Three good things happened to the Jazz during their just-completed five-game swing through the Eastern Conference.

8 is enough: Iverson, Pistons stop Cavs’ streak
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T-Mac practices day after re-injuring knee
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier practiced with the team for the first time on Tuesday, but Ron Artest and Yao Ming skipped the workout after leaving Monday’s win over Oklahoma City with sprained ankles. Tracy McGrady also practiced Tuesday after re-aggravating his sore left knee in Monday’s game. McGrady was going to have an MRI on the knee, but decided with team officials that the test was unnecessary and practiced instead.NBA/~4/457757518″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

The Jazz talked before the season about being an improved road team, but it hasn’t worked out that way yet. They returned home from a 1-4 road trip and beat Phoenix 109-97 on Monday to improve to 5-0 at home.

They will have the chance to win a sixth consecutive home game Wednesday against Milwaukee, which will be arriving from Denver to play the second game of a back-to-back set. Former Utah Ute Andrew Bogut is averaging 11.2 points for the Bucks this season.

The true test for the Jazz won’t come until they head out again on the road, on a trip Friday and Saturday to San Antonio and Memphis. The Jazz haven’t beaten the Spurs in San Antonio since February 1999, a span of 21 games.

“Somehow we’ve got to bottle it up and take it with us,” Carlos Boozer said.

Prior sins
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Utah Jazz: Okur back from trip to Turkey

Jazz center Mehmet Okur arrived back in Salt Lake City on Sunday from Istanbul, nearly one week after he left the team to be with his ailing father.

KG suspended 1 game; Shaq fined $25K
Boston Celtics star Kevin Garnett has been suspended for one game and Phoenix center Shaquille O’Neal has been fined $25,000 for separate incidents over the weekend. Garnett was penalized for hitting Milwaukee’s Andrew Bogut in the face near the end of Saturday’s game. Garnett will sit out Tuesday night when the Celtics host the New York Knicks. O’Neal was fined for verbally abusing an official and failing to leave the court quickly after being ejected Sunday night against Detroit.NBA/~4/456550686″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

Clippers have problems all over
What’s wrong with the Clippers? Where do you want to start? Charley Rosen takes aim at a truly dysfunctional team.NBA/~4/457241045″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

It’s been a rough stretch for Mark Cuban
The Mavs stink. MLB is blackballing him. And the SEC is on his case. Kevin Hench is almost sorry for billionaire Mark Cuban. Almost.NBA/~4/456564579″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

Jazz G Williams, C Okur likely to miss game Monday (PA SportsTicker)
The Utah Jazz likely will be without guard Deron Williams and center Mehmet Okur in Monday night’s game against the Phoenix Suns.

Celtics, others may be interested in Marbury
NBA Player’s Association attorney Hal Biagas is expected to resume Stephon Marbury buyout talks with Knicks president Donnie Walsh Wednesday or Thursday, with a possibility of a formal proposal coming by week’s end, according to a person familiar with the situation.NBA/~4/457716707″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

NBA Power Poll: Ranking teams, sizing up rookies (SportingNews.com)
After Anthony Morrow put up 37 points in his first start for the Warriors, it only seemed right to take a closer look at the rookies in this week’s Power Poll.

Lopez looking like a keeper so far
Brook Lopez’s first start caught Peter Vecsey’s eye. And the GMs who passed up on the Stanford star probably noticed, too.NBA/~4/455032780″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

Suns hammer Pistons without Shaq
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BDL NBA Power Rankings: Shattered dreams, broken promises (Yahoo! Sports)
The BDL NBA Power Rankings combine two parts Chivas Regal with one part flippant observation to create the most…

Grizzlies ragged now but they have a future
O.J. Mayo and the Grizzlies are frustrating to watch at times, but more experience will solve many problems, Charley Rosen says.NBA/~4/454023694″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

Williams, Kirilenko head Jazz injury list (AP)
The Utah Jazz were without Deron Williams and three other key players Saturday night against Cleveland. Forwards Andrei Kirilenko and Matt Harpring, and center Mehmet Okur all missed the game, leaving coach Jerry Sloan with depleted options as the team ended its five-game Eastern trip. Williams, one of the top point guards in the NBA, is out with a sprained left ankle, an injury he sustained in the…

James leads Cavs past short-handed Jazz, 105-93 (AP)

LeBron James calls the fourth quarter “winning time.” The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar proved that yet again Saturday night. James scored 16 of his 38 points in the final period, leading a second-half rally that gave the Cavaliers their seventh straight victory, 105-93 over the short-handed Utah Jazz.

Utah Jazz: An original member of the 2004 expansion team, he still makes his home in Charlotte

Utah Jazz guard Brevin Knight raises his arm and gets a pat on the head after fouling Los Angeles Clippers forward Tim Thomas, right, during the first half of their NBA basketball game, Monday, Nov.

Love that home cookin’

Cavaliers look to stay perfect at home against Carlos Boozer and the Jazz. Tipoff w/ Tait @ 7:30 on WTAM 1100 With their offense clicking behind their superstar, the Cleveland Cavaliers are perfect through five …

James leads Cavs past short-handed Jazz, 105-93 (AP)

LeBron James scored 38 points, leading a second-half rally that gave the Cleveland Cavaliers their seventh straight victory, 105-93 over the short-handed Utah Jazz on Saturday night. Mo Williams added 20 points for the Cavaliers, including a 3-pointer and a layup midway through the fourth quarter that pushed Cleveland’s lead to 95-84, its biggest since the first quarter.

Special Report: An exclusive conversation with Larry H. Miller

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Larry Miller has a new goal. He wants to walk by Christmas.

LeBron plays Jazz for 38 points to lift Cavaliers
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Suicide lines: LeBron’s iPod, Hunter’s D, Billups’ tears … (Yahoo! Sports)
Each weekday morning, BDL serves up a handful of NBA-related stories to digest with your cold toast.

NBA Notebook

JAZZ: Utah point guard Deron Williams was sidelined again for Friday’s game against Charlotte, as coach Jerry Sloan acknowledged they brought him back too soon from a left ankle injury.

Kobe, Lakers suffer first loss
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Martin fined $20,000 for actions after ejection
Denver Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin was fined $20,000 by the NBA on Saturday for his actions after being ejected from a game. Martin was penalized for verbal abuse of an official and failure to leave the court in a timely manner following an ejection in a loss at Cleveland on Thursday. Martin was thrown out following a flagrant foul for slamming his shoulder into Cleveland forward Anderson Varejao.NBA/~4/454465918″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

Power Poll: Point guard play makes big difference (SportingNews.com)
Mo Williams has upgraded the Cavaliers‘ offense and moved the team into the top 5 of this week’s poll.

Down 26, Sixers storm back to surprise Pacers
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Sloan has high hopes for talented Jazz team

Jerry Sloan has won more than 1,000 games in over 20 seasons in Utah, so he’s had plenty of good teams.

Bobcats snap 2-game skid, beat Jazz 104-96 (AP)

Larry Brown and Jerry Sloan have combined for more than 2,000 NBA victories. On Friday night they both had to work hard searching for the right lineups because of key injuries. In the end it was the well-traveled Brown, now in Charlotte, who edged the permanent fixture on Utah’s bench. With Raymond Felton scoring 23 points, Gerald Wallace adding 22 and Adam Morrison leading an effective band of…

Coach Jerry Sloan one win away from 1,000 with Utah Jazz

Utah’s Jerry Sloan can become the first NBA coach to win 1,000 games with the same team when the Jazz host Oklahoma City on Friday night.

Special Report: An exclusive conversation with Larry H. Miller

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Larry Miller has a new goal. He wants to walk by Christmas.

Nuggets pull away from Celtics in fourth quarter
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Jazz Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

Deron Williams missed only six games with a sprained left ankle, but the Jazz still have to re-adjust to life with their second-team all-NBA point guard.

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan admitted as much after watching his team struggle in a 95-87 loss to Washington on Wednesday. Williams estimated he is playing at only about 80 percent and struggled to penetrate and push the ball against the Wizards.

“Everybody else has (gotten) used to playing with him and (gotten) used to what he does and how he plays,” Sloan said. “We have to be patient with that as well.”

Williams still finished with eight points, seven assists and six rebounds against the Wizards. But his ankle grew stiff as he rested on the bench to start the fourth quarter and he wished afterward he had spoken up…

Quietly dominant, Howard will make noise
Dwight Howard might be mild-mannered, but the young Magic center is poised to break into superstardom, Mike Kahn says.NBA/~4/453175231″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

Bobcats welcome Jazz to Charlotte

The Utah Jazz are battling through a rough road trip and will try to get back on track tonight against the Charlotte Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Deron Williams missed only six games with a sprained left ankle, but the Jazz still have to re-adjust to life with their second-team all-NBA point guard.

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan admitted as much after watching his team struggle in a 95-87 loss to Washington on Wednesday. Williams estimated he is playing at only about 80 percent and struggled to penetrate and push the ball against the Wizards.

“Everybody else has (gotten) used to playing with him and (gotten) used to what he does and how he plays,” Sloan said. “We have to be patient with that as well.”

Williams still finished with eight points, seven assists and six rebounds against the Wizards. But his ankle grew stiff as he rested on the bench to start the fourth quarter and he wished afterward he had spoken up…

NBA fines Theus $25K for ‘ridiculous’ comment
The NBA has fined Sacramento Kings coach Reggie Theus $25,000 for comments he made about the officiating following a loss to Detroit. The league also penalized the Kings $25,000 Thursday for Theus’ actions. Theus said it was “ridiculous” that the Pistons took 36 fouls shots to just 17 for the Kings in Detroit’s 100-92 victory in Sacramento on Tuesday.NBA/~4/452181681″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

NBA’s most dominant force? Injuries
The list of the NBA’s walking wounded grows by the day. Randy Hill looks at who’s been hit worst by an abundance of early injuries.NBA/~4/452007863″ height=”1″ width=”1″/>

JERRY SLOAN became an NBA coach with the Chicago Bulls in 1979-80. “I thought I’d last a couple days, but it was exciting doing it,” he said.

Jazz G Williams returns vs. Sixers (PA SportsTicker)
PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) - Utah Jazz guard Deron Williams returned to the lineup for Tuesday’s 93-80 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Kobe, Lakers surge to 6-0 start
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Hawks improve to 6-0
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