12-27-2019, 06:53 AM
OKLAHOMA CITY -- This is what the Thunder had in mind when they picked up Caron Butler after the trade deadline. The forward scored 23 points to help Oklahoma City defeat the Denver Nuggets 117-96 on Monday night. He made 10 of 19 shots in 29 minutes as a reserve and posted his highest points total since joining the team. Kevin Durant, who had 27 points and eight assists, liked what the Thunder got from the 34-year-old Butler. "Thats what we want him to do," Durant said. "He was aggressive, and thats what we need him to do for the rest of the year." Butler said it felt good to get loose. "Im just getting into a rhythm," he said. "My teammates are doing a great job of finding me in flow, and Im starting to get a little more familiar with my game and understanding where I like the ball at." Reggie Jackson had 16 points and a career-high 11 assists, and Serge Ibaka added 15 points and seven rebounds for the Thunder, who won their fourth straight. The Thunder sat point guard Russell Westbrook so he could rest his surgically repaired right knee. Westbrooks knee took a hit from Toronto guard Kyle Lowry on Friday, but tests showed no further damage was done. The Thunder have been resting Westbrook for one game of back-to-backs, and Oklahoma City plays at Dallas on Tuesday. As usual, other players filled in successfully. "You have a system thats functioning," Butler said. "The only thing guys got to do is plug into that system and play a certain style and way and give a certain type of effort, and things just continue to move forward." Jackson, who had struggled at times since Westbrook returned after the All-Star break, played one of his best games of the season. "Hes just playing free now," Durant said. "You can just tell hes not getting in his own way, you know, thinking too much mentally and hes just going out there and playing." Ty Lawson scored 25 points, Quincy Miller and Timofey Mozgov each scored 12 points, Kenneth Faried had 11 points and 11 rebounds and Randy Foye had 11 points and four assists for the Nuggets. Denver allowed the Thunder to shoot 51 per cent. "We didnt get into the ball defensively," Denver forward Darrell Arthur said. "Our communication was off." The Thunder matched their highest points total in a quarter this season, making six 3-pointers in the first to take a 41-24 lead. Oklahoma City kept the pressure on and led 72-58 at halftime. The Thunder shot 60 per cent from the field and had their highest points total in any half this season. Durant had 22 points and six assists in the first half while Ibaka scored 15. Only one Thunder player shot worse than 50 per cent in the first half. "They came out strong, and we gave them a lot of easy shots," Lawson said. "It felt like they werent working for anything. Everything was pretty much easy in the first half, I think." Oklahoma City made just six of 18 shots in the third quarter, but the Nuggets were an even worse 3-for-16, so the Thunder actually extended their lead to 90-73 by the end of the period. "We got stops on the first two possessions (of the third quarter), so we could have cut the lead down to 10," Denver coach Brian Shaw said. "Instead, we dont capitalize on those situations, and they come down and score after that and push it right back up to 18 or 20. It was just one of those kinds of nights." NOTES: Thunder C Kendrick Perkins (left groin strain) and G Thabo Sefolosha (left calf strain) are improving, but still are out. Both have missed about a month. ... Durant has scored 25 or more points in 35 consecutive games, the longest streak since Michael Jordan did it 40 consecutive times during the 1986-87 season. ... Nuggets F Wilson Chandler (left groin strain) and F Jan Vesely (left rib cage contusion) did not play. ... Thunder C Hasheem Thabeet missed the game for personal reasons. ... Oklahoma Citys Adams scored in double figures for just the third time this season. ... Thunder G Mustafa Shakur played for just the third time this season. He was NBA D-League Player of the Month in February while playing for the Tulsa 66ers. Air Force 1 Off White Cheap . -- Jim Furyk was 10 shots worse and right where he wanted to be Saturday in the BMW Championship. Air Force 1 Low Store .Just like old times.Only this time, just one got to enjoy a victory.James return to Miami as an opponent was a success — for the Heat, that is. Wade scored 24 of his 31 points in the first half, Luol Deng had 25 points and dogged James defensively all night, and the Heat beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 101-91 in a hyped Christmas matchup Thursday. http://www.airforce1storesale.com/fake-a...utlet.html . Mauer struck out to end the inning, with a runner on third base in the seventh on Wednesday and the Twins trailing 1-0. Everybody does this, of course, in a sport with a 30 per cent success rate at the plate long proven to be a benchmark of excellence. Air Force 1 Blue Store .J. Hardy to avoid a three-game sweep after blowing a big early lead. Odour had a leadoff single in the seventh and scored the tiebreaking run with the help of two errors by Hardy as the Rangers went on to beat the Orioles 8-6 on Thursday night. Air Force 1 High Store . DETROIT LIONS AT ATLANTA FALCONS, 9:30 AM (ET) Detroit - RB Reggie Bush, TE Eric Ebron, TE Joseph Fauria, WR Calvin Johnson, QB Kellen Moore, TE Brandon Pettigrew, OT LaAdrian Waddle Atlanta - CB Javier Arenas, DT Jonathan Babineaux, OT Cameron Bradfield, WR Freddie Martino, QB Sean Renfree, OT Jonathan Scott, LB Tyler Starr SEATTLE SEAHAWKS AT CAROLINA PANTHERS, 1:00 PM (ET) Seattle - DT Jordan Hill, CB Byron Maxwell, OT Andrew McDonald, TE Zach Miller, C Max Unger, LB Bobby Wagner, WR Bryan Walters Carolina - CB Bene Benwikere, LB Chase Blackburn, WR Philly Brown, G Amini Silatolu, G Trai Turner, RB Fozzy Whittaker, RB DeAngelo Williams HOUSTON TEXANS AT TENNESSEE TITANS, 1:00 PM (ET) Houston - OT Jeff Adams, DB Josh Aubrey, LB Brian Cushing, DB Darryl Morris, WR DeVier Posey, QB Tom Savage, LB Jeff Tarpinian Tennessee - RB Antonio Andrews, WR Kris Durham, TE Richard Gordon, DL DaQuan Jones, CB Coty Sensabaugh, OT Will Svitek, TE Taylor Thompson BALTIMORE RAVENS AT CINCINNATI BENGALS, 1:00 PM (ET) Baltimore - CB Chykie Brown, LB Arthur Brown, DL Chris Canty, TE Owen Daniels, G/C Gino Gradkowski, RB Bernard Pierce, OT Jah Reid Cincinnati - RB Rex Burkhead, DE Will Clarke, WR A. EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Matt Frattin moved to Southern California this summer with a plan. Three weeks before the Los Angeles Kings opened training camp, he found a place close to the ocean in Hermosa Beach, but he wasnt looking for surf or sand. After an up-and-down hockey career filled with arrests and accolades, the 25-year-old Frattin realized the opportunity in front of him with his new club, and he didnt want to waste a day of it. "I wanted to meet the guys as they came in (for camp), instead of meeting 25 guys at once," Frattin said. The first few days of camp have gone well for Frattin, acquired by the Kings in a summer trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Hes skating with veterans Jeff Carter and Mike Richards as the left wing of the Kings second line, getting every opportunity to earn a high-profile job with the two-time Western Conference finalists. "Ever since I got traded, Ive had a warm welcome from the leaders in the room," Frattin said. "Theyre a great group of guys, and Im happy to be here." Frattin announced his arrival Tuesday night with a goal and two assists in the Kings 6-0 rout of the Anaheim Ducks. Carter had two goals and an assist of his own, including a breakaway goal set up by a deflection off Frattins stick. Frattin has shown a good-looking shot and above-average speed in his brief time in town, but the Kings hope hes got the heart of a grinder who could do much of the dirty work on the Carter-Richards line. Frattin knows he must improve his defensive commitment to win coach Darryl Sutters approval. "If he wants to play with them guys, hes got to be a real north-south, energy sort of guy," Sutter said after seeing Frattin in a game for the first time Tuesday. "Well give him power-play time, give him some penalty-kill time. Make him work." For all of their veteran depth, the Kings are seriously short of proven left wings this fall beyond captain Dustin Brown. Grinder Kyle Clifford andd newcomer Daniel Carcillo also play the position, but Frattins skills could make him the best option for the second-line job.dddddddddddd. So far, Frattin isnt star-struck playing alongside two high-scoring Stanley Cup champions. "Theyre two great players," Frattin said. "Carts has the fast speed down the wing, and hes got that long reach, and he has a great shot. Richie is just a smart, hard-working guy, and hell get you the puck if youre wheeling. ... Theyre guys who have played in the Olympics and for Team Canada plenty of times, so theyve definitely proven themselves. They definitely bring me along, and theyre great linemates for me." Los Angeles also got goalie Ben Scrivens and a second-round draft pick for goalie Jonathan Bernier, widely considered a future star. Some Kings fans thought the franchise didnt get enough for Bernier, but Frattin believes he has potential he still hasnt reached. The Alberta native played collegiately at North Dakota, but was kicked off the team and sent home in 2009 after getting arrested twice in two months for disorderly conduct and drunk driving. He elected to stick with school, working his way back onto the North Dakota roster and eventually becoming a Hobey Baker Award finalist. Torontos fourth-round pick went pro in 2011, but still hasnt played a full NHL season, bouncing between the Leafs and the AHL Marlies during each of the past two years. He still found a regular role on the right side of Torontos third line, and he got his first taste of playoff hockey in the Leafs agonizing first-round loss to the Boston Bruins. Frattin hasnt completely made the transition to West Coast life: His Twitter page background is still a photo of him in a Maple Leafs uniform. The move to Los Angeles surprised him, but Frattin quickly realized the opportunity he had been granted. "I really didnt think I was going to get traded," he said. "But everybody wants to be a part of a winning team." ' ' '