win all those games against sub-500 opposition. ... On Saturday, the Bulls completed a 5-0 homestand with an 86-84 win over the Knicks. Rookie guard Ben Gordon, who played high school ball in the New York suburb of Mount Vernon and starred at Connecticut, had a memorable return to the Garden, hitting the game-winning basket in Monday's 88-86 win over the Knicks. He has enjoyed so much success in the building that he joked to the Chicago Tribune that he just rents it. Gordon also revealed the secret to his huge game to the Tribune. "I went home (Sunday) night and had some curry goat and rice and peas," he told the newspaper. "It's Caribbean food. The basket came with one-tenth of a second remaining and in front of former star Scottie Pippen. Gordon scored 13 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter Monday, marking the ninth time at least 10 of his points came in the fourth quarter. "The game was dragging on - man it was terrible - but in the fourth quarter, I picked it up," Gordon told the Associated Press. ... Forward Antonio Davis was a late scratch with a stiff back and ex-Knick Othella Harrington. Guard Kirk Hinrich collected a career-high 13 rebounds. ... Team chairman Jerry Reinsdorf underwent an angioplasty procedure Monday after routine tests found minor blockage. On Friday, Reinsdorf, who also runs the White Sox, declared his hopes to keep the current group intact. Before the home-and-home sweep over the Knicks, the Bulls ran roughshod over the 76ers, routing them 110-78 Wednesday. Following Chicago's first 30-point victory since February 19, 1998 that moved them into eighth place in the East, the playoff talk continued to be downplayed. "Coach has done a good job of coaching us not to think or talk like that," Eddy Curry told the Chicago Tribune. "Right now, our position doesn't mean anything. But if we can play like this consistently, we should breeze through some games." ... Gordon's 31 points Wednesday were the most by a rookie this season and his four 3-pointers in the fourth quarter tied a United Center record. ... Rookie Luol Deng was a game-time decision Monday with a sprained left ankle but his 19 points and 10 rebounds were his first double-double since the season opener. ... The Bulls have held 22 straight opponents under 100 points, the longest current streak in the league and foes have failed to crack 90 points in 15 of their 18 games.

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: The Cavaliers are 1-2 on their six-game road trip but could be winless on it so far. Sandwiched around close losses to the Lakers and Sonics was Saturday's 84-71 win in Utah. They trailed by as many as 19 points in the first half and 13 at halftime but then outscored the Jazz, 55-29 in the second half. The win came after their lowest scoring first half of the season. "This was a must-win because we feel like we let a game slip away in LA," LeBron James told the Akron Beacon-Journal. "So it was a must win and we got it." Although Drew Gooden scored just five points Saturday before fouling out, his defense was very effective according to coach Paul Silas. "That's what he has to concentrate on, not shooting it all of the time but rebounding and blocking shots," Silas told the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. "He defended very well in the zone and that's what he has to do." ... James averages 24.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 7.3 assists but has had just five games when he equals or surpasses in average in each category. He most recently did that Thursday in LA when he posted 28 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists and the Cavs lost for the first time in five games when he does that. ... Gooden opened the trip with back-to-back single-digit outings for just the third time this season but finished with 27 in Sunday's loss at Seattle. However, he and Zydrunas Illgauskas have combined for 13 rebounds in the last two games and were non-factors on the glass as Seattle was outrebounded 50-31 Sunday.

DETROIT PISTONS: The defending champions have won a season-high six in a row and have a half-game lead over the Cavaliers atop the Central Division. Before beating Phoenix on Monday afternoon, the Pistons had to gut out a 99-95 win over the 76ers on Saturday night. They led by as many as 16 before the 76ers came back before Tayshaun Prince hit the game-winner. In addition to scoring 19 points, Prince held Allen Iverson to 9-of-26 from the floor. ... Friday marked Grant Hill's first return to the Palace since he departed for Orlando and he got a standing ovation from the fans after betting team president Joe Dumars that wouldn't happen. "It was exactly what I expected," Ben wallace told the Detroit News. "Grant is one of those guys that everyone is going to pull for especially after what he has gone through.". ... Also Friday, Anthony Goldwire signed a second 10-day contract. In Monday's win, Prince scored a career-best 26 points and is averaging 20.3 in his last three games, while reaching 18 in five of his last 13 games. "The last three weeks, he has had a stretch as good as any young player is going to have," coach Larry Brown told the Associated Press." ... Ben Wallace has collected 10 rebounds or more in nine straight games. ... The 76 points surrendered to New Orleans Wednesday marked the seventh time an opponent failed to reach 80 points. In six games since failing to hit a field goal vs. Memphis on January 6, Richard Hamilton is shooting 48.9 percent (45-of-92).

INDIANA PACERS: Had Jermaine O'Neal not won his appeal, Friday would have been the last under the 25-game suspension. Following the game he recently opened up in a interview with the Indianapolis Star. Among the things he told the Star, that commisionar David Stern should not only look at fans safety and that he may not have looked at everything. "People come to watch teams, and I'm a guy that loves interaction with fans," O'Neal told the Star. "I think it's totally ridiculous to say, 'OK, we've got to figure out a way to divide the players and the fans.' That's what makes tougher arenas tough to play in. When you sit up there and say, 'OK, we're going to figure out a way to make it safe for these fans to come to our games,' and I'm like, 'people are throwing chairs.'" O'Neal also considered race as a possible issue in the outcome of the brawl. "We all knew the league is 80-85 percent black, we all know that. We didn't talk about the baseball player (Rangers relief pitcher Frank Francisco) just breaking a lady's (Jennifer Bueno) nose with a chair because she was talking. They didn't talk about that for weeks, did they? Every day for six weeks you see something on TV about it. They didn't talk about the guy trying to kill his agent.(former St. Louis Blues player Mike Danton pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder for hire.) These are people that are not black, and that touched me a little bit because that's totally unfair for this league to be judged off one incident." ... Prior to Saturday's 85-84 loss to Orlando, Jonathan Bender was activated from the injured list. In his game since November 17, he finished with eight points in 17 minutes and got his first action in 27 games with 3:07 left in the first quarter. ... O'Neal had 38 points and 15 rebounds and is averaging 29.9 points and 9.9 rebounds in his 11 games since returning to the court on December 25. ... Saturday's loss was a frustrating one at the foul line. The Pacers were 63.2 percent from the line (24-of-38) as Reggie Miller missed one late in the game and O'Neal missed six of his 20. Friday, the Pacers avenaged their 35-point loss in Phoenix with an 18-point win over the Suns, who lost Steve Nash to injury early on. ... Before Friday's game, rookie David Harrison was placed on the injured list with a concussion suffered last Tuesday in Memphis. Scot Pollard took his place after missing over six weeks with a sore back collected four rebounds and five fouls. ... Fred Jones will not be defending his slam-dunk title next month in Denver to rest his right knee, which has tendinitis. "I had a lot of fun," Jones told the Star. "It was an honor to be in that competition. If I was completely healthy, I'd definitely be in it again." ... Miller had three assists Saturday and his 4,041 for his career are the most in Pacers franchise history. ... In three games since giving up a season-high 124 at Phoenix, the Pacers have allowed 84.3 points. ... Thr 14 assists on Saturday marked just the third time in 11 games, Indiana has registered fewer than 20. ... James Jones returned to the starting lineup Tuesday in Memphis, replacing Michael Curry, who had made seven straight starts.

MIAMI HEAT: The Heat ended their five-game road trip with just two wins. They sandwiched Wednesday's win at Golden State with losses to the Suns and Clippers. ... Dwyane Wade missed his second straight game with a back injury and fourth overall. He also slept in the locker room during Friday's loss to the Clippers with a migrained and fever. ... When trade rumors about Eddie Jones appeared before TNTs Thursday doubleheader, president Pat Riley became very aggitated. "Yes it's very irritating because I signed Eddie five years ago," he told the Miami Herald. "He's still here, he's still productive, he's the captain. And for some reason over the last three years, it's always come back to him, and it's not fair. I want this team to be a great team. It's a great team right now. There's some question marks. I don't want to make changes all the time, so it's really unfair to the player it's always out there." ... The Heat have completed half their road schedule already and now do not have a road trip more than two games for the rest of the season. They went a combined 5-4 on their two trips of four games or more and coach Stan Van Gundy likes the fact his team has just four road games remaining against the West. "I like that," he told the Herald. "No. 1, there are a lot of good teams out West, and we've only got four Western Conference road games left the rest of the year. On top of that, trips like this are tiring. ... Last year Miami also finished its Western Swings by mid-January and from January 18 on, they were 26-15. ... O'Neal took a team-record 28 free throws Friday and made 15. His 39 points Friday gave him seven straight games with at least 25 points, breaking the 1995 record set by Glen Rice. ... Tuesday's 122-107 loss in Phoenix ended Miami's 33-game winning streak when the team scores at least 100 points. Dating to 1954-55, the streak is tied with the Pistons (3/1/96-12/11/97) and Lakers (11/5/71-1/7/72) for the second-longest in league history. ... Over his last four games, Damon Jones is shooting 16 percent (4-of-25) from 3-point range. ... O'Neal, Udonis Haslem and Michael Doleac stayed in LA an extra day to film a Verizon Wireless commerical.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS: Until Monday's seven-point win at Charlotte, Milwaukee's week was not going well. The Bucks were blown out on back-to-back nights in Atlanta and San Antonio, suffered a tough home loss to the Wizards Friday and were blown out in Memphis the next night. But the Bucks avoided losing five in a row for the third time this season by allowing the Bobcats to shoot 26.9 percent in the fourth quarter and picked up big win in the mental department according to Michael Redd. ... Saturday's loss saw the Bucks have 16 turnovers turned into 25 points. The night before, they blew an eight-point lead with under five minutes to play. And in Atlanta and San Antonio, the Bucks posted their second and third-lowest scoring games of the season. ... In five games since returning from the injured list, Keith Van Horn is averaging 5.8 points. ... Marcus Fizer did not play Monday due to a migraine but over his last 10 games he is averaging 7.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and shooting 50.8 percent. ... On Thursday, the Bucks announced that T.J. Ford will not return this season. Ford visted LA surgeon Robert Watkins last week and the doctor determined his bruised spinal cord had not healed enough for Ford to begin working out. The earliest return for Ford is not the start of next season's training camp. In the meantime, Ford will continue rehabbing in Texas and an MRI will done in the spring to make a further decision. "I think I was just too far behind," he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel before Friday's game. "I think the more you get into the season, the more competitive it gets, the more physical the game gets. And that's just putting myself at a higher risk. To say that I've been out a year or however many months it may be, that's still dangerous for me to come back. The most important thing is working on my body and getting strong physically and mentally." ... Milwaukee's next victory will be the 1,600th in team history. ... Dan Gadzuric played just six minutes Tuesday after having stomach pains but has played over 20 minutes in his last four games. ... Starting December 26, the Bucks have won three in a row, lost three straight, won three more in a row and then dropped four in a row and that pattern has puzzled coach Terry Porter. "I don't know what's that's about, I really don't," he told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "Get too full of ourselves? I don't know what that is. It's one of those things where you say, 'Wow'. But I don't know if there's any explanation about why. Are we afraid to push ourselves to get four? I doubt it. It just seems to work out their way."

NEW JERSEY NETS: Net fans that were anticipating the threesome of Jason Kidd, vince Carter and Richard Jefferson on the court at the same time will have to wait until next year. The Nets announced Tuesday Jefferson would be out for the season with a ruptured ligament in his left wrist that requires surgery and at least three months to rehab from. According to Jefferson, he thinks it came on a dirty play by Detroit's Chauncey Billups,, who undercut him during a fast break in the second quarter of New Jersey's overtime loss in Detroit on December 27. "Was it a dirty play? Yes," Jefferson told the Newark Star-Ledger. "Is Chauncey Billups a dirty player? By no means. "Everyone in the NBA knows how I play, what I do. You know the people you need to protect yourself against. You know the people if you're running really hard and you're by yourself on the break, you know what you need to do. When you get a pass from (Jason) Kidd, like I've done a million times, you always take a look over your shoulder to see who's coming. ... Two days later, Kidd told reporters he would not be seeking a trade from New Jersey. But Friday, he admitted he did it to avoid negative press from the media. "It's kind of like that free-agent question that you just asked and asked (in the summer of 2003)," he said to the Star-Ledger. "I have no control if they trade me or not. I don't want to be traded. We'll just see what happens. What's (the February trade deadline), the 24th? Hopefully, it'll pass soon. I just tried to kill that question so I don't have to answer it." ... Brian Scalabine practiced Friday and has seen enough improvement in his hamstring to target Wednesday as his return date. ... On Saturday, Kidd recorded his 61st career-triple double and 23rd as a Net. ... Monday's 85-84 win in Atlanta marked the first time the Nets swept the season series from the Hawks. Kidd hit three 3-pointers Monday and passed Chris Morris for second place on the franchise's all-time list. ... Vince Carter took 32 shots Saturday, four shy of his career-high set January 21, 2001 in Philadelphia. ... Saturday, the Nets inked Jerome Moiso to a second 10-day contract.

NEW YORK KNICKS: At 17-20 the Knicks are tied with Philadelphia and Boston for first place in the Atlantic Division. But unlike the 76ers and Celtics, the Knicks have yet to venture out West, something they do at the end of the month. ... The Knicks have lost seven of eight since improving to 16-13 on December 30. ... Guard Jamal Crawford was anxious to face the Bulls in Chicago but instead returned from the injured list in Monday's loss to the Bulls and scored eight points on 4-of-14 from the field, including 0-of-7 from 3-point range. "It felt good," Crawford told the Newark Star-Ledger. "I was a little nervous. But as I get more comfortable and just keep getting out there it will be better and better. I got through it and there was no pain and that's the most important thing." ... Since scoring 25 points vs. Portland on January 9, guard Allan Houston is shooting 14-of-41 over his last three games. ... In the last two games vs. the Bulls Houston has been on the bench for significant stretches in the second half. Saturday in Chicago, he did not play the final 6:02 and Monday he came out with 4:56 left in the third and did not return until there was 56.6 seconds remaining in the fourth. Despite that, Houston insisted he was fine with that. "Our team was playing extremely well and we gave ourselves a chance to win," he told the Newark Star-Ledger. ... Tim Thomas returned after missing three games with a bruised left knee and strained right calf but play just four scoreless minutes - all in the first half. ... Rookie Trevor Ariza scored a career-high 18 points Saturday and has topped double figures in three of last four games but went scoreless on 0-of-6 from the floor Monday. ... New York's biggest lead Monday was 11 points and the loss was their 15th in 28 games decided by 10 points or less.

ORLANDO MAGIC: For the first time in his career, Steve Francis is not a teammate of Cuttino Mobley. Francis played with him for five seasons in Houston and was brought over in the offseason deal for Tracy McGrady before the Magic sent Mobley to the Kings for Doug Christie on January 10. One day after the deal, general manager John Weisbrod spoke with Francis and the team. On the chat with Weisbrod, Francis told the Orlando Sentinel "It was necessary. It was necessary. It's his team to make the decisions. I can't do anything about it. The decision he made to bring me here is on him. So I just have to live with that." The trade came hours before the Magic gave up 119 points in an 18-point loss at Boston. But in their last two wins at Minnesota and Indiana, the Magic have given up 80 and 84 points respectively. ... Christie made his Orlando debut Saturday without the benefit of a practice. In 26 minutes off the bench, he scored two points on 1-of-4 shooting while recording three assists and three steals. His main assignment was Reggie Miller and this week he takes on Richard Hamilton and McGrady. "Defense is an attitude," he told the Sentinel. "I'm going to give everything I have. I'll say yes to whatever this teams needs." ... Forward Hedo Turkoglou had a very streaky week. He was 0-of-9 Monday at Boston, 8-of-16 Wednesday in Minnesota, 2-of-15 Friday in Detroit and 7-of-14 Saturday. ... Grant Hill made his long-awaited return to Detroit and got a standing ovation from the crowd before the game. In his first game at the Palace with Orlando, Hill finished with 17 points while shooting 7-of-16. Following Thursday's practice, he told the Sentinel "I didn't know if I would ever get the chance to come back here and play. I'm just thankful. I do miss this place a lot. It might be kind of weird regardless of the reaction of the crowd. But man if I get a good response, I might start crying. ... On Tuesday, center Andrew DeClerq was activated from the injured list. DeClerq, who made 53 starts last season had been out all season because of a right knee injury.

PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: For the second time in three games, Allen Iverson played the entire game. Of course he may not have had to do so if the Sixers had held their 25-point lead with 11 1/2 minutes remaining before pulling out a 95-91 win over the Hornets Monday. Following the game, several adjectives were used in the Philadelphia Daily News his teammates to describe the win. "Disturbing" was how Aaron McKie put it. "Ugly" was Corliss Willamson's description and "A basketball nightmare," was how Kyle Korver termed it. Iverson's recent iron-man efforts came less than a week after a minor controversy nearly took place. During Philadelphia's lopsided loss to Portland January 10, coach Jim O'Brien removed Iverson with 10:22 remaining and a 19-point deficit and the superstar was not thrilled. In the postgame news conference, he told reporters. "I never gave up, felt like we couldn't win it. I'm sitting over there on the bench, helpless. It's like I am injured. But Tuesday, the pair talked it over and O'Brien declared to reporters that the situation was over. "He hates to lose as much as I hate to lose," O'Brien told the Daily News. "He has the exact type of attitude that I love to coach. Up 40, down 40, he wants to play 48 minutes a game." ... John Salmons has started the last eight games at shooting guard while Willie Green was DNP-CD for the fourth time in eight games. ... Samuel Dalembert missed his fourth straight gae with a strained left hip but could return Wednesdy in Charlotte. ... Monday's win was Philadelphia's first in 15 games when scoring 95 points or less. ... Korver hit a pair of 3-pointer Monday and became the eighth Sixer to hit 100 in a season, joining Dana Barros, Willie Burton, Iverson, Hersey Hawkins, Vernon Maxwell, Trevor Ruffin and Jerry Stackhouse. ... McKie was a DNP-CD for the second time last week Saturday in Detroit. ... According to the Daily News, president/general manager Billy King is interested in acquring Donyell Marshall from the Raptors since last summer. King's comments to the Daily News were brief and did not mention Marhsall specifically. "I've been talking to Toronto and have an interest in several of their players." ... Following Wednesday's 32-point loss in Chicago, the 76ers were unable to return right away due to fog in the Philadelphia area. ... In Friday's win over Toronto, the 76ers grabbed a season-high 57 rebounds.

TORONTO RAPTORS: A year ago the Raptors would have been eight games out of first place in the Central Division. But realignment moved the Raptors to the mediocre Atlantic Division and they are just two games back of the Sixers, Knicks and Celtics. ... Toronto has won six of its last eight games and Monday's win in Minnesota stopped an 11-game road losing streak that dated to November 30 in Miami. The win also was Toronto's first in eight all-time trips to Minnesota. ... "It keeps us in the thick of things," Alston told the Toronto Star. "Even though our record seems like one of the worst around some teams (ahead of Toronto) continue to lose and if we continue to play hard and pick up wins like this, soon as you know it we'll be right back in the race." ... Despite being unhappy with coming off the bench, Jalen Rose has scored in double figures in three straight games and 10 of his 12 games as a reserve. Last week in a candid chat with reporters, he still maintained his demotion could be a signal that he is being traded soon. "Coming off the bench is an adjustment and it is a demotion and I feel like probably something is going to happen," he told the Toronto Sun. "I don't know if that means trade, but I feel like something has got to give soon. ... By recording 19 points and 11 rebounds Monday, Chris Bosh has tied a team record with eight straight doubles-doubles. He is averaging 20.4 points and 11.6 rebounds in that span. ... Last Wednesday vs. Boston, Morris Peterson tied a career best with seven 3-pointers and set a career-high with 37 points. Since being put into the starting lineup, he is averaging 15.3 points in 18 games and the Raptors are 9-9. Last week he also admitted to the Toronto Sun that the Raptors are a closer bunch since the December 17 trade of Vince Carter. "This is a tighter-knit team but I'm not going to say too much more about that," he told the Newspaper. "The guys that we have now, we definitely are close." ... Rafer Alston recorded a career-high 15 assists Monday and has netted at least six in his last 10 games. ... Although Alonzo Mourning has shown little interest in playing for Toronto, general manager Rob Babcock visited him and his agent last week in Florida.

WASHINGTON WIZARDS: The Wizards are 22-14 but staying above .500 might be a challenge with Larry Hughes out for four to six weeks with a fractured right thumb. Starting with Monday's 101-73 loss at San Antonio, the Wizards play 14 of their 20 games through February 28 against teams that are .500 or better. The 101-73 loss ended their seven-game winning streak and a 10-game streak of scoring at least 100 points. The worst number of the game came from Gilbert Arenas, who was 0-of-12 from the field for just three points. "It's like the young kid that gets bold and goes against his father and the father has to smack him down to let him know that you're still small," Arenas told the Washington Times. "And that's what they did. They smacked us down and let us know that we needed more work." Before his woeful performance, Arenas had averaged 21.5 points in 12 games vs. the Western Conference. Hughes got hurt during Saturday's win over the Suns and center Brendan Haywood is not about to make any excuses. "It's real tough but it's one of those things," he told the Times. "I've seen it every year in my career. Every year I've been here we've lost one or more of our main guys. You just have to understand that it's going to take time to get better. You are not going to be the same team right off the bat." Hughes got hurt attacking the basket against Suns swingman Quentin Richardson. Richardson swatted at the ball and struck Hughes' thumb and the point guard originally thought it was jammed. ... Washington's seven-game winning streak was its longest since a nine-game run in December 2001. ... The night before getting hurt Hughes scored a season-high 36 points and hit the game-winning basket with six-tenths of a second left at Milwaukee. ... Before losing Monday, the Wizards were nine games over .500 for the first time since 1979. ... Prior to Wednesday's game vs. Portland, Kwame Brown was placed on the injured list with tendinitis in his right ankle. He has averaged just 15.9 minutes in 14 games this season. Replacing Brown on the roster was Etan Thomas, who made his season debut after missing 32 games with an abdominal strain and collected four points and four rebounds in 13 minutes.