With 23 seconds remaining in the half, Toronto forward Morris Peterson was called for a technical for arguing with officials. Carter then patted him on the cheek as if to say to his former teammate, "Don't sweat it."
Peterson, Toronto's third-leading scorer, responded by reaching out and swatting Carter on the forehead. The referee Steve Javie saw only Peterson's swipe and ejected him. Peterson had to be restrained by his teammates; he ripped off his jersey and threw it into the stands as he left the court.
"It's just unfortunate," Peterson said. "I couldn't be out there in the fourth quarter. I probably could have made a difference."
Carter said he would pay Peterson's fine.
"I felt bad," Carter said. "It was far from what they assumed it to be."
Knicks 120, SuperSonics 116
In New York, Stephon Marbury had 23 points and 15 assists, the final one setting up rookie David Lee for the tiebreaking basket with 21 seconds left, and New York beat Seattle for its season-high third straight win.
Maurice Taylor also scored 23 points and Eddy Curry added 22 for the Knicks, who erased a 12-point first-half deficit. Nate Robinson finished with 17 points.
Seattle had a chance to tie, but Luke Ridnour missed two free throws with 9.8 seconds remaining.
Vladimir Radmanovic had an NBA career-high 30 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter. Ray Allen scored 33 for the Sonics, who fell to 1-2 since firing Bob Weiss and replacing him with former Knicks coach Bob Hill.
Nuggets 92, Rockets 90
In Houston, Denver's Carmelo Anthony hit a baseline jumper with a second left to give the Nuggets a victory over the already injury-depleted Rockets.
Houston's Tracy McGrady missed a long jumper in the final seconds of the first half, then crumpled to the floor, grabbing his back and screaming in pain as the buzzer sounded. He had missed eight games earlier this season with back spasms and the Rockets lost them all.
Earl Watson scored 20 and Anthony finished with 19 for the Nuggets, who played most of the final three quarters without Kenyon Martin, who strained his back.
Rafer Alston scored a season-high 24 for Houston.
Heat 118, Trail Blazers 89
In Portland, Oregon, Dwyane Wade scored 31 points and Jason Williams added 20 to lead Miami over the Trail Blazers.
The pair sat out the Heat's 111-93 loss at Phoenix on Friday night with injuries. Wade had a bruised left shin, while Williams suffered from right knee tendinitis.
Ruben Patterson scored 16 points to lead the Blazers, who have lost six straight.
Pacers 108, Kings 83
In Sacramento, California, Stephen Jackson scored 17 of his 31 points while hitting five 3-pointers in the third quarter, and Jermaine O'Neal had 12 points and eight rebounds in his return to Indiana's lineup.
Fred Jones scored 18 points for the Pacers, who hit 13 3-pointers and cruised to their second straight victory on a tough road trip thanks to two prolonged runs in the middle quarters. Jackson hit four consecutive 3-pointers during a decisive run in the third, when Indiana guaranteed it would snap a six-game losing streak against the Kings.
Kenny Thomas had 21 points for the injury-depleted Kings.
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