Caron Butler

1 Wiz fizz: Caron Butler (left) and the Wizards take their third crack at a first win, this time in Milwaukee vs. the Bucks (8 p.m., Comcast SportsNet). 2 New-look Nuggets: Check out the revamped Nuggets, with Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess joining Carmelo Anthony against the host Warriors (10:30 p.m., ESPN). 3 Regional kicks: Parkville plays at Perry Hall (6 p.m.) in boys soccer for the Class 4A North region championship. 4 State sticks: Four area field hockey teams compete in state semifinal games that begin at 5 and 7 p.m. at Arundel or Broadneck.

Long after what might have been his last - or second-to-last - practice as a member of the Washington Wizards, Jordan Crawford hardly looked like a man worried about his future or prepared to distance himself from his teammates. Engaged in a shooting contest with Bradley Beal, A.J. Price, Chris Singleton, Garrett Temple and Cartier Martin, Crawford giggled and talked trash as the players attempted long jumpers near center court. But as he headed to the locker room, Crawford blew past reporters, ignoring requests to speak to him, likely aware that the line of questioning would revolve around his diminished role and the possibility that he will be dealt by today's 3 p.m. trade deadline.

WASHINGTON - - Tim Duncan scored 23 points and reserve Roger Mason Jr. added a season-high 20 to lead the San Antonio Spurs to their fifth straight victory on Saturday night, 97-86, over the Washington Wizards, who remained enveloped in a gun controversy surrounding Gilbert Arenas. Tony Parker had 12 points for the Spurs, whose winning streak matches a season high. San Antonio has won four straight on the road and nine in a row against the Wizards. Duncan's jump hook gave the Spurs an 81-80 lead with 6:21 left in the game, and he followed that with two free throws as part of a decisive 12-2 run. Caron Butler scored 24 points and Arenas added 23 for the Wizards, who have dropped four straight.

The new red, white and blue Washington Wizards opened the regular season Monday night against the New Jersey Nets — and the uniforms, logos and shiny court aren't all that fans should be interested in seeing at Verizon Center . John Wall had his first test against an elite point guard in All-Star Deron Williams, but the home opener was not a sellout, which is understandable considering the past three seasons of lottery failures for the...

1 Slow climb: UMBC can move up one spot in the America East standings, into sixth, with a victory over New Hampshire (7 p.m., MASN). 2 'Cats up: Coming off its first Big East loss, at South Florida - where tens of fans rushed the court - Marquette heads to Villanova (7:30 p.m., ESPN2). 3 ACC double dip: Comcast SportsNet-Plus has an Atlantic Coast Conference doubleheader, with Virginia-Florida State at 7 and Clemson-Boston College at 9. 4 Dagger!: Maybe Caron Butler can repeat his end-of-game heroics when the Wizards face the Hawks (7 p.m., Comcast SportsNet)

Washington... The Washington Wizards lost another game in excruciating fashion, this time failing to hold a lead in the final seconds and falling to Indiana, 114-113, on Saturday night before 13,171 at Verizon Center. The Wizards' losing streak reached four games, and they wasted a triple double by Gilbert Arenas (22 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds) and strong performances from Antwan Jamison (31 points) and Caron Butler (23 points). After Arenas missed two free throws, T.J. Ford drove to the basket and put up a shot that was blocked out of bounds as the buzzer sounded.

Antawn Jamison scored 23 points, rookie Nick Young had a career-high 22 and the host Washington Wizards used a fourth-quarter surge to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, 105-97, last night. The Wizards shot 50 percent from the field and got a much-needed lift after Saturday's disappointing home loss to the Charlotte Bobcats. The victory moved Washington, eager to hold on to sixth place in the Eastern Conference, 1 1/2 games ahead of the charging Philadelphia 76ers. Michael Redd scored 26 points and Charlie Villanueva had 24 points and 16 rebounds for the Bucks, who lost for the sixth time in seven games.

The new red, white and blue Washington Wizards opened the regular season Monday night against the New Jersey Nets — and the uniforms, logos and shiny court aren't all that fans should be interested in seeing at Verizon Center . John Wall had his first test against an elite point guard in All-Star Deron Williams, but the home opener was not a sellout, which is understandable considering the past three seasons of lottery failures for the...

Shaquille O'Neal kissed Caron Butler on the head, got a technical for hanging on the rim and thumped Andray Blatche into a knee-buckling injury. He also scored 29 points, grabbed eight rebounds and blocked three shots. Of course, a 36-year-old center playing back-to-back games at the end of a long road trip isn't much of a problem when the opponent is the new worst team in basketball. O'Neal and the Phoenix Suns wrapped up a six-game East Coast swing last night with a 103-87 win over the Washington Wizards, who suffered the indignity of falling behind the Oklahoma City Thunder to take sole possession of the NBA cellar.

Before the game, coach Eddie Jordan said of his Washington Wizards: "We don't have rhythm, we don't have harmony, we're trying to incorporate chemistry." The visiting Miami Heat seems to have the makings of all three, even though it started two rookies. The Heat beat the Wizards last night for the second time in five days. Dwyane Wade scored 19 points, leading six players in double figures in a 94-87 victory. "We would love to have a game like this where everybody is in double figures all across the board," said Wade, who also had 10 assists, six rebounds and five turnovers.

Washington traded Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday as a part of a seven-player deal, signaling the breakup of a disappointing Wizards team. The Mavericks dealt forwards Josh Howard and Drew Gooden and two other players to the Wizards. Dallas also got guard DeShawn Stevenson and cash considerations. The Wizards expected to contend for a playoff spot and instead have endured a miserable season that made it likely they would be active in slashing payroll before Thursday's trade deadline.

WASHINGTON - - Tim Duncan scored 23 points and reserve Roger Mason Jr. added a season-high 20 to lead the San Antonio Spurs to their fifth straight victory on Saturday night, 97-86, over the Washington Wizards, who remained enveloped in a gun controversy surrounding Gilbert Arenas. Tony Parker had 12 points for the Spurs, whose winning streak matches a season high. San Antonio has won four straight on the road and nine in a row against the Wizards. Duncan's jump hook gave the Spurs an 81-80 lead with 6:21 left in the game, and he followed that with two free throws as part of a decisive 12-2 run. Caron Butler scored 24 points and Arenas added 23 for the Wizards, who have dropped four straight.

Washington... The Washington Wizards lost another game in excruciating fashion, this time failing to hold a lead in the final seconds and falling to Indiana, 114-113, on Saturday night before 13,171 at Verizon Center. The Wizards' losing streak reached four games, and they wasted a triple double by Gilbert Arenas (22 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds) and strong performances from Antwan Jamison (31 points) and Caron Butler (23 points). After Arenas missed two free throws, T.J. Ford drove to the basket and put up a shot that was blocked out of bounds as the buzzer sounded.

WASHINGTON - -The Washington Wizards had taken two steps forward, then took a huge step back Saturday night at Verizon Center, forgetting all the good things that they had done to record wins over the Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat and losing, 92-76, to the Charlotte Bobcats. The Wizards (5-10) just avoided matching their season low in points with a performance that might rank just north of putrid. Caron Butler led the Wizards with 19 points and Brendan Haywood had 10 points and nine rebounds, but no one on the Wizards could be pleased with his performance.

WASHINGTON - -The Washington Wizards' fourth consecutive loss wasn't punctuated by some post-game tirade, motivational speech or a shattered fruit plate. Instead, the scattered crowd at Verizon Center serenaded the Wizards with boos for the first time this season after watching them lose to the Phoenix Suns, 102-90, in a painful exhibition in which Steve Nash had more assists than the home team. Coach Flip Saunders tried his fourth different lineup in seven games, inserting Randy Foye into the starting shooting guard spot vacated by the injured Mike Miller.

Caron Butler is expected to return from a bruised left kneecap tonight in Cleveland, and Antawn Jamison, sidelined with a right shoulder injury, will make his season debut some time in the next few weeks. But through the first three games of the season, the Washington Wizards (2-1) have shown that even without an All-Star forward or two, they can succeed through double D: depth and defense. Neither had been present much in past seasons, when injuries left the Wizards without talented veterans, and an indifference to anything other than offense shortened their win totals and had them vacationing in May. President Ernie Grunfeld addressed his team's depth by trading for Randy Foye and Mike Miller and signing Fabricio Oberto, ensuring that when new coach Flip Saunders had to "change on the fly," he wouldn't have to rely on an unprepared or unproven youngster.

Was it a walk? LeBron James wants the NBA to take a closer look at what he calls his "crab dribble." The move, James insists, does not constitute traveling. A referee disagreed yesterday. James was whistled for taking an extra step while driving for a potential tying layup with 2.3 seconds left, and his visiting Cleveland Cavaliers (27-6) lost, 80-77, to the Eastern Conference-worst Washington Wizards (7-25) despite wiping out a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter. "Bad call," said James, who had 30 points, 10 assists and six rebounds.

CHICAGO - -Whenever the Washington Wizards have struggled on the floor or dealt with a string of injuries, Antawn Jamison liked to use the phrase "Groundhog Day," a reference to the Bill Murray comedy in which Murray's character repeats the same day over and over. The Wizards are forced to start yet another season with a sidelined star after a magnetic resonance imaging Thursday revealed that Jamison would miss three to five weeks more after suffering a shoulder subluxation last week in Cleveland.

ATLANTA - - The Washington Wizards, just two games into their season, are already having their mettle tested. After losing to the Atlanta Hawks, 100-89, on Friday night, the Wizards will arrive in Washington for their home opener against the New Jersey Nets tonight with a 1-1 record and perhaps short another All-Star forward. Caron Butler was limited to 17 minutes and didn't play in the second half after suffering a bruised left knee. Butler did not speak with reporters after the game, but coach Flip Saunders said Butler might have injured himself late in the first period, when he dived to the floor to corral a rebound after Gilbert Arenas missed a layup.

CHICAGO - -Whenever the Washington Wizards have struggled on the floor or dealt with a string of injuries, Antawn Jamison liked to use the phrase "Groundhog Day," a reference to the Bill Murray comedy in which Murray's character repeats the same day over and over. The Wizards are forced to start yet another season with a sidelined star after a magnetic resonance imaging Thursday revealed that Jamison would miss three to five weeks more after suffering a shoulder subluxation last week in Cleveland.