Basketball Daily

Dwyane Wade went off for 43 points in the first meeting playing against Shaq since the trade last season.  The Phoenix Suns looked completely befuddled without their 2 time Allstar Steve Nash who sat out because of a minor injury.  The defense of Phoenix was so lax it was like a pickup game at the local Y with the Miami Heat winning an easy road game with a final score of 107-92.

Wade who is the third leading scorer this year behind Lebron James and Chris Bosh dropped in 43 points on 15 for 24 field goal shooting.  Udonis Haslem had 16 points and Daequan Cook had 15 points off the bench.  Overall the Heat had 5 players in double figures and had a team shooting percentage of 49%.  The Heat now move to 500% with 8 wins and 8 losses.

Thanksgiving night the New Orleans Hornets steal a win playing against the home team Denver Nuggets.  The Hornets capitalized on some crucial plays late in the fourth quarter when David West tips in an airball right before the shot clock expired and a miss-fumbled ball by Chris Paul ends up in the hands of Peja Stojakovic where he drains a long ball for 3 points.  This is only Denver’s third loss since Chauncey Billups joined the team.

Even though Denver lost, the team had some unsung heroes including Chris “The Birdman” Andersen who brought a spark to the team off the bench and J.R. Smith who was on fire the whole game and scored 32 points with 5 from 9 shooting beyond the stripe.

Chris Paul led the way for the Hornets with 22 points and right behind him was Rasual Butler with 19 points.  Four starters ended in double figures and their new pickup this year James Posey had 10 points off the bench.  New Orleans now go to a 9 and 5 record winning in a climactic fashion with the score ending 105-101.

The visiting Orlando Magic had their way with the defunct Washington Wizards on Thanksgiving Night.  The Magic controlled the game from the tip-off, beating down the Wizards with a final score of 105-90.  Orlando moves to a 12 and 4 record and the struggling Washington team falls to a 2 and 11 record.

The beast Dwight Howard finished with 26 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocked shots to carry his team to an easy win.  Hedu Turkoglu had 20 points and Rashard Lewis and Mickael Pietrus both had 17 points.  The high scorer off the bench was shared by JJ Redick and Courtney Lee who both had 7 points.  This was yet another great road win for the Magic on Turkey Day.