Coming off a resounding victory over the Lakers in which they posted the largest winning margin in franchise history, the Los Angeles Clippers had to fight to the bitter end against the Atlanta Hawks after squandering an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter. Blake Griffin had 27 points and eight rebounds, Chris Paul added 19 points - including a go-ahead layup in the final minute - and the Clippers beat the Hawks 109-108 on Saturday night for their season-high seventh straight win. But there's a lot of things we need to clean up.'' The Pacific Division leaders got 13 points and 12 rebounds from DeAndre Jordan, and 17 points from Matt Barnes on the eve of his 34th birthday. The Clippers shot 53.2 percent from the field, improving to 22-1 when shooting 50 percent or better.

On a night of celebration, there were two surprising, strange sights: LeBron James back on Cleveland's bench. Carmelo Anthony shook off a congested chest and a horrid shooting start to score 26 points, leading New York to its third straight victory, 107-97 over Cleveland on a Saturday when James was briefly reunited with the Cavaliers. Amare Stoudemire added 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Knicks, whose winning streak began after a seven-game slide and amid reports Phil Jackson may accept a job in New York's front office. Anthony missed his first six shots, but found his touch in time to help the Knicks in their late-season run at the playoffs.

Coming off their most exhilarating victory of the season, the San Antonio Spurs admitted they had a letdown against the Orlando Magic. A veteran roster enabled San Antonio to make that admission after escaping with a 121-112 victory over Orlando on Saturday night. Tony Parker scored 30 points, Manu Ginobili added 24 points and Kawhi Leonard had 17 points along with two key steals late to help the Spurs win their sixth straight. Two nights after an emotional 111-87 victory over the Miami Heat in an NBA Finals rematch, the Spurs were listless against the Southeast Division's last-place team.

The Washington Wizards hope they learned their lesson after almost blowing a 28-point lead Saturday night. Thankfully for the Wizards, they were playing the league's worst team. Bradley Beal scored 12 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, helping the Wizards hold off the Milwaukee Bucks 114-107. ''We made this game a lot harder than it should have been,'' said Washington's John Wall, who scored only nine points and missed 10 of 14 shots.

The Memphis Grizzlies turned up their offense in the second half, and the Charlotte Bobcats were too tired to keep pace. Mike Conley scored 20 points, Zach Randolph added 16 and the Grizzlies beat the Bobcats 111-89 on Saturday night. ''From a team standpoint, I think we played well,'' said reserve center Kosta Koufos, who had 11 of his 12 points in the fourth quarter and grabbed 10 boards. Defensively, (the bigs) were up on the screens, and our guards did a heck of a job in the passing lanes.'' Marc Gasol added 14 points and nine rebounds as the Grizzlies won a season-best sixth straight home game.

As the arena filled with the familiar drone of ''Zeeeeeee,'' Zydrunas Ilgauskas waved his right hand and used his left to gently pat his heart. The big man, the one who started off as a ''skinny kid from Lithuania'' and overcame injuries that would have stopped others, grappled with his emotions as he said thanks to the fans who adopted him as their own. Cleveland roared back. At 7-foot-3, Ilgauskas towered over everyone yet stayed completely down to earth.

The Utah Jazz finally found a way to win on their six-game road trip: Play a team that can't win anywhere. Gordon Hayward scored 22 points, Alec Burks added 19 and the Jazz beat Philadelphia 104-92 on Saturday night, sending the reeling 76ers to their 16th consecutive loss. ''It's a win, man,'' Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said. ''The young guys got a chance to finish a game that was close.'' Derrick Favors contributed 15 points and 14 rebounds, Enes Kanter had 13 points and 10 boards, and Diante Garrett scored 11 points for the Jazz (22-41), who snapped a five-game losing streak and completed a six-game road trip at 1-5.