Magic beat Spurs

Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 19 points.

The Spurs, down by 23 in the third quarter, used a 13-4 run to draw within six in the fourth quarter, but Nelson hit back-to-back baskets to give the Magic a cushion. Nelson scored 21 of his points in the second half.

The Magic will continue their bid for title-run credibility Saturday when they host the Los Angeles Lakers.

Noteworthy

JAZZ — Utah forward Carlos Boozer had a second MRI on a quadriceps tendon injury that has kept the All-Star out of 15 straight games. Boozer had the examination Thursday and results weren’t expected until today. He injured the tendon above his left knee Nov. 19 against Milwaukee.

On Wednesday night in New Jersey, Boozer told ESPN.com that he will definitely opt out of the final year of his contract.

GRIZZLIES — Memphis wived former All-Star Antoine Walker.

The 6-foot-9, 245-pound forward has not played this season. He was acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves in June along with the draft rights to guard O.J. Mayo and guards Greg Buckner and Marko Jaric in exchange for the draft rights to forward Kevin Love, swingman Mike Miller, forward Brian Cardinal and center Jason Collins.

76ERS — Philadelphia forward Elton Brand will be sidelined for a month because of a dislocated shoulder.

WIZARDS — Washington forward Antawn Jamison has a strained left thumb and could miss today’s game against Philadelphia.

WARRIORS — Monta Ellis has been transferred from the suspended list to the inactive list by Golden State, which waived second-round draft pick Richard Hendrix to make room on its roster.

IVERSON TRADE — The biggest trade of the season is looking a bit lopsided so far.

Allen Iverson thought he was going to a championship contender when the Nuggets sent him to Detroit for Chauncey Billups. Six weeks after the blockbuster deal, it’s his former teammates in Denver who are enjoying a resurgence while his current team is struggling on many nights to fit him in.

With Billups at the helm, Denver is off to the best start in franchise history, spawning talk that the Nuggets could reach the conference championships and maybe challenge the Lakers for Western Conference supremacy.

The Pistons are playing around .500 ball, a team of aging veterans led by a rookie coach searching for answers now that he has The Answer. Most notably: Can a player of AI’s unique skill set fit into Detroit’s ultimate team concept?

The Nuggets unequivocally loved Iverson, who helped them win 50 games last season for the first time in 20 years despite playing with a broken finger on his shooting hand.

The Pistons absolutely adored Billups, who helped them win a title and led them to the conference finals six years in a row, the longest streak in the NBA since Magic Johnson’s Showtime Lakers of the 1980s.

But it was a deal neither team could resist.

“We had what they needed and they had what we needed,” Nuggets executive Mark Warkentien said.