By Mike Weilamann

November 30, 2007: SCOREBOARD | IN FOCUS GALLERY | AROUND THE ASSOCIATION ARCHIVE

PHOTO OF THE NIGHT
LeBron James had a prime seat for Friday's game against the Raptors. James sat out with a sprained finger as the Cavaliers lost 91-82. Cavs coach Mike Brown expects James to practice Saturday but would not say whether he will play Sunday when Cleveland visits Boston. Ron Turenne/NBAE/Getty Images
QUOTE OF THE NIGHT
"With a young team, it takes a while to build that confidence, and know what each other is doing on the court, and know where people are, who defers to who, what the pecking order is. That takes time. We're older than dirt. We figured that out a long time ago.''
-- San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich after his Spurs' 15-point victory over the Timberwolves on Friday in which San Antonio closed the game with a staggering 40-11 run.
THE DAY'S TOP VIDEO
Friday's top play: Deron Williams uses a wicked crossover to score the basket.
  • Haier Play of the Day
  • Dunk of the Night
  • Block of the Night
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  • Assist of the Night
  • Steal of the Night
  • NBA TV Top 10
    • NBA.COM'S FANTASY TAKE
    When your top draft picks — you know the stars you count on each night — fail to produce it can be extremely frustrating. Dirk Nowitzki surely alarmed some owners with his rare off-night in Friday’s victory over the Trail Blazers. The Dallas big man finished with a pedestrian line of a season-low 11 points on 2-of-11 shooting with only two rebounds. Nowitzki was 0-for-5 in the first quarter and was scoreless for the game's opening 20 minutes, 45 seconds. Momma said there would be days like these, but relax. You can expect the reigning league MVP will bounce back quickly. That’s why we call them stars. Check out NBA.com's Fantasy Index.
    SHOOTING STUDS
    Manu Ginobili, Spurs
    106-91 win at Timberwolves
    31 pts, 11-16 FG, 7-9 3-pt FG

    Deron Williams, Jazz
    120-96 win vs. Lakers
    35 pts, 14-24 FG, 2-3 3-pt FG, 5-5 FT

    Kevin Durant, Sonics
    95-93 win vs. Pacers
    35 pts, 12-20 FG, 3-5 3-pt FG

    STAT SHEET STUFFER
    The numbers don’t lie. Take a look at Andrei Kirilenko’s stat line from Friday’s win over the Lakers. Kirlenko posted 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, and for kicks and grins, threw in six steals and four blocks. Those are some serious numbers to crunch. To say he had a triple-double, the third of his career, doesn’t really do that kind of supreme effort justice. But hey, it’s all a numbers game when you think about it.
    SHOOTING DUDS
    Peja Stojakovic, Hornets
    92-86 win at Hawks
    4 pts, 2-12 FG, 0-6 3-pt FG

    Andre Iguodala, Sixers
    85-84 win vs. Wizards
    10 pts, 4-12 FG

    DeShawn Stevenson, Wizards
    85-84 loss at Sixers
    10 pts, 4-14 FG, 0-6 3-pt FG

    YOU GOTTA HAVE HEART
    What a difference a day makes. Just 24 hours after one of the worst and most embarrassing losses, the New York Knickerbockers redeemed themselves with a thrilling win at The Garden. The Knicks, yes those Knicks who lost by 45 points in Boston on Thursday, enabled their fans to shed the paper bags for at least one night by rallying from 17 down to stop the Bucks. Maybe that fan in Boston who threw his jersey onto the other Garden’s floor during the blowout loss to the Celtics would like it back. The only damper on the night was point guard Stephon Marbury (13 points) making an early exit midway through the third quarter with a right shoulder muscle spasm. Marbury said he expects to play Sunday against the Suns. At least for one night the Knicks gave their fans reason to cheer. Can the jeers be far behind? That’s life in the Big Apple.
    ALMOST MISSING THE BOAT
    You know things are going your way when you can’t throw the ball in the ocean, yet somehow manage to record the victory. Case in point was the Sixers, who pulled out a win over the Wizards despite missing all 14 of their three-point attempts. The bagel from behind the arc matched a franchise record set Feb. 22, 1988, at Houston. Andre Iguodala had another dubious distinction of missing 16 straight shots in a pitiful 3-for-19 effort from the floor. So how the heck did Philly win this one? One word: defense. The Wizards managed only 16 points in the fourth quarter as leading scorers Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison were held to a combined 36 points on 13-of-36 shooting for the game. "I thought our defense was the reason why we won that game,'' Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said after the win. The Sixers also won the turnover battle 18-8.
    ROOKIE WATCH
    He’s made an appearance or two here before, but Kevin Durant enjoyed his finest night to date on Friday. Good thing for the Sonics. Seattle needed its top-ranked rook to step up on Friday and he delivered with a season-high 35 points on 12-of-20 shooting in the Sonics’ long-awaited first home win of the season. Durant was poised down the stretch as he sank 7-of-8 from the foul line in the final minute to seal the win. The University of Texas product also totaled 14 points in the final quarter, including a pair of big treys, and had 22 points in the final two periods. Nice to see you again KD.
    COOL/CLUTCH PERFORMANCE
    If New York's Jamal Crawford can make it here he can make it anywhere. Crawford hit the game-winning jumper with 28 seconds left to lift the Knicks past the Bucks at the Garden. Down by 17 points in the second half, Crawford led the comeback with 21 of his 25 points coming in the final two quarters. It was sweet redemption for the guard, who netted only eight points in Thursday’s laugher against the Celtics. In a postgame interview Friday, Crawford told the fans he was sorry for the team’s previous game. No need for apologies Jamal. Just keep hitting those winners.
    D-LEAGUE STAR OF THE NIGHT
    Talk about your strong debuts. The Spurs’ Darius Washington had the hot hand on Friday, posting a game-high 32 points to go with 12 rebounds and five assists as the Austin Toros registered a a 114-109 win over the Sioux Falls Skyforce. The rookie guard had just arrived in Austin on Thursday after averaging 2.8 points in 15 games for the Spurs this season. If he keeps up this kind of production, it might not be long before he’s back in San Antonio. Washington was reunited with Spurs teammate Ian Mahinmi, who was assigned to the Toros on Nov. 21.