Barns

OAKLAND - Clippers forward Caron Butler did not play Wednesday night against the Golden State Warriors because of personal reasons, the team announced. Butler was not with the team but is expected to be back for the game Friday night against the Lakers at Staples Center in the Clippers' designated home game. Matt Barnes , who was averaging 10.6 points and 4.9 rebounds, started at small forward in place of Butler. Butler was averaging 10.1 points and 2.6 rebounds in 31 starts.

Bookstore chain Barnes & Noble said Friday its holiday sales look disappointing and that publisher Pearson Plc took a 5% stake in its Nook e-reader business. In a regulatory filing, the New York company said early reports indicate its holiday sales fell below expectations and its Nook unit won't meet initial projections for the fiscal year. But news that Pearson agreed to invest $89.5 million in cash into its Nook division, which values the business at $1.79 billion, sent shares of Barnes & Noble up 6.3% to $15.25 in midday trading.

Matt Barnes spent two years with the Lakers before leaving for the Clippers. The Clippers (23-6) are currently riding a 15-game win streak and Barnes is averaging 11 points a game on 50.2% shooting from the field. According to an NBA executive, one of the main reasons the Clippers have won so many in a row is "Matt Barnes is playing out of his mind. " When told of the comments, Barnes' response included a slam of ex-Lakers coach, Mike Brown. "I've been working hard these past few summers.  Last year, playing with the Lakers, I was told when I could shoot.

MILWAUKEE - The Clippers are on such a roll right now that the nine teams they've defeated in the last 21/2 weeks seem like little more than bystanders. The Milwaukee Bucks became their latest victims Saturday night, the Clippers winning handily, 111-85, at the Bradley Center. Their nine-game winning streak is the second-longest in franchise history. The franchise record is 11 consecutive victories by the Buffalo Braves during the 1974-75 season. The Clippers have won the first three games on a four-game trip, and they have scored at least 100 points in eight of the nine victories during the streak.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Just go to work like you have, Clippers Coach Vinny Del Negro told his team Wednesday night, and you just might like the results. So, as they had done while winning their seven previous games over the last two weeks, the Clippers went to work and got No. 8, defeating the Charlotte Bobcats, 100-94, Wednesday night at Time Warner Cable Arena. Afterward, Del Negro talked not only about getting 19 points each from Blake Griffin, Chris Paul and reserve Matt Barnes, but he also pointed to Jamal Crawford's eight assists, Eric Bledsoe's 13 points and eight rebounds, and Lamar Odom's nine rebounds.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - These are good times for Clippers forward Matt Barnes. He's playing on a winning team and he's playing a significant role off the bench. His 25.2 minutes per game is the third highest of his nine-year career. He's averaging 8.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. "So far, behind that Golden State season, this is the most fun I've had with the collective group of guys like this," said Barnes, who played with the Warriors in 2006-07 and 2007-08. "And we're playing good basketball.

OKLAHOMA CITY - The pain Matt Barnes felt in his dislocated left pinkie was equally as painful as how he felt after the Clippers' 117-111 overtime loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night. Barnes stepped in at small forward in place of Caron Butler, who sat out because of a strained shoulder, and he stepped up to defend All-Star forward Kevin Durant. In a game Barnes said the Clippers "felt like we should have won," he did his part by scoring 19 points, grabbing nine rebounds, getting four steals and blocking a shot.

In a move that could provide a boost to the small but growing digital comic book business, DC Comics has signed deals to sell comics through online stores owned by Apple, Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Previously, comic book readers could only buy digital copies of issues to read on tablets or other digital devices through DC's own app, or an application controlled by the company ComiXology. While graphic novels have previously been available to buy for digital devices through a variety of stores, DC is the first company to offer single comic book issues through Apple's iBookstore, Amazon's Kindle Store and Barnes & Noble's Nook Book Store.

For the first time since an exhibition game Oct. 14 in China against the Miami Heat, Lamar Odom played for the Clippers. Odom, who sat out the last five exhibition games because of a bone bruise in his left knee, checked into the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night at the start of the second quarter. Odom's first play was a block of a Zach Randolph shot. But Odom's second play immediately after the block was a turnover on the fastbreak. "He practiced the last couple of days," Clippers Coach Vinny Del Negro said.

Barnes & Noble, the country's largest bookseller, said data thieves hacked into payment devices and may have stolen customer credit and debit card information at 63 of its stores nationwide, including 20 in California. Hackers planted bugs in a single card reader at each of the stores, the company said. Customers swipe their payment cards through the machines and, if using a debit card, enter their personal identification number. Those PINs may be at risk, along with other account information, potentially giving thieves access to customers' private accounts.