Shaquille O'Neal promised to bring a championship to Miami. And although it's way too early to be thinking about titles, he can't wait to show off his new team to his old Western Conference rivals.
O'Neal had a season-high 20 points Tuesday to help Miami beat Washington 103-93 and move to 4-0 for the first time in franchise history. Any win is nice, of course, but beating the Wizards twice, Cleveland and New Jersey hardly proves the Heat are true contenders.
PHOTO: AP
A pair of tests await Miami later this week, with Dallas visiting Thursday and then a game Friday at San Antonio.
PHOTO: EPA
O'Neal, who was traded to Miami by the Los Angeles Lakers in the summer, seems eager to face the likes of Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan again.
"We have some teams coming up that are tough to play," O'Neal said. "They shoot the ball well, so we are really going to have to play good defense against those guys. When we do what we are supposed to do, though, I always love our chances -- -- against any other team."
The Heat started 0-7 a year ago. Now, after trading with Lakers for the 11-time All-Star, Miami is one of only four unbeaten NBA teams; Indiana, Utah and Phoenix are also 4-0.
O'Neal did a little of everything Tuesday, finishing with nine rebounds, four assists, three blocks and nine turnovers as Miami won a team-record 14th straight regular-season home game.
"They give it to the big fella, and he makes it easy for them," Wizards center Brendan Haywood said.
Dwayne Wade continued his strong start, too, with 22 points and nine assists, and Udonis Haslem chipped in with 18 points and 10 rebounds for Miami.
"We're still learning each other," Heat guard Eddie Jones said. "It's a great thing when you're winning and you're continuing to learn about each other. What happens when we get it all together, that's what you're trying to get to."
Gilbert Arenas scored 20 points for Washington, and Antawn Jamison finished with 14, well off the 27.3-point average he carried into the game.
Washington made only 43.2 percent of its shots and committed 20 turnovers.
"We were bad on offense," Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said. "We couldn't make a shot, couldn't make a play."
With O'Neal, the Heat haven't had any of those problems.
Miami is averaging 103.3 points and shooting 51.5 percent from the field. And Wade, benefiting in large part from the attention teams must give O'Neal, is averaging 27 points, on 57.4 percent shooting, and eight assists.
O'Neal's numbers are down, 16.5 points and 7.8 rebounds are well off his career averages. But as long as the Heat are winning, he says he doesn't mind.
"When I get the ball, the other team is going to have to do one of two things: Either come double, or watch and see what I do," O'Neal said.
Damon Jones added 12 points, all on 3-pointers, for Miami, which led by 29 points with 9:14 remaining, but was outscored 28-9 the rest of the way.
Magic 94, Mavericks 84
In Orlando, Grant Hill scored 17 points and had nine rebounds, and Steve Francis nearly posted a triple-double for Orlando.
Francis had 16 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, Hedo Turkoglu had 19 points in a reserve role, and rookie Dwight Howard added 15 points and 11 rebounds for Orlando.
Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 20 points, but made only five of 16 shots from the field. Dallas (4-1) shot just 29 percent (28 of 96) from the field.
The Mavericks lost shooting guard Michael Finley to a sprained ankle in the third quarter. He is listed as day to day after a collision with Orlando's Hedo Turkoglu.
Nets 64, Trail Blazers 60
In New Jersey, Alonzo Mourning scored 14 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and the Nets found some late offense to beat Portland in what was nearly the lowest scoring game in modern NBA history.
The 124-point total was only five off the previous record for combined scoring futility. Boston beat Milwaukee 62-57 in a game at Providence, Rhode Island, in 1955, the first year of the NBA's 24-second clock. Portland's Zach Randolph led all scorers with 16 points.
Brian Scalabrine and Zoran Planinic added 12 points apiece for New Jersey, which won despite making only 25 baskets.
Knicks 96, 76ers 88
In New York, Jamal Crawford scored 22 points, Stephon Marbury had 13 points and 12 assists and Nazr Mohammed scored 18 to help New York win its first game of the season.
Trevor Ariza, a 19-year-old second-round draft pick from UCLA, finished with 14 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
Allen Iverson led Philadelphia with 29 points and 10 assists but committed nine of the Sixers' 28 turnovers. Andre Iguodala added 13 points and Willie Green 12.
Ariza played a big part in the win, scoring eight consecutive points during a first-half run that broke the game open.
Cavaliers 93, Hawks 79
In Atlanta, LeBron James scored 25 points, equaling the Hawks' entire output in the second half.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 27 points to help Cleveland win for the first time this season. Atlanta dropped to 0-4.
Antoine Walker led Atlanta with 22 points. Al Harrington added 14.
The Hawks got off to a good start with 31 first-quarter points and settled for a 54-52 halftime lead. Then, they scored 14 points in the third and only 11 in the fourth as Cleveland turned it into a rout.
The game was tied at 58 before James took control midway through the third quarter.
James made Atlanta's Boris Diaw pay for a turnover with a breakaway dunk. Harrington answered for the Hawks before a baseline basket by Jeff McInnis gave Cleveland the lead for good at 62-60.
James then stole a Kevin Willis pass and scored on a reverse jam. James' 3-pointer with 3:54 left in the period pushed Cleveland's lead to 67-62.
Pacers 102, Timberwolves 101
In Minneapolis, Jermaine O'Neal had 22 points and eight rebounds to help Indiana hold off Minnesota.
Minnesota missed two late chances to win. Kevin Garnett's turnaround jumper fell short with 5 seconds left, but the Timberwolves retained possession after the ball went out of bounds. Latrell Sprewell couldn't convert his 23-footer from the wing as the buzzer sounded.
Garnett had 22 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists for Minnesota. Sprewell had 21 points and Wally Szczerbiak added 20.
Stephen Jackson had 21 points and six rebounds for Indiana, who played without Ron Artest. He was bothered by a sore knee during the preseason.
Suns 94, Bulls 74
In Chicago, Amare Stoudemire had 26 points and a season-high 15 rebounds to lead four Suns players in double figures as Phoenix routed Chicago for its fourth straight win.
Shawn Marion also had a double-double, finishing with 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Steve Nash came close with 12 assists and eight points. Joe Johnson had 20 points and Chicago native Quentin Richardson added 16.
The Suns, who lead the NBA in scoring, have won all of their games by double digits. Their 4-0 start is their best since they went 5-0 to begin the 1984-1985 season.
Rookie Luol Deng led Chicago with 18 points.
Lakers 106, Hornets 98
In New Orleans, Kobe Bryant scored 31 points -- including 14-of-14 from the foul line -- to lead Los Angeles past New Orleans.
The Hornets trailed by 33 points in the third quarter but outscored the Lakers 42-19 in the fourth to make it close.
Caron Butler added 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting. Baron Davis led New Orleans with 23 points.
Rockets 90, Grizzlies 87
In Houston, Tracy McGrady left in the third quarter with a hip injury, as Houston hung on beat the winless Memphis.
McGrady strained his right hip and said he wasn't sure if he would be able to play Thursday against Minnesota. He finished with 12 points, seven assists and six rebounds.
Juwan Howard scored 20 points and Yao Ming added 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Rockets.
Stromile Swift led the Grizzlies with 18 points.
SuperSonics 108, Nuggets 88
In Denver, Ray Allen scored 30 points to help Seattle prolong Denver's early-season misery.
Rashard Lewis scored 27 points, Luke Ridnour had 11 assists, and the Sonics, not viewed by many as a playoff team this year, improved to a surprising 3-1.
Carmelo Anthony scored 20 points for the Nuggets, who fell to 1-4 with the NBA champion Detroit Pistons coming to town next.
Andre Miller had 18 for Denver before he and Antonio Daniels were ejected for a minor scuffle late in the fourth quarter.
Kings 108, Raptors 92
In Sacramento, California, Chris Webber had a triple-double to help Sacramento win its first game of the season and hand Toronto its first loss.
Webber had 21 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists -- his 18th career triple-double -- and Brad Miller had 21 points and 12 rebounds for the Kings, who were back in vintage form after opening with three road losses in Texas.
Jalen Rose and Rafer Alston scored 15 points each for the Raptors, who opened a six-game West Coast road trip after winning their first three games at home.
The NBA suspended Milwaukee Bucks forward Marcus Fizer on Tuesday for one game following his guilty plea on a gun charge.
Fizer, who signed with the Bucks last Thursday, is currently on the injured list with a knee injury and out four to six weeks. He will serve the suspension when he is healthy enough to play.
The former Chicago Bulls player pleaded guilty in August to carrying a loaded handgun in his car. Fizer was sentenced to a year's probation and fined US$2,500.
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