Not their shots.

Not their injured All-Star.

Stephen Curry had 30 points and 13 assists, and the scrappy Warriors handed the Denver Nuggets their first loss at home in more than three months, a 131-117 stunner that evened their playoff series at a game each.

Rallying around injured David Lee, who cheered from the bench in street clothes, the Warriors got 26 points from surprise starter Jarrett Jack, a career-high 24 from rookie Harrison Barnes in his debut at power forward and 21 from Klay Thompson.

The sixth-seeded Warriors, who became the second road team to win in this postseason following Chicago’s victory at Brooklyn on Monday, wrested home-court advantage in the series from the NBA’s best home team. The series shifts to Oakland for Game 3 on Friday night.

“They were knocking down shots,” Denver’s Andre Iguodala said in an understatement.

Better than they ever had before in a playoff game, with a franchise playoff-record 64.6 percent (51-of-79) from the field.

“We are a very good shooting basketball team,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. “We’ve got guys that can knock down shots. You talk about Klay Thompson and Steph Curry, in my opinion, they’re the greatest shooting backcourt in the history of the game.”

The third-seeded Nuggets were an NBA-best 38-3 at home during the regular season but needed Andre Miller’s last-second shot to beat Golden State by a basket in the opener and extend their franchise-best winning streak to 24 games.

With Golden State losing Lee to a torn hip flexor and the Nuggets getting top rebounder and energizer Kenneth Faried back from a sprained ankle, this one looked like a mismatch, even Curry acknowledged.

And it was, but not the way the Pepsi Center crowd anticipated.

“We’re a resilient team, said that all year. When guys go down, other guys step up,” said Curry, who played despite a tender left ankle after turning it late in the third quarter. “We showed that tonight. Big road win for us. We’ve got to go home and protect our home court.”

Even without their All-Star, the Warriors outrebounded the Nuggets 36-26.

“We didn’t do much of anything very well,” Nuggets coach George Karl lamented. “I don’t think I ever coached a game when a team got three 35-point quarters, maybe in my career. Ever.”

The best anybody shot against Denver during the season was 54 percent, by the Los Angeles Lakers way back on Nov. 20, and the most points the Nuggets had allowed was 126 at San Antonio on Nov. 17.

Ty Lawson and Corey Brewer each scored 19 points for Denver, and Iguodala and Miller each had 18, but the Nuggets were playing catch-up from the middle of the second quarter and couldn’t keep up with so many of the Warriors’ shots falling, negating Denver’s league-best transition game.

Lee led the league with 56 double-doubles and had another before getting hurt in the fourth quarter of the series opener Saturday. The Warriors were 3-18 without him over the past three seasons, but Jackson mixed and matched his lineup to make up for his All-Star’s absence on this night, when Lee gave advice to his teammates during timeouts.

The Nuggets were hoping Faried’s return would help reverse their 10-point disadvantage on the boards in Game 1. But he was rusty, and the same problems that plagued Denver in the opener — missing too many open shots, getting outmuscled on the glass and giving up open 3-pointers — haunted the Nuggets once again and even more so.

Curry scored 15 points in the second quarter and hit four jumpers during a 14-5 run the Warriors used to grab control and take the air out of the Pepsi Center as they cruised into halftime with a 61-53 lead that would never be threatened in the second half.

Curry swished another sweet jumper to start the third quarter, and the Warriors opened up a 17-point lead they would stretch to 20 in the fourth quarter.

“The game plan tonight was to keep the ball out of Stephen Curry’s hands, but he came off [the pick-and-rolls] and had open looks and then he started finding people,” Lawson said. “After that, we started scrambling, and we can’t play like that.”

The Nuggets pulled within 76-69, but Thompson hit a 3-pointer from the right corner and Curry a 3 from the left to make it 82-69. Both were wide open, as Denver’s mismatched defenders were again running ragged trying to keep up with the Warriors, who handled the altitude just fine.

Denver got its deficit down to 115-105, but this time it was Jack’s turn to make a wide-open 3 with the Nuggets’ defenders scrambling around.

Faried finished with four points and two rebounds in 21 minutes.

The arena was half-empty by the time the horn sounded, a solitary fan yelling derisively, “Tacos!” when Evan Fournier’s free throw fell through the hoop to give the Nuggets 110 points, the magic number for a promotion in which fans get discounted tacos.

Game notes

The Warriors shot a sizzling 61 percent in the first half, when they outrebounded the Nuggets 21-14. … The Nuggets’ previous loss at home was 112-108 to the Washington Wizards on Jan. 18. … Denver had just eight fast-break points, compared to Golden State’s 14. … Curry’s 30-10 playoff game was the first for the franchise since Sleepy Floyd on May 10, 1987.

The post Stephen Curry, Warriors send Nuggets to rare home loss appeared first on IdealCapper.

But when he’s open, his teammates are confident he can score.

“He seems to always be in the right spots, available,” Pierce said after Bass scored 20 points to lead the Celtics to a 107-96 win Sunday night. “That’s going to be huge for us if he continues to play well going into the playoffs, and the great thing about it is he’s doing it all off of the hustle plays.”

In the eight games Garnett missed with an inflamed left ankle, Bass averaged 12.3 points, raising his season average to 8.3. On Sunday, he shot 9 of 12 and added six rebounds.

“He’s just efficient,” Boston coach Doc Rivers said. “Overall, I think he’s playing terrific. I think he’s in a wonderful place right now.”

Garnett had 12 points and six rebounds in 24 minutes. Pierce finished with 15 points in 30 minutes after missing Friday night’s 97-91 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers with a sore left ankle.

“Things flow a lot smoother when Kevin and Paul are out there because everything’s being run through them and everybody else is just getting what they get from them,” Bass said. “So it’s a lot better when they’re out (on the court). It doesn’t matter if I get a play called. The ball will find me and, hopefully, I just make the shot.”

Bass missed his season high by just two points and led the Celtics with eight points in the third quarter, when they hit 75 percent of their shots, outscored Washington 31-19 and stretched a 56-52 halftime lead to 87-71.

They’re still missing Rajon Rondo and Jared Sullinger, both sidelined for the season, but led by at least 10 points the rest of the way to get just their fourth win in 12 games.

John Wall led Washington with 16 points but never got to the foul line as Boston outscored Washington 17-8 on free throws. A.J. Price had 15 points and Trevor Ariza added 14.

“We play a team like this and when you’re not playing great defensively you have got to be able to make shots,” Wall said, “and we had a tough night.”

The Wizards hit just 44.5 percent of their shots. But in the second half they connected on only 41.5 percent, while the Celtics made 64.5 percent.

“It doesn’t matter what lineup (we use) or who’s on the floor as long as we’re playing the right way,” Garnett said. “That’s all my concern is, just making sure that we’re sharing the ball, playing as a team, giving up for each other, playing defensively.”

The win ended a four-game stretch against weak teams in which the Celtics lost to Minnesota, beat Detroit, lost to Cleveland and beat Washington. With five games left and the Celtics trying to move up from seventh place in the Eastern Conference, the schedule gets tougher with a home game Wednesday night against the Brooklyn Nets before a road game Friday against the Miami Heat.

Washington fell to 7-31 on the road but is 23-20 overall since Wall returned from a shoulder injury.

“Against a team like this that’s playing for something, who has a seed in the playoffs, they’re going to keep competing,” Wall said. “And they got everybody back tonight and they were clicking right away.”

A dunk by Nene with 10:24 left in the third quarter had cut the Celtics’ lead to 58-57, but they went on a 29-14 surge the rest of the period.

The Celtics began the spurt with a 14-1 run, starting with a layup by Avery Bradley. Pierce hit another layup and Bradley followed with a 16-footer. Martell Webster sank a free throw for the Wizards after Garnett was called for a technical foul with 7:57 left in the quarter. But Emeka Okafor then missed two free throws for Washington.

Boston scored the next eight points on a 14-foot jumper by Bass, two free throws by Shavlik Randolph, an 18-footer by Jason Terry and a dunk by Bass.

Ariza then scored Washington’s first field goal in nearly six minutes when Randolph was called for goaltending with 4:39 left in the period, cutting Boston’s lead to 72-60.

“We had that stretch in the third quarter where we struggled offensively and they were clicking offensively,” Wizards coach Randy Wittman said, “and that was the difference.”

Game notes

Washington forward Trevor Booker left the game with a bruised tailbone with 5:42 left in the first half and didn’t return. … Chris Wilcox had 13 points for Boston, one below his season high. … The Celtics swept the three-game season series. … Jordan Crawford had six points in 16 minutes in his first game against the Wizards since being traded on Feb. 21. He had been upset with his diminished playing time in Washington.

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Parker had 22 points in his return from an eight-game absence, Tim Duncan added 19 points and 16 rebounds and the San Antonio Spurs escaped with a 104-97 overtime victory against the Utah Jazz on Friday night.

Amid cries of “MVP,” Parker capped the scoring with a pair of free throws with 17.2 seconds left in overtime. He went 8 for 13 from the field and had five assists after missing eight games with a sprained left ankle. The Spurs were 6-2 in his absence, but struggled offensively.

“Tony was a little bit shy in the first half; he was just trying to feel his way a little bit,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “The game got tight at the end in regulation and then in overtime, and he was Tony Parker. Like I said, up until the time he got hurt, there wasn’t a point guard in the league playing better than Tony Parker.”

Parker had six points and two assists in overtime, including a cross-court pass to Kawhi Leonard for a 3-pointer to open overtime.

Leonard finished with 21 points, including five in overtime, and Danny Green had 15 points for San Antonio (53-16), which remains 2 1/2 games ahead of Oklahoma City in the West.

Mo Williams scored 23 points, Al Jefferson had 18 and Alec Burks 14 for Utah (34-35), which has lost three straight and dropped two games behind the Los Angeles Lakers for the West’s final playoff berth.

“I can live with this,” Jefferson said. “It is the end of the season and we cannot afford to lose one game. We played a tough team on their home floor and had a chance to win for the first time in a long time. The energy and the effort was there for all 48 minutes plus. If we continue to play the way we did tonight for the rest of these 12 games, we have a great chance.”

Utah almost ruined what became a historic night for Duncan and Popovich.

Duncan’s 29th double-double of the season gives him 13,113 career rebounds, moving him past Shaquille O’Neal (13,099) for 13th on the all-time list.

Popovich recorded his 900th career victory, becoming the 12th coach in NBA history to accomplish the feat and joining former Utah coach Jerry Sloan as the only coaches to do so with one team.

“(The ankle) feels good; it’s more my cardio, my wind,” Parker said. “I’m definitely (tired). It was a hard game; playoff intensity. Utah is definitely fighting hard to get that eight spot.

“It was big win for a lot of reasons. For Pop, No. 900; for Timmy passing Shaq; and me, I’m just happy to be back and hopefully we can keep it going now.”

While Parker’s return helped settle San Antonio late on offense, it was the team’s defense that sealed the win.

The Spurs held the Jazz to 2-for-8 shooting in overtime after Marvin Williams’ 3 at the buzzer tied the game at 90, drawing a heated tirade from Popovich for the defensive lapse. In the end, however, Popovich was happy with the outcome.

“I thought it was a great game,” he said. “The guys fought hard. Utah’s a team trying to stay in the playoffs and really highly motivated. We ground it out. We just ground it out and found some combinations that work well. A lot of people contributed to that. It was a hell of a win. It’s one of our better wins this year for a lot of reasons.”

Parker made his first attempt, drawing huge applause after hitting a 15-foot jumper 2 minutes into the game. He had only six points in the first half, going 3 for 6 from the field in 17 minutes.

“It’s always tough, because you don’t want to mess with the chemistry,” Parker said. “They’ve been playing very good basketball at home. I was just trying to fit in. In the second half, Pop was calling plays for me. And being aggressive in the fourth quarter, so it came naturally.”

The Spurs had a 12-0 run to take a 16-4 lead with 6:26 left in the first quarter. Tiago Splitter capped the run by tossing in a hook shot after missing an open layup off a bullet pass from Parker.

Parker sat shortly after that pass, sparking a 17-2 run by Utah to close the quarter. San Antonio went scoreless for almost 5 minutes bridging the first and second quarters.

Leonard also had six points in the first half before going 6 for 8 from the field in the second half and overtime, including 3 for 3 on 3s.

“Kawhi’s a stud, he’s not afraid to shoot the ball,” Popovich said. “He knows that he’s got license to play; we went to him a couple of times down the stretch in regulation and he came through.”

Game notes

San Antonio’s victory was its first in overtime against Utah after losing the previous three in series history. . Parker is the only player averaging at least 20 points and seven assists while shooting over 50 percent from the field and 80 percent on free throws. … Popovich trails Don Nelson (1,335), Lenny Wilkens (1,332), Sloan (1,221), Pat Riley (1,210), Phil Jackson (1,155), George Karl (1,122), Larry Brown (1,098), Rich Adelman (994), Bill Fitch (944), Red Auerbach (938) and Dick Motta (935) in career victories. “It’s funny, I played for Don Nelson when he broke the record and now I’m back with Pop,” Stephen Jackson said. “I’m happy for Pop, he deserves it. I’m sure he’s got plenty more to come. He pushed the (postgame celebration) cake in my face and it should have been his face. But I’m happy for him; I’m happy to be a part of it. I’m happy to say that I was able to be coached and play for coach Popovich.” . Parker is the only active player averaging at least 15 points, five assists while shooting over 49 percent from the field for his career. The only other players to do that are Walt Frazier, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan and Kevin Johnson. … With its victory Friday, San Antonio joins Miami (31) and Oklahoma City (30) as the only teams with 30 wins at home this season.

The post Tony Parker scores 22 in return as Spurs top Jazz in OT appeared first on IdealCapper.

Tim Duncan had 25 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and four blocks, and San Antonio beat Golden State 104-93 on Wednesday night for its 29th straight home win against the Warriors.

Golden State has not won in San Antonio since Feb. 14, 1997, the season before Duncan was selected No. 1 overall by the Spurs.

“He’s a Hall of Fame player, an all-time great,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. “He certainly had a big game tonight.”

Tiago Splitter added 17 points and Manu Ginobili had 16 points and seven assists for San Antonio (52-16), which has won three straight and seven of nine overall. Nando De Colo had 10 points.

The Spurs are right behind Miami (53-14) for the league’s best record.

Stephen Curry had 24 points for Golden State (39-31), which remains sixth in the West. Jarrett Jack had 14 points, and David Lee added 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Golden State closed to 92-88 when Curry went 1 for 2 at the line, but Duncan threw in a running hook and a 16-foot jumper to give San Antonio an eight-point lead with 2:37 remaining.

“My jump shot’s coming back,” Duncan said. “It doesn’t feel great, but it’s going in a little bit, so I’ll take it. Everything else feels really good. I feel healthy, moving well. (My) body feels good and shots are going in.”

Duncan was 11 for 17 from the field and 3 for 3 at the line. It was his 13th game of at least 20 points and 10 rebounds this season.

“Timmy has his rhythm back,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “He’s in great shape and down the stretch we went through him. Manu and Timmy really decided to do that on their won and they did a great job of it.”

The Spurs needed Duncan to step up with All-Star point guard Tony Parker (sprained left ankle) still about a week away from rejoining the team, and the 16-year veteran is averaging 27.7 points, 14.7 rebounds and 3.3 rebounds in his last three games — all home victories.

“Unbelievable; he’s just unbelievable,” Splitter said. “He’s just figuring out how to play great at his age. It’s not easy, he’s not same guy like 10 years ago. He doesn’t have the same quickness, but he still knows how to play this game.”

Duncan also set the tone defensively.

Golden State (first) and San Antonio (fourth) are among the top five in 3-point percentage, but neither team connected from long range until Ginobili knocked down his second attempt with 10:30 left in the first half.

It was part of a greater emphasis on defense by the Spurs, who struggled in a 119-116 victory against Cleveland on Saturday.

“Focus more than anything,” Duncan said. “We’ve been playing hard. We just kind of get out of whack every once in a while kind of as the season goes along. It’s a long season. People lose focus for a little while. It’s good to go through a stretch like that to get a team refocused; to get guys individually refocused. I think we’ve done that.”

San Antonio still had some defensive lapses. Golden State went on a 10-1 run after De Colo’s 17-foot jumper gave the Spurs a 91-78 lead with 8 minutes remaining. But that’s when Duncan had his late run.

“Tim made plays and that is what he does,” Curry said. “We got back into it and had a chance to win at the end. If I would have made that second to last 3 I took, that would have changed the game.”

Curry missed a 3 pointer with 3 minutes left and Duncan followed with his 16-foot jumper that gave San Antonio a 96-88 lead.

San Antonio outscored Golden State 38-25 in the second quarter, going 6 for 11 on 3s after missing all four attempts in the opening period. Matt Bonner and Danny Green hit back-to-back 3s late in the second quarter as San Antonio led 60-47 at halftime.

De Colo had one of the highlights in the first half when he stripped Jack at midcourt and sprinted to the basket for a dunk, prompting Duncan to leap from his seat and shout “atta boy.”

“I thought he was a really physical player tonight,” Popovich said. “He showed a penchant to stick his nose in and played physically. He was very good in that regard and that’s what we’ve been wanting to see from him.

“He’s a smart player, we already know that, but he’s got to be able to bang and hit and keep up with a physical game like it was tonight -the way it’s going to be in the playoffs.”

Game notes

Parker participated fully in San Antonio’s practice Tuesday, but Popovich said he was still about a week away from rejoining the team. … All but three of San Antonio’s 14 remaining games are against teams with a winning record. … Warriors F Richard Jefferson, who played two seasons with the Spurs, was booed when he entered the game late in the first quarter. … Duncan was assessed a technical foul with 6:59 left for arguing a foul called against De Colo. It was Duncan’s first technical foul since April 15, 2007, against the Dallas Mavericks.

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Duncan had 30 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks, and the Spurs beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-113 on Saturday night.

Kawhi Leonard added 24 points and 13 boards, and Manu Ginobili added 14 points and 10 assists for San Antonio (51-16), which is 1 1/2 games ahead of Oklahoma City for the top seed in the Western Conference.

“Tim saved our (butt),” said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who was ejected midway through the second quarter. “He obviously carried the whole night for us. He was great. It shouldn’t have to be that way.”

Nando De Colo had 11 points and Tiago Splitter 10 for the Spurs.

Playing without its top two players in point guard Kyrie Irving and center Anderson Varejao, Cleveland (22-44) led 103-102 with 5 minutes left in the game.

Opponents were averaging 96.2 points against the Spurs entering Saturday’s game, but the Cavaliers had 90 after three quarters. For a franchise and a coach that has won four NBA titles on the shoulders of its defense, the lack of focus is troubling to say the least.

“We’ve got to step up and play better,” Ginobili said. “The playoffs are around the corner; 15 games to go and we are doing worse than at the beginning of the season. We’ve got to go by this slump and get our things together.”

Wayne Ellington had 21 points and fellow reserve Marreese Speights added 19 for Cleveland. Shaun Livingston had 16 points, and Alonzo Gee and Dion Waiters added 15 apiece.

Neither offense was slowed by the loss of its starting All-Star point guards. Parker is expected to miss another two weeks with a Grade 2 left ankle sprain and Cleveland will be without Irving (shoulder) for another three weeks.

It was defense that both teams were lacking.

“We’ve been emphasizing for two and half weeks and it hasn’t done any good,” Popovich said. “I need to learn another language or I don’t know what. But, very disappointed in our defensive execution in the last two to three weeks after we raised our stock from being a middle of the road defensive team last year to one of the top two or three this year.

“Then in the last three weeks, we decide to toss it; that it’s not important. I’m really concerned and disappointed in that.”

Frustration with that defense may have led to Popovich’s ejection. He was ejected with 6:33 left in the first half after arguing a charge Ed Malloy called on Boris Diaw against Luke Walton. After the initial technical, Popovich was quickly assessed a second and ejected after storming onto the court, yelling and pointing at Malloy.

San Antonio outscored Cleveland 19-12 down the stretch, but the Cavs shot 51 percent from the field.

Duncan blocked Tristan Thompson’s layup attempt with the Spurs leading 113-109 and 54.9 seconds remaining. Duncan also blocked Waiters’ shot with 17.9 seconds left and San Antonio leading 116-111.

It was two of the few defensive highlights for the Spurs.

“It’s not been great and I don’t know why,” Duncan said. “I think the effort is there. We’re playing hard. We’re giving up too many straight drives right to the rim. We’ve got find a way to kind of counter that; find a way to clean that up.”

Duncan had 13 points in the first quarter, going 6 for 9 and collecting six rebounds.

He tossed in a 2-foot jumper that gave the Spurs a 30-21 lead with 3 minutes left in the first quarter. Leonard picked up an assist on the basket, hustling in from out of bounds to tip his own missed shot to Duncan.

“We’re moving the ball and it’s gone to the post a little more,” Duncan said. “That’s where I’m a little more effective. I still haven’t gotten my shot back the way I want it. I’m just trying to be aggressive.”

Waiters’ 3 with 7 minutes left in the first half capped a 13-5 run that gave the Cavaliers a 48-44 lead.

After CJ Miles made both free throws on Popovich’s technicals, the Spurs closed the first half on a 22-11 run to take a 66-61 lead. Ginobili had eight points in the run and Duncan added seven.

Cleveland shot 61 percent from the field in the first half.

“I think they’re the best team in the league,” Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said. “I don’t know if they’re going to win it. They have the best talent and the best coach, so they have a great shot of winning another championship. I think for us, we played this game really well.”

The Spurs never trailed in the third quarter, but Livingston’s layup with 1:20 left tied the game at 90 to set up the fourth quarter.

Game notes

Varejao, who missed his 41st game, will not return after being diagnosed with a blood clot in his lung. . Splitter is the only player to appear in every game for San Antonio this season, having started 45 of 67 games. . The Spurs continue to use their D-League affiliate to develop their young reserves, sending De Colo and Aron Baynes to the Austin Toros on Friday. De Colo was recalled prior to Saturday’s game, playing 24 minutes while going 4 for 6 from the field. . San Antonio is 34-6 overall at home against Cleveland. . Ellington (ankle) played 22 minutes after being listed as a game-time decision.

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X-rays were negative.

Bryant would not speculate whether he would play Friday against the Indiana Pacers, but he left Philips Arena on Wednesday walking with a limp but without the aid of crutches.

The Lakers do not practice on Thursday. Bryant’s regiment for the day? “Compression. Ice. Django. Zero Dark Thirty. This is Forty and 1 hour of sleep. #countonwill #countonhaters. On to the next,” he tweeted.

Bryant, who had 31 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the Lakers’ 96-92 loss to Atlanta, landed awkwardly after taking a baseline jumper that would have forced overtime if it had gone in with 3.9 seconds remaining.

Bryant appeared to land on Dahntay Jones’ foot and twisted his left ankle, crumpling to the court in pain. No foul was called.

After the game, Bryant said referees need to do a better job protecting shooters from defenders who go underneath them while shooting.

“As defensive players, you can contest shots, but you can’t walk underneath players,” Bryant said. “That’s dangerous for the shooter.”

Bryant later tweeted: “#dangerousplay that should have been called. Period.”

Jones responded via Twitter: “Tape doesn’t lie. Ankle was turned on the floor after the leg kick out that knocked him off balance. I would never try to hurt the man.

He later added: “Leg kick that makes contact with a defensive player is an offense foul. Period. The nba changed that rule 2 yrs ago. Stop it!”

Bryant and Jones have a history. The Hawks’ swingman was called for a flagrant foul for tripping Bryant in Game 4 of the 2009 Western Conference finals when he played for the Denver Nuggets.

The play jogged Bryant’s memory even further than that, all the way back to Game 2 of the 2000 NBA Finals when he played just seven minutes after landing on then-Indiana Pacers guard and current ESPN NBA analyst Jalen Rose’s foot.

“He Jalen Rose’d me,” Bryant said of Jones on Wednesday night.

Rose admitted on “The Jalen Rose Show,” a podcast on ESPN.com’s Grantland Network, back in September that he purposely stepped under Bryant.

“I can’t say that it was an accident,” Rose said.

A reporter asked Bryant if he felt like Jones’ play was “deliberate.”

“I don’t ever want to put that on somebody, I really don’t,” Bryant said. “I just think players need to be made conscious of it and I think officials need to protect shooters. Period.”

Deliberate or not, Bryant was upset that Wednesday likely was the Lakers’ final game against the Hawks this season.

“I can’t get my mind past the fact that I got to wait a year to get revenge,” he said.

Jodie Meeks subbed in for Bryant with 2.6 seconds left to play after he fell to the floor, at which point Bryant approached the official on the sideline.

“He instructed (Lakers trainer) Gary (Vitti) to come out onto the court and he came out there on the court, which then takes me out of the game permanently; I can’t go back in,” Bryant said. “So that was just a miscommunication I was having a conversation with the official about.”

Lakers forward Earl Clark also suffered a sprained right ankle in the first half and did not play after exiting the game early in the third quarter. X-rays on Clark’s ankle were negative, and he is day to day.

“It didn’t swell up real big,” Clark said. “I can walk, I didn’t need crutches, so it feels pretty good. I’ll be ready to go on Friday.”

The Lakers (34-32) are a half-game ahead of the Utah Jazz (33-32) for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot.

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The trade is expected to include the Seahawks’ 2013 first-round draft choice being sent to the Vikings, sources told ESPN.

It also is contingent on Harvin agreeing to a new contract, which is expected to be finalized in the next 48 hours.

The trade agreement, contingent on Harvin passing a physical, was earlier reported by Fox Sports.

Harvin is scheduled to fly to Seattle on Monday night and will undergo his physical in next 24 hours, a source said.

The trade cannot be officially completed until Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, when the 2013 league year officially begins.

Seattle has a connection to Harvin. The team’s offensive coordinator, Darrell Bevell, held the same job with Minnesota when the Vikings drafted Harvin in 2009. Harvin also will be reunited with receiver Sidney Rice, who was his one-time teammate in Minnesota.

Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman posted a message on Twitter, welcoming Harvin to the team.

“Welcome to the Team bruh @Percy_Harvin … Happy to have ya,” he wrote.

When asked about the trade, Seahawks receiver Golden Tate, whose spot on the Seahawks’ depth chart will be altered with the addition of Harvin, told Josina Anderson that “it’s a business.”

“The Seahawks are trying to do whatever they think is necessary to put together a Super Bowl quality team. If this is one of the steps they think works to accomplish that, then that’s their choice. I don’t think it will impact any of our work habits. We are still going to grind and let the cards play out the way that they will,” he said.

Last month at the scouting combine, Vikings general manager Rick Spielman insisted he had no intent to deal the receiver, who he called a “dynamic playmaker,” and said he wouldn’t even take phone calls about a trade.

Harvin, who is entering the final year of his rookie contract, badly sprained his left ankle on Nov. 4 at Seattle last season and didn’t play again. The Vikings placed him on season-ending injured reserve a month later.

Harvin made waves last summer when he expressed unhappiness with the organization and requested a trade. By the time training camp arrived, he had simmered down. He went home to Florida for his rehabilitation after he was placed on injured reserve, but coach Leslie Frazier downplayed his absence, noting that others have chosen to do the same.

He started last season playing like a Most Valuable Player award candidate, leading the league in total yards (receiving, rushing and returning) through nine games in 2012 until he was hurt.

Harvin still led the team in receptions (62) and yards receiving (677) despite playing barely half of a season, and he had a kickoff return for a touchdown as well as 96 yards rushing and one score on the ground.

The 24-year-old Harvin has 7,168 all-purpose yards in his four-season career with 29 touchdowns (20 receiving, five return, four rushing). He also has 280 receptions in 54 career games.

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Detroit At L.A. Clippers
When: 9:30 PM ET, Sunday, March 10, 2013
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Detroit, Prime Ticket (Los Angeles)
PREDICTION: Clippers 104, Pistons 91

Oddsmakers currently have the Clippers listed as 13-point favorites versus the Pistons, while the game’s total is sitting at 199½.

Detroit got an unexpected boost off the bench from rookie Khris Middletown, who scored a season-high 14 points in the loss to Dallas. Middleton had made only four brief appearances prior to the All-Star break but has started to receive additional playing time in the past three weeks. He was 6-of-12 against the Mavericks and hit a pair of key 3-pointers. ”I have confidence in my shot, and so do my teammates, so I was going to take it when I got an open look,” Middleton said.

Last time out for Detroit, they were a 102-99 loser as they battled the Mavericks at home. The Pistons covered in the match as a 4-point underdog, while 201 combined points moved the game OVER for totals bettors.

Detroit:
Team record: 23-41 SU, 29-35 ATS
Current streak: lost 4 straight games.

is 7-2 SU in their last 9 games when playing on the road against LA Clippers
is 14-5 SU in their last 19 games when playing LA Clippers
is 2-4 ATS in their last 6 games when playing LA Clippers
is 7-15 SU in its last 22 games on the road

When playing on Sunday are 3-7
Before playing Utah are 7-3
After playing Dallas are 3-7
After a loss are 4-6

Point guard Chris Paul is closing in on a major milestone, but the focus in Los Angeles is on the health of sixth man Jamal Crawford. The team’s second-leading scorer had to sit out Thursday’s loss to the Denver Nuggets with a sprained left ankle. The team did not practice Friday and Crawford said his plan was to continue to get treatment in the hope of returning to the lineup. He is averaging 17.2 points and has led Los Angeles in scoring on 19 occasions.

Last time out for Los Angeles, they were a 107-92 loser as they battled the Nuggets on the road. The Clippers failed to cover in the match as a 4-point underdog, while 199 combined points moved the game UNDER for totals bettors.

Los Angeles:
Team record: 44-20 SU, 36-28 ATS

LA Clippers are 5-1 SU in their last 6 games when playing Detroit
LA Clippers are 19-4 SU in their last 23 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of the LA Clippers last 5 games at home
LA Clippers are 9-3 SU in their last 12 games

When playing on Sunday are 5-5
Before playing Memphis are 4-6
After playing Denver are 5-5
After a loss are 5-5

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Williams received his first set of cortisone shots prior to the start of the season in late October and received his second set in late December. Williams and the team had previously not disclosed the second set until Friday.

Even though rest is the cure, Williams said he doesn’t want to shut it down.

“I’ve gotten frustrated some nights where I can’t do anything, can’t go anywhere, and it’s frustrating and that’s how you want to think, but I can’t do that,” Williams said.

He said his ankles have been bothering him since before the Olympics, but he injured them significantly during his second day of training camp with the U.S. men’s basketball team, when he was supposedly “out of shape.”

Williams used air quotes when he said “out of shape” during his availability with reporters after Friday’s practice, likely in reference to U.S. men’s basketball president Jerry Colangelo’s comment about him “being a little overweight.”

Asked if he’s in great shape now, Williams responded, “I was in great shape then too. You can ask anybody.”

He said his left ankle is more injured than his right ankle.

Williams got his first cortisone shot to ease the inflammation in his left ankle, which was caused by a bone spur. The next day, he got another cortisone shot in his right ankle.

Williams doesn’t think the bone spur is what’s bothering him now.

“The problem was I haven’t had a break in a long time,” Williams said. “I was doing plyometrics, box jumps this summer for the first time. I lifted heavier than I’ve ever lifted, and so I think all the wear and tear is what’s caused the inflammation, and I haven’t had a break to get it out. It’s just gotten worse and worse. It didn’t feel as bad because I wasn’t playing back-to-backs and four in five nights, then we got to the season. It just kept getting worse and worse because you have less and less rest.”

Williams said playing in back-to-backs “has been really hard for me this year.”

Despite being hampered by his ankles due to constant inflammation, Williams missed just the two games prior to the All-Star break as a result. He missed a third game Dec. 26 due to a bruised right wrist. He has also been bothered by quadriceps and shoulder discomfort this season.

Williams underwent platelet-rich plasma therapy Feb. 11 and took a week off to rest. He has since returned and averaged 21.0 points and 8.5 assists in victories over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday and Wednesday night.

He said he might need offseason surgery, “but hopefully not.”

Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo, who said Thursday that Williams isn’t going to be 100 percent the rest of the season, said the team will be monitoring its point guard’s minutes closely and resting him more before the postseason.

The 28-year-old’s numbers have been down across the board. He is averaging 16.9 points and 7.6 assists on 41.5 percent shooting. He has attempted just one dunk this season — a miss — because he has no explosion due to his ankle injuries.

“It’s been tough. It’s been a struggle,” Williams said.

Williams is in the first year of a five-year, $98 million contract signed during the offseason.

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Spielman refused Friday to comment specifically on contracts. He said team officials, as always, will meet next week at the NFL scouting combine with the agents for every player. He declined to address the possibility of negotiating a new deal for Harvin.

Harvin will enter the final year of his contract in 2013.

After spraining his left ankle in November, Harvin was placed on injured reserve in December. He didn’t return to the team’s facility until his exit physical in January, but Spielman said Harvin has been cleared for full activity.

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