German juggernaut Dirk Nowitzki scored half of his 22 points in the final six minutes, Shawn Marion added 16 and the Dallas Mavericks held off the LA Clippers for their fourth straight victory, 96-92 on Monday night.

Caron Butler scored a season-high 23 against his former team, but missed the go-ahead three-pointer in the final seconds as the Clippers completed a 4-2 road trip with their 10th consecutive loss at Dallas since April 19, 2006.

Blake Griffin added 20 points while Chris Paul contributed 16 and nine assists.

LeBron James scored 16 of his 35 points in the third quarter, Dwyane Wade had 22 and the visiting Miami Heat (22-7) matched their best start in franchise history after 29 games after bouncing the Milwaukee Bucks, 114-96.

Lou Williams came off the bench to score 23 points while Thaddeus Young added 20 and the visiting Philadelphia 76ers sent the league-worst Charlotte Bobcats (3-25) to their 15th straight loss, 98-89.

Chris Kaman collected a season-high 27 points with 13 rebounds, and the New Orleans Hornets ended an eight-game slide, with just their third win in the last 26 games after edging the visiting Utah Jazz, 86-80.

Jason Richardson led six players in double figures with 17 points, leading the Orlando Magic past the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves for the seventh straight time, 102-89.

David Lee had 28 points with 12 rebounds, Monta Ellis scored 18 and the Golden State Warriors won a season-high three in a row after snapping a seven-game slide against the visiting Phoenix Suns, 102-96.