SPURS 105, MAVERICKS 94
SAN ANTONIO -- Dirk Nowitzki said goodbye to the NBA the same way he came into the league, smoothly draining a jumper over a defender to punctuate a passionate performance.
It was only fitting that Nowitzki's final shot came against the San Antonio Spurs, a team he terrorized in the regular season and postseason. This time, however, the tears it stirred were tears of joy.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 34 points and 16 rebounds and the Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks 105-94 Wednesday night in Nowitzki's final game.
"Everybody, players, fans, coaches and staff got to witness history watching him play his last game," San Antonio Coach Gregg Popovich said. "He played a fine game, which was great. It's not surprising."
Nowitzki finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds in the finale of his storied 21-season career -- all with the Mavericks. Nowitzki announced he was retiring Tuesday night following Dallas' final home game of the season.
Wednesday's sell-out crowd cheered wildly each time Nowitzki entered the game or touched the ball and let out a collective groan when he missed a shot. He was serenaded with chants of "MVP!" throughout the game by the crowd filled with patrons wearing his No. 41 jersey.
"It was fantastic again tonight," Nowitzki said. "Felt almost like a home game, honestly."
The Spurs couldn't afford any sentimentality with playoff positioning at stake, and they didn't show any. San Antonio raced to a double-figure lead and led by as many as 22 points.
The Spurs finished seventh in the Western Conference as a result of Oklahoma City's 127-116 victory over Milwaukee. They will face second-seeded Denver in the opening round of the playoffs.
The regular-season finale turned out to be a win for everyone. San Antonio won, Nowitzki led the Mavericks in scoring and Popovich, the Spurs and San Antonio's fans got to say goodbye to the future Hall of Famer.
"He was having a lot of fun tonight, I was really happy for him," Popovich said.
NETS 113, HEAT 94
NEW YORK -- Dwyane Wade recorded one last triple-double before heading off to retirement, and Brooklyn headed to Philadelphia to take on the 76ers in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs after securing the win and the No. 6 seed.
Wade had 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in his final NBA game with close friends LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony leading the cheers from their courtside seats.
D'Angelo Russell had 21 points on seven 3-pointers for the Nets, who will face the third-seeded 76ers beginning this weekend in their first postseason appearance since 2015.
GRIZZLIES 132, WARRIORS 117
MEMPHIS -- Jevon Carter scored a career-high 32 points, Justin Holiday added 22 and Memphis beat Golden State in the teams' regular-season finale.
Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 21 points, while Klay Thompson finished with 19. Durant and Thompson, who sat out Tuesday's win at New Orleans, were the only Golden State starters to play. Both saw action only in the first half.
Golden State entered the game with its playoff position set atop of the Western Conference and sat most of its stars.
76ERS 125, BULLS 109
PHILADELPHIA -- Jonathon Simmons scored 20 points to lead Philadelphia over Chicago in the regular-season finale for both teams.
In preparation for the playoffs, the 76ers rested all five starters, and star center Joel Embiid's status for the opener is in question. The third-seeded Sixers said the 7-foot center's achy left knee may prevent him from playing in the postseason opener this weekend against sixth-seeded Brooklyn.
Walt Lemon Jr. scored 20 points to lead the Bulls, who were without Denzel Valentine, Wendell Carter Jr., Chandler Hutchison, Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen, Otto Porter Jr. and Kris Dunn.
PACERS 135, HAWKS 134
ATLANTA -- Edmond Sumner sank three free throws with three-tenths of a second remaining, lifting playoff-bound Indiana past Atlanta.
Taurean Prince's three-pointer with 1.1 seconds remaining gave Atlanta the lead, but DeAndre Bembry's foul on Sumner's last-second three-point attempt changed the game.
TJ Leaf set career highs with 28 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana.
Tyreke Evans scored 27 points and Sumner had 22 as the Pacers won despite resting most of their top scorers.
THUNDER 127, BUCKS 116
MILWAUKEE -- Russell Westbrook got his 34th triple-double of the season and Oklahoma City beat Milwaukee to lock up the sixth seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
Oklahoma City played without injured Paul George, but Westbrook, Jerami Grant and Dennis Schroder led a hot-shooting effort from 3-point range. Westbrook had 15 points, 17 assists and 11 rebounds. He moved into a tie with Magic Johnson for second place on the career triple-double list with 138. Schroder had 32 points, and Grant added a career-best 28.
MAGIC 122, HORNETS 114
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Kemba Walker scored 43 points in what may be his final game with Charlotte, a loss to Orlando that eliminated the Hornets from playoff contention.
Terrence Ross scored a season-high 35 points, Aaron Gordon added 27 and the Magic clinched the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs and will face the Toronto Raptors in the first round.
Aside from Walker's sharp shooting, nothing went right for Charlotte on the final night of the regular season. The loss also means Tony Parker's string of 17 straight playoff appearances is over.
Sports on 04/11/2019