OKLAHOMA CITY -- This is what the Thunder had in mind when they picked up Caron Butler after the trade deadline. Cincinnati Reds Jerseys . The forward scored 23 points to help Oklahoma City defeat the Denver Nuggets 117-96 on Monday night. He made 10 of 19 shots in 29 minutes as a reserve and posted his highest points total since joining the team. Kevin Durant, who had 27 points and eight assists, liked what the Thunder got from the 34-year-old Butler. "Thats what we want him to do," Durant said. "He was aggressive, and thats what we need him to do for the rest of the year." Butler said it felt good to get loose. "Im just getting into a rhythm," he said. "My teammates are doing a great job of finding me in flow, and Im starting to get a little more familiar with my game and understanding where I like the ball at." Reggie Jackson had 16 points and a career-high 11 assists, and Serge Ibaka added 15 points and seven rebounds for the Thunder, who won their fourth straight. The Thunder sat point guard Russell Westbrook so he could rest his surgically repaired right knee. Westbrooks knee took a hit from Toronto guard Kyle Lowry on Friday, but tests showed no further damage was done. The Thunder have been resting Westbrook for one game of back-to-backs, and Oklahoma City plays at Dallas on Tuesday. As usual, other players filled in successfully. "You have a system thats functioning," Butler said. "The only thing guys got to do is plug into that system and play a certain style and way and give a certain type of effort, and things just continue to move forward." Jackson, who had struggled at times since Westbrook returned after the All-Star break, played one of his best games of the season. "Hes just playing free now," Durant said. "You can just tell hes not getting in his own way, you know, thinking too much mentally and hes just going out there and playing." Ty Lawson scored 25 points, Quincy Miller and Timofey Mozgov each scored 12 points, Kenneth Faried had 11 points and 11 rebounds and Randy Foye had 11 points and four assists for the Nuggets. Denver allowed the Thunder to shoot 51 per cent. "We didnt get into the ball defensively," Denver forward Darrell Arthur said. "Our communication was off." The Thunder matched their highest points total in a quarter this season, making six 3-pointers in the first to take a 41-24 lead. Oklahoma City kept the pressure on and led 72-58 at halftime. The Thunder shot 60 per cent from the field and had their highest points total in any half this season. Durant had 22 points and six assists in the first half while Ibaka scored 15. Only one Thunder player shot worse than 50 per cent in the first half. "They came out strong, and we gave them a lot of easy shots," Lawson said. "It felt like they werent working for anything. Everything was pretty much easy in the first half, I think." Oklahoma City made just six of 18 shots in the third quarter, but the Nuggets were an even worse 3-for-16, so the Thunder actually extended their lead to 90-73 by the end of the period. "We got stops on the first two possessions (of the third quarter), so we could have cut the lead down to 10," Denver coach Brian Shaw said. "Instead, we dont capitalize on those situations, and they come down and score after that and push it right back up to 18 or 20. It was just one of those kinds of nights." NOTES: Thunder C Kendrick Perkins (left groin strain) and G Thabo Sefolosha (left calf strain) are improving, but still are out. Both have missed about a month. ... Durant has scored 25 or more points in 35 consecutive games, the longest streak since Michael Jordan did it 40 consecutive times during the 1986-87 season. ... Nuggets F Wilson Chandler (left groin strain) and F Jan Vesely (left rib cage contusion) did not play. ... Thunder C Hasheem Thabeet missed the game for personal reasons. ... Oklahoma Citys Adams scored in double figures for just the third time this season. ... Thunder G Mustafa Shakur played for just the third time this season. He was NBA D-League Player of the Month in February while playing for the Tulsa 66ers. George Foster Jersey . -- The Denver Broncos locked up a shutdown cornerback, only his name wasnt Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Joey Votto Jersey . And all things considered, the first 40 games have offered a little bit of everything from a hockey club that faced many questions in its first year under new management, with a new head coach and with a number of new faces in the lineup. However, with a recent dip in scoring, it seems some of the same old questions persist and several new ones have been raised after a somewhat troubling homestand. http://www.redsgearshop.com/Reds-Matt-Harvey-Kids-Jersey/ . On Tuesday, the star questioned whether that was still the case. Speaking to reporters at a charity event, Johnson said: "I just kind of wonder sometimes: Is this still the place for me?" Johnsons comments came after he was asked why he recently skipped a voluntary minicamp.LAS VEGAS -- Former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes says Georges St-Pierre should retire for good. St-Pierre has been on hiatus since vacating his 170-pound title following a controversial win over Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks at UFC 167 last November. The 33-year-old from Montreal cited unspecified personal matters, saying he needed time away from the sport. Hendricks went on to win the welterweight crown while St-Pierre, who continues to work out, required knee surgery after an injury in training. St-Pierre has not announced his future plans other than to say that if he comes back, it wont be in 2014. Firas Zahabi, his longtime coach, told the MMAFighting website recently that he expects his fighter to return. "I think theres a lot of fire left in him," he said of St. Pierre. "Especially since he got injured now, hes probably more motivated than ever ... I think theres a lot of martial arts left in him." But Hughes, who lost the UFC title to St-Pierre at UFC 65 in November 2006, says now may be the time for St-Pierre to finish on a winning note. "The UFC would hate me saying this but Im going to say it anyway," said Hughes, now vice-president of athlete development and government relations for the UFC. "If I was GSP, Id probably hang them up. Here I am a guy that lost my (last) two fights and Id love to get back in there (to finish on a win). And Georges got his hand raised the last fight. Ken Griffey Jersey. "So if I had to give advice, Id say, You want to get out? Get out." The 40-year-old Hughes, a UFC Hall of Famer, prefaced his remarks by saying he is a fan of St. Pierre. "I like him. He always gets his hand raised and he always does it with a method. But he took a punishment with Johny Hendricks and you could tell that by his face at the (post-fight) press conference. "Hes made a lot of money. I dont know what he makes a fight, but hes made a lot of money. He made a lot more money than I have. And Im retired. So he could step back, retire. Hes got plenty of money. "And it seems like maybe hes even lost a little bit of the drive. I wish he was more wanting to go out and finish somebody nowadays. Its just like hes going out there and kind of going through the moves, so I dont think his hearts there. "He did get beat up last time. I dont know if he wants to come back and take a beating like that." If GSP was to return to the Octagon, there will be people waiting to welcome him. "Hes going to come back against a guy like Robbie Lawler, whos going to hit him. And Johny Hendricks, whos going to hit him," said Hughes. Hughes also cited St-Pierre branching out into movies like "Captain America: The Winter Soldier." "So theres not many reasons for him to come back ... You tell me whats he got to come back for?" ' ' '