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Hubie Brown talks about why he quit

Hubie Brown said he stepped down as the coach of the Memphis Grizzlies for two reasons: He lost his spirit, and because of medical issues he wants to keep private.

"I need on a daily basis an energy and a stamina, and then with me it's a spirit," Brown said on Friday at a news conference. "But the key is spirit. See, the spirit is what gives you the passion on a daily basis.

"One day you wake up, you don't have that, and that's when you've got to understand that it's time you've got to walk."

Brown led Memphis to a franchise-best 50-32 record last season and its first playoff appearance. He was given medical clearance to return for his third season with the Grizzlies and had said he had no hesitation coming back.

But he announced his retirement a day after the Grizzlies fell to 5-7 with a 93-84 loss to the Seattle SuperSonics. Brown is 424-495 in the NBA and 528-559 including ABA games.

"We're going to miss this man tremendously, and more importantly, I think his footprints here ... will be hard to fill," Grizzlies president Jerry West said.

Lionel Hollins was named the team's interim coach and was with the team in Minneapolis for its game on Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Brown said his medical problem developed about three weeks ago.

"People are thinking catastrophic levels. ... We're not talking about that," Brown said, declining to be more specific. "I've had things come up that your body gives you a warning sign."

Brown, who led the Kentucky Colonels to the ABA championship in 1975, returned to coaching in 2002 after a 16-year break during which he became a TV analyst. He also coached the Atlanta Hawks from 1976-1981 and the New York Knicks from 1982-1986.

At every stop, Brown's teams won more games in his first full season than in the previous year.

Brown leaves as the winningest coach in Memphis history with an 83-85 record.

He told his team of his decision before they left for Minnesota.

"I told them you have regrets when you do this. My biggest regret is that I didn't meet them when I was in my 40s and 50s because I had more to give than I do now because I was more alert, more astute, more observant and I saw more," Brown said, "and I apologized to them because I met them too late in my life."

Lionel Hollins lost his debut as interim coach of the Grizzlies on Friday as Kevin Garnett grabbed 26 points and 15 rebounds and Latrell Sprewell added 22 points to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves over Memphis 115-90.

The Timberwolves had their highest scoring output of the season as well as a season-low nine turnovers in snapping a two-game losing streak.

"A lot of times teammates feed off the energy, and I think that was the case tonight," Sprewell said.

Mike Miller scored 19 points for Memphis, which was playing its first game following the sudden resignation of Hubie Brown. The 71-year-old coach called it quits seven months after being selected Coach of the Year, citing the rigors of day-to-day life in the league and a health issue he described as non-catastrophic.

"It's always tough when you lose the heart of your team, but that's still no excuse," Miller said. "You got to go out there and perform."

Cavaliers 98, Celtics 96

In Boston, Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 26 points, including the game-winning jumper on an assist from LeBron James with 19 seconds left to give Cleveland a win over Boston.

James, coming off a career-high 43-point effort on Wednesday night, had 20 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Cleveland, which won for the eighth time in nine games. Drew Gooden had 27 points for the Cavs.

Paul Pierce, who was fined for spitting at the Cleveland bench during an Oct. 25 exhibition game, kept his mouth closed and scored 25 for Boston. He had a chance to send the game to overtime, but James got a piece of his 10-foot jumper.

Gary Payton had 14 points and 10 assists for Boston, which has lost three in a row.

Magic 117, Hawks 99

In Atlanta, Steve Francis scored 29 points and No. 1 draft pick Dwight Howard added a career-high 24 in his homecoming as Orlando beat Atlanta.

Howard, who grew up in Atlanta and graduated from a nearby small private school, had several hundred fans sitting in club level seats behind the Magic bench as he pulled down nine rebounds in a team-high 42 minutes. He was 8-for-11 from the floor and 8-for-12 on free throws to top his previous career-high of 15 points Nov. 9 at Dallas.

Orlando has won three of four. The Hawks, led by 20 points apiece from Antoine Walker and Tony Delk, lost their fifth straight.

76ers 116, Wizards 114

In Philadelphia, Allen Iverson stole an inbound pass, drove down the court and made a layup at the buzzer to give Philadelphia an overtime victory over Washington.

Iverson finished with 28 points and 13 assists, Kyle Korver scored 26 and Marc Jackson added 21 for the Sixers, who have won two straight.

Antawn Jamison had 27 points and 15 rebounds, Gilbert Arenas scored 23 and Larry Hughes had 20 for the Wizards.

Washington, which had won three in a row, was without coach Eddie Jordan, who was hospitalized with a blood clot in his left leg and is expected to miss one more game. Assistant Mike O'Koren coached the Wizards in Jordan's absence.

Mavericks 92, Trail Blazers 83

At Dallas, Marquis Daniels had a block, a steal and three straight assists in about a two-minute span in the fourth quarter to help push Dallas over Portland and end a three-game losing streak.

Dirk Nowitzki had 23 points and 14 rebounds, his second straight double-double since missing a game with a sprained left ankle. Dampier had 11 points and 11 rebounds just two days after being held to a point in 31 minutes against San Antonio.

Howard added 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Derek Anderson had 23 points for Portland, which was coming off consecutive wins in Florida against Miami and Orlando. Randolph added 16 points, and Damon Stoudamire had 10 assists.

Pacers 82, Bobcats 77

In Indianapolis, Fred Jones scored eight of his 23 points in the final 2:30 to rally the Pacers from a six-point deficit to a win over Charlotte.

Emeka Okafor led Charlotte with 19 points and 11 rebounds, but it wasn't enough against a Pacers team that has refused to let its manpower shortage ruin a season that began with so much promise.

Austin Croshere had 23 points and 12 rebounds and Tinsley added 16 points on 4-of-12 shooting and eight rebounds. Indiana lost another player as Scot Pollard, who started and had four points and four rebounds in the first half, could not come out for the second half because of a sore back.

Pistons 78, Heat 77

In Auburn Hills, Michigan, Richard Hamilton caught an inbounds pass under the basket and banked in a short shot with 1.3 seconds left, giving Miami its first loss in nine games against Eastern Conference opponents. Udonis Haslem, who made a go-ahead basket with 7.3 seconds to go, missed a long, fadeaway jumper at the buzzer.

Richard Hamilton led the Pistons with 24 points, making all 10 of his free throw attempts. Chauncey Billups added 15. The Pistons are .500 this season and 2-2 since their brawl with the Indiana Pacers a week ago.

Spurs 89, Nuggets 75

In Denver, Tim Duncan had 23 points, 13 rebounds and six blocks to help San Antonio snap Denver's four-game winning streak.

Duncan scored 19 of his points in the first half while the Spurs were building their double-digit lead. He took advantage of the absence of Kenyon Martin, who started and played the first six minutes, but sat out the rest of the game with the flu.

Manu Ginobili, a player the Nuggets tried to sign in free agency, had 16 points and five assists for San Antonio. Tony Parker had 10 points and five assists.

Carmelo Anthony scored 24 points to lead the Nuggets, who got over the .500 mark for the first time this season with a victory over New Jersey on Tuesday.

Jazz 90, Rockets 80

In Salt Lake City, Andrei Kirilenko had 21 points and 12 rebounds and Memhet Okur shot 8-for-8 in scoring a season-high 20 points to lead Utah over Houston.

Kirilenko, playing with a renewed enthusiasm that was missing as the Jazz dropped four of their previous five games, also had three steals and four blocks. Carlos Boozer added 15 points and Gordan Giricek had 10 for the Jazz, who had 27 assists on 36 field goals.

Jim Jackson led Houston with 18 points and Tracy McGrady scored 17 for the Rockets, who have lost four of their last six games. Houston launched 28 3-point attempts, making eight, as the inside game was noticeably absent. Yao Ming had only nine points and four rebounds.

Suns 95, Hornets 86

In Phoenix, Shawn Marion had a season-high 33 points and 15 rebounds, leading Phoenix Suns on a fourth-quarter comeback over New Orleans despite the absence of Steve Nash.

The victory was Phoenix's seventh straight, its longest streak since winning seven in a row twice in 2000-2001.

Quentin Richardson and Amare Stoudemire hit big shots for the Suns in the final 2:14 as the Phoenix overcame the loss of NBA assists leader Nash, who received a concussion with 3:46 left in the second quarter.

Richardson had 21 points and Stoudemire had 14 points and 14 rebounds. Joe Johnson, who played point guard in the second half, had 13 points and seven assists.

Clippers 98, Warriors 87

In Oakland, California, Bobby Simmons scored 17 points and had a career-high 12 rebounds to help the Los Angeles Clippers beat Golden State for their second win in as many days.

Elton Brand added 17 points and Quinton Ross had 14 as the Clippers won in Oakland for the 12th time in 15 games.

Speedy Claxton scored a season-high 22 points to lead the Warriors, who split their four-game homestand. Jason Richardson added 17 points, followed by Mickael Pietrus with 16 and Troy Murphy with 13.

The two teams will meet again today in Los Angeles.

SuperSonics 92, Nets 79

In Seattle, Danny Fortson came off the bench to score a season-high 20 points, Ray Allen added 19 points, Vladimir Radmanovic scored 14 and Reggie Evans had 11 rebounds as Seattle improved the NBA's best record to 12-2 with a win over New Jersey.

Fortson, who also had eight rebounds in 22 minutes, scored 10 of his points in the fourth quarter. Fortson's play this season has been a major factor in the Sonics' turnaround from a team that won only 37 games and missed the playoffs last season.

Returning from a 5-1 road trip that included a win at New Jersey, the Sonics improved to 6-0 at home. Seattle handed the Nets their eighth consecutive defeat, their longest losing streak since a nine-game skid in November 2000.

Kings 109, Lakers 106

In Los Angeles, Peja Stojakovic scored 26 points and made four consecutive free throws in the closing seconds to lead Sacramento over the Los Angeles Lakers for its seventh straight win.

Chris Webber had 22 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists to help the Kings overcome a 40-point, 14-rebound performance by the Lakers' Kobe Bryant.

The outcome wasn't certain until the Lakers' Lamar Odom bounced a desperation 3-pointer off the backboard and rim as time expired.

Stojakovic was just 6-of-17 from the floor, but perfect from the line on 13 free throws, including four in the final 36 seconds.
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