Bucks’ Payton Takes Best Shots in Debut

Gary Payton insists it wasn’t personal, but he is definitely glad to be out of Seattle and rid of SuperSonics’ management.

At a news conference before his Milwaukee Buck debut against the Portland Trail Blazers on Saturday night at Portland, Payton was not shy about hiding his feelings for SuperSonic owner Howard Schultz, who made a veiled comment about Payton’s leadership after Thursday’s trade between Seattle and Milwaukee.

Payton ended up scoring 22 points and handing out nine assists in the Bucks’ 93-90 win.

“He just talks, that’s all he does,” Payton said of Schultz. “He just took over that team a year ago and now he knows everything about basketball. I really don’t think he knows anything about basketball.”

After the trade that sent Payton and Desmond Mason to the Bucks in exchange for Ray Allen, Kevin Ollie, Ronald Murray and a conditional 2003 draft pick, Schultz remarked that the SuperSonics now have a leader in Allen, implying Payton was not.

“I wasn’t putting anything past the Sonics people,” said Payton, who found out about the trade from reporters. “I knew they weren’t going to come to me and tell me. They made it personal, so we just had to make it back personal.” *

New Orleans 93, Detroit 91 -- Jamal Mashburn scored 29 points and made a turnaround jumper with 0.2 seconds left to give the Hornets the victory at Auburn Hills, Mich.

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Mashburn took an inbounds pass, dribbled on the right wing to run down the clock, then made a jumper over Chauncey Billups.

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San Antonio 105, Indiana 96 -- Tim Duncan scored 21 points and Tony Parker had 14 during a decisive third-quarter run at San Antonio to lead the Spurs to their 10th win in 11 games.

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Houston 93, Memphis 82 -- Cuttino Mobley scored 29 points and the Rockets, playing without guard Steve Francis who had a strained lower back, held off a late rally at Houston.

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Miami 100, Chicago 90 -- Eddie Jones returned from a four-game absence to score 23 points at Chicago and help the Heat end a three-game losing streak. Jalen Rose scored 31 points for Chicago before fouling out with 1:56 left.

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Utah 99, Denver 89 -- Karl Malone scored 20 and tied a career-high with 10 assists at Salt Lake City.