Corbin seeks stability as Jazz coach

New Utah Jazz coach Ty Corbin acknowledged his head was still spinning from Jerry Sloan's shocking resignation yet expressed confidence that the team and star guard Deron Williams were moving forward together.

"Right now, the guys' heads are spinning like mine is and we've got to find some way to get some stability through the game [last night with Phoenix] and the next couple of games," said the 48-year-old Corbin, who was chosen as Utah's head coach Thursday. "Then maybe we can catch our breath a little bit."

Williams, meanwhile, was doing his best to squelch speculation that he forced out the 68-year-old Sloan. But he acknowledged having a halftime argument Wednesday night with Sloan in a 91-86 loss to Chicago.

"Maybe arguing was the last straw, so there I am, guilty of that," Williams said. "But I think anybody who believes I could force coach Sloan to resign is crazy. He's stronger than that and personally if I said that to him, he'd probably go tell me to go do something."

Williams laughed at the thought; earlier he admitted the rumors were not funny.

"Never once did I say, 'It's me or him,' '' Williams said. "That didn't happen. I haven't even had a meeting with any of our management this year. So where all this stuff is coming from I have no clue."

Meanwhile, former Jazz great Karl Malone said the Jerry Sloan he knows would never quit and suggested that the only thing his longtime coach tired of was the garbage that came with the job.

A Jazz assistant for seven seasons, Corbin said his message to the players was simple.

"Status quo," he said. "We're a good team. We're expected to win. We've got to get back to work and get past this adjustment process as soon as we can.

"The guys are fragile right now, so you don't want to shake things up too much before we get through the adjustment process. I'm not going to say I'm not going to make mistakes. But I'll do my best and move on and learn from them."

* The Detroit Pistons plan to retire Dennis Rodman's No. 10 during a halftime ceremony on April 1.

Also, Pistons owner Karen Davidson confirmed she is in negotiations with California billionaire Tom Gores, who is interested in buying the struggling franchise. Gores is a native of Michigan and has a degree from Michigan State but now lives in Beverly Hills. He founded Platinum Equity in 1995 and Forbes last year estimated his net worth at $2.4 billion.

* New Orleans star Chris Paul has been fined $15,000 for verbal abuse of a game official following Wednesday's loss to the New Jersey Nets.

* At Cleveland, nearly 2 months after it started, the Cavaliers stopped their NBA-record losing streak at 26 games with a 126-119 overtime win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Antawn Jamison scored 35 points and made the game's biggest basket, a three-pointer with 22 seconds left in OT for the Cavs. J.J. Hickson added 27 points and 14 rebounds.

* At New York, Kobe Bryant scored 33 points and the Los Angeles Lakers cruised to a 113-96 victory over the Knicks.

* At Orlando, Willie Green had 24 points and David West added 17 points and 17 rebounds as the New Orleans Hornets rallied to beat the Magic, 99-93.

* At Charlotte, Brook Lopez had 31 points and 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season, and the New Jersey Nets held off the sluggish Bobcats 94-89 to snap a 12-game road losing streak.

* At Toronto, LaMarcus Aldridge scored 14 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter, Rudy Fernandez had 23 and the Portland Trail Blazers beat the Raptors, 102-96.

* At Auburn Hills, Mich., Dwyane Wade scored 24 points and LeBron James added 16 points and 10 assists, helping the streaking Miami Heat take over first place in the Eastern Conference with a 106-92 win over the Detroit Pistons.

* At Indianapolis, Dahntay Jones scored 17 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, and the Indiana Pacers rallied to win for the sixth time in seven games under interim coach Frank Vogel, 116-105, over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

* At Memphis, Mike Conley had 23 points and eight assists as the Grizzlies beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 89-86.