Stevenson Again Sidelined by Back

Shooting guard DeShawn Stevenson sat out last night's game against the Memphis Grizzlies as he continues to be bothered by pain and stiffness in his lower back.

Stevenson previously missed 15 straight games from Jan. 2 to Jan. 28 but returned to play nearly 24 minutes at Philadelphia on Friday night and 12 minutes against the Clippers on Saturday night.

Stevenson, who has said that he would like to avoid surgery if possible, will be evaluated on a day-to-day basis. Caron Butler made his 20th start at shooting guard last night against Memphis.

"It just kind of flared up on him," interim coach Ed Tapscott said of Stevenson. "It's the kind of thing where you take two steps forward, one step back, so we want to be cautious. We have a lot of games left and we've got the all-star break coming up so we'll have that whole week in terms of helping a guy get better physically."

Butler in a Groove

In the five games before last night's, Butler averaged 22.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists. However, he also committed 28 turnovers in those five games and was averaging a career-high 3.3 turnovers on the season entering game. Last night brought more of the same: Butler had 21 points and nine rebounds, but also six turnovers. . . .

With his 11 points last night, rookie center JaVale McGee has scored in double figures in back-to-back games for the first time since Nov. 14.

Up Next Tomorrow vs. New Jersey 7 p.m. Comcast SportsNet, WTEM-980 Friday vs. Denver 8 p.m. ESPN, WTEM-980