Dirk Nowitzki scored 27 points and the Dallas Mavericks rallied from 14 points down in the second quarter to beat the Charlotte Bobcats 101-96 Thursday. Dallas won its second straight — improving to 15-0 all-time against the Bobcats — although the victories have come against lottery-bound Washington and Charlotte. Jason Terry added 18 points and Rodrigue Beaubois 14 for the Mavs, who had lost eight of their previous 11. Corey Maggette scored 21 points and Tyrus Thomas had 14 for the league-worst Bobcats (6-36). Thunder 103, Nuggets 90: Kevin Durant scored 24 points, Russell Westbrook had 23 and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the short-handed Denver Nuggets. James Harden scored 18 off the bench for the Thunder. Andre Miller had 17 to lead the Nuggets, who played the game while a trade sending Nene to Washington for JaVale McGee and Ronny Turiaf was finalized. Wizards 99, Horneets 89: John Wall had 26 points and 12 assists, and the Washington Wizards won hours after making a multiplayer deal at the NBA trade deadline over the New Orleans Hornets. Roger Mason scored 17 of his season-high 19 points in the second half to help the Wizards snap a three-game skid and win for only the 10th time this season. Chris Kaman scored 20 points for the Hornets. Other results: Utah 111, Minnesota 105 OT; Phoenix 91, LA Clippers 87. Quantity trumps quality On an NBA trading day in which quantity trumped quality, the biggest stars were regret, loyalty and savings. Dwight Howard cited loyalty in deciding to stay with the Orlando Magic. The Los Angeles Lakers proved there is no loyalty, dumping Derek Fisher — a member of five championship teams — in a money-saving move. And two recent draft busts — Jonny Flynn and Hasheem Thabeet — were traded in a single deal. But no top-flight stars were moved Thursday, making for an anticlimactic trade deadline day. Howard had been in play until he agreed not to opt out of his contract this summer. The Lakers held onto Pau Gasol, who had been shopped for weeks. The Celtics decided not to break up their championship core. Instead, the league engaged in a wild afternoon of deck-chair shuffling, moving 20 players in eight trades. The Lakers bolstered their backcourt by acquiring Ramon Sessions from Cleveland in exchange for Luke Walton, Jason Kapono and their 2012 first-round draft pick. The Lakers also acquired forward Christian Eyenga. The biggest trade in terms of volume was a three-team deal in which Denver and Washington swapped centers, with the Nuggets sending Nene to the Wizards in exchange for Javale McGee and Ronny Turiaf. As part of the deal, the Los Angeles Clippers acquired guard Nick Young from Washington, which received forward Brian Cook.
