Brooklyn Nets fire coach Avery Johnson
Nets coach Avery Johnson was fired Thursday, his team having lost 10 of 13 games after a strong start to its first season in Brooklyn.
Nets coach Avery Johnson was fired Thursday, his team having lost 10 of 13 games after a strong start to its first season in Brooklyn.
"We don't have the same fire now that we did when we were 11-4," general manager Billy King said during a news conference in East Rutherford, N.J.
Assistant P.J. Carlesimo will coach the Nets (14-14) on an interim basis. King would not comment on a report that the team planned to contact former Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
Johnson was in the final year of a three-year, $12 million contract. "I didn't see this coming," he said.
Thunder win in OT
Kevin Durant scored 40 points, and Russell Westbrook added eight of his 16 points in overtime as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat Dallas, 111-105, for their 11th straight win at home.
Wade suspended
The NBA suspended Miami guard Dwyane Wade for one game without pay for flailing his leg and making contact with the groin of Charlotte's Ramon Sessions in Wednesday's game.
Howard fined
The NBA fined Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard $35,000 for a flagrant foul against the Nuggets' Kenneth Faried on Wednesday. The Nuggets overcame Kobe Bryant's 40-point effort to win, 126-114. And an MRI revealed that the Lakers' Pau Gasol has plantar fasciitis in his right foot.
- Associated Press