WASHINGTON — Down went Gilbert Arenas. And with him, in all likelihood, went the Washington Wizards' hopes of achieving much of anything in the playoffs this season.
Arenas sprained his left knee in a collision with Gerald Wallace in the first quarter of Wednesday night's 108-100 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats.
Arenas, a three-time All-Star, will have an MRI exam today to determine the extent of the damage, but the recovery time from such injuries is usually measured in weeks, not days, and the Wizards have only eight games left in the regular season.
He was just standing there, settling into rebounding position as Wallace drove the baseline. When Wallace threw up an incredible, off-balance reverse layup, he crashed inadvertently into the left leg of the Wizards' guard.
The Wizards earlier this week lost All-Star forward Caron Butler to a broken his hand, and they are 2-9 this season when he doesn't play. Butler is expected to miss at least six weeks, meaning he will play again only if Washington advances deep into the playoffs.
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Wallace finished with 27 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists to lead the Bobcats.
● Nets 101, Hawks 86: In East Rutherford, N.J., backup forward Bostjan Nachbar scored 26 points, and the Nets overcame a second-quarter scoring drought to beat Atlanta.
Vince Carter added 24 points and eight assists, and Jason Kidd had 10 assists as the Nets won for the fourth time in five games. The Hawks have lost seven in a row.
Mikki Moore added 14 points and nine rebounds for New Jersey.
Former Wildcat Salim Stoudamire had 19 points, and Zaza Pachulia 18 to lead Atlanta, which was playing its 14th straight game without All-Star guard Joe Johnson (calf).
● Raptors 111, Magic 108: In Orlando, Fla., Chris Bosh scored 28 points, including five free throws down the stretch, to lift Toronto over Orlando.
Hedo Turkoglu shook off a recent shooting slump to score a career-high 37 points for the Magic, but missed a potential game-tying three-pointer.
Anthony Parker added 20 points for the Raptors, Joey Graham scored 19 and T.J. Ford had 16 points and eight assists.
● Bulls 106, Pistons 88: In Auburn Hills, Mich., Kirk Hinrich scored 29 points, Luol Deng added 22 and Chicago beat Detroit.
Ben Wallace missed the Bulls' game against his former team after going to the hospital with a sinus inflammation.
The game almost took an ugly turn with 8:12 left.
Detroit's Richard Hamilton and Chicago's Tyrus Thomas were ejected with two technical fouls while play was stopped with 8:12 left after exchanging heated words and being separated by teammates.
● 76ers 92, Knicks 90: In New York, former Wildcat Andre Iguodala scored 18 points, and blocked Stephon Marbury's potential winning three-point try, to give Philadelphia a victory over New York.
Kyle Korver added 17 points for the 76ers, who overcame Marbury's big second half. Andre Miller scored 14, including a tough jumper with 7.4 seconds to go.
Marbury scored 28 of his 30 points after halftime, helping New York turn a double-digit deficit into a nine-point lead.
● Bucks 98, Celtics 89: In Milwaukee, Earl Boykins scored 32 points to help Milwaukee snap a seven-game losing streak by beating Boston.
Boston's Paul Pierce and Milwaukee's Michael Redd both sat out because of injuries, leaving each team without its leading scorer.
The injury issues didn't stop there, with the teams dressing only nine players each before Celtics guard Delonte West left in the third quarter because of a sprained left ankle.
● Hornets 101, SuperSonics 92, OT: In Oklahoma City, Bobby Jackson scored seven of his 18 points in overtime to help New Orleans overcome its lowest-scoring fourth quarter in franchise history and defeat Seattle.
David West added 18 points and 14 rebounds, and Rasual Butler scored 16 as the Hornets had six players in double figures after losing two starters to injuries in the first half.
● Warriors 110, Rockets 99: In Houston, Jason Richardson scored 27 points, including seven three-pointers, and Golden State took advantage of Tracy McGrady's absence to beat Houston.
Baron Davis added 25 points and 10 assists for the Warriors.
● Trail Blazers 94, Jazz 89: In Portland, Ore., rookie Brandon Roy scored 25 of his season-high 29 points in the second half, and short-handed Portland held off Utah to snap a four-game losing streak.
The Jazz, which has already clinched the Northwest Division, trailed by as many as 13 points in the second half, but closed in on Portland in the final minutes.
