After making a trade with Phoenix for Boris Diaw and Raja Bell on Dec. 11, the Bobcats (11-19) appear to be turning things around.

Charlotte still has the third-worst record in the East, but defeated New Jersey 95-87 on Friday to improve to 4-1 after dropping a season-high seven in a row.

Raymond Felton scored 22 points, while Diaw finished with 16 and eight rebounds. They both hit clutch baskets down the stretch.

"The play was just there," said Diaw, who added a team-high seven assists. "Everybody on the floor should be able to do that and score any time. We have confidence in each other and we play together. We feel like we are playing pretty good right now."

The Bobcats' offense has been a big part of their recent turnaround, as they're averaging 100.0 points in their last five games after scoring 87.1 points during their skid. The Nets (14-15), meanwhile, are allowing an average of 105.5 points on 52.1 percent shooting in their last four games.

Emeka Okafor had another solid outing on Friday, finishing with 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting with nine rebounds and two blocks. Okafor has scored at least 20 in four of his last five games after having just three 20-point games in his first 25 contests of the season.

"We're starting to play more and more team ball and the wins are coming," Okafor said. "This is definitely encouraging. We had some decent stretches where we played well, and had a couple of breakdowns, where we were tested and they came back within striking distance. But we were able to keep our resolve and win the game."

The Bobcats improved to 4-12 all-time against the Nets, but have never defeated New Jersey twice in a single season.

New Jersey fell for the seventh time in 10 games, and has dropped six of its last seven at the Izod Center. The Nets now will try to avoid falling two games below .500 for the first time since Nov. 14 when they were 3-5.

"It's just about playing right now," said Vince Carter, who finished with 19 points on 8-of-21 shooting on Friday after scoring 38 in Tuesday's 108-107 win over Indiana. "It's not about worrying about the past, we're conscious of it, conscious of slow starts in the third or whatever.

"Now it's just let's go play basketball, play to win. We know we've had the slow starts in the third. But we've shown we can still find a way to win games here. That's what we need to worry about and build off."

The Nets hope to turn things around on the road, where they've won six of their last seven, averaging 105.6 points in those contests. New Jersey has also had plenty of success in Charlotte, going 7-1 all-time there.