
Ginobili scored 12 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, sparking the Spurs past the Los Angeles Clippers for the 15th time in the last 16 meetings, 88-82 on Sunday.
Sidelined the last five games with the injured digit on his shooting hand, the Argentine sparkplug made five-of-12 field goals and 12-of-13 free throws in 29 minutes off the bench.
"I was feeling good all game long, I just didn't make the shots that I usually make," Ginobili said. "But I just stayed patient and let it come to me."
Frenchman Tony Parker had a game-high 26 points while Tim Duncan collected 17 points and 17 rebounds before exiting in the final minute with a bruised left knee as San Antonio (23-9) snapped a five-game road losing streak.
Duncan was delighted to have Ginobili back.
"He's our finisher," Duncan said. "He just adds another dimension to our team, especially down the stretch, and we missed that the last few games."
The Spurs trailed 74-73 with 5:41 remaining until Ginobili (eight) and Parker (six) combined to score 14 of San Antonio's final 15 points.
Parker sandwiched the go-ahead three-pointer and a driving layup around two free throws by Ginobili for an 80-74 advantage. After Ginobili drained a triple of his own, and Parker made a free throw, the Argentine converted three of four foul shots to seal the win.
Chris Kaman had 20 points and 14 rebounds to pace the struggling Clippers (10-21) who have dropped eight of their last nine. Rookie Al Thornton chipped in with 17 points and eight boards.
"It was there, but the last three minutes we just didn't finish, which has been a common problem for us," Kaman said.
Elsehwere:
Memphis Grizzlies 101, Miami Heat 94 Spain's Pau Gasol had 28 points along with 13 rebounds and the Grizzlies handed the hapless Heat its seventh consecutive loss.
Mike Miller netted 25 points and Rudy Gay added 22 for host Memphis (10-23) which closed on a 9-2 run.
Ricky Davis led Eastern Conference-worst Miami (8-26) with season-high 24 points while Dwyane Wade had 18 points and nine assists off the bench.
Dallas Mavericks 101, Minnesota Timberwolves 78 Reigning league MVP Dirk Nowitzki scored 30 points, Josh Howard had 22 and the visiting Mavericks rolled to their ninth win in the last 11 games.
Al Jefferson had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the league-worst Timberwolves (4-29) who fell for the eighth straight time.
Washington Wizards 108, Seattle SuperSonics 86 Caron Butler scored 33 points, Antawn Jamison had 21 along with 12 rebounds, leading the Wizards to the wire-to-wire victory.
Rookie sensation Kevin Durant led visiting SuperSonics (9-24) with 19 points on just seven-of-21 shooting while Nick Collison matched his season-high with 19 rebounds.
Milwaukee Bucks 93, Charlotte Bobcats 89 Charlie Bell scored 27 points off the bench, and Australian Andrew Bogut had 25, including the tie-breaking hook shot with 19 seconds left, rallying the short-handed Bucks over the Bobcats.
The two combined to score 16 of the Bucks' final 18 points, who without their leading scorer Michael Redd (deep left thigh bruise) overcame an eight-point deficit in the final three minutes.
Gerald Wallace scored 25 points and Jason Richardson had 21 for the Bobcats (11-21) losers in seven of their last nine games.
Cleveland Cavaliers 93, Toronto Raptors 90 LeBron James poured in 24 of his 39 points in the final quarter, rallying the visiting Cavaliers to their fifth win in the last six games.
Chris Bosh netted 23 points for the Raptors (17-17) who led 70-57 heading into the final frame. Anthony Parker had 20 points while Spain's Jose Calderon chipped in with 16 and 11 assists.
Denver Nuggets 109, Philadelphia 76ers 96 Allen Iverson had 38 points against his former team, and the Nuggets bounced the visiting Sixers for their third win in the last four games.
Carmelo Anthony scored 23 points and Anthony Carter had a season-high 15 assists for Denver (21-12) which moved one-half game ahead of Portland atop the Northwest Division.
Andre Miller led Philadelphia (14-20)with 22 points and Samuel Dalembert grabbed 15 rebounds.
LA Lakers 112, Indiana Pacers 96 Kobe Bryant scored 12 of his 26 points in the pivotal third quarter, while Andrew Bynum had 23 points along with and 13 rebounds, leading the Lakers to their 12th win in 15 games.
Derek Fisher chipped in with 22 points while Lamar Odom had 13 points and 13 rebounds for the Lakers (21-11), who own a perfect 9-0 mark over the Pacers at Staples Center.
The Lakers led 90-72 entering the final frame before having it sliced to 92-85 with six minutes left. However, Bryant made two jumpers and Fisher buried three 3-pointers in a game-sealing 16-0 run.
Mike Dunleavy scored a team-high 17 points for the Pacers (16-19) who lost for the six time in seven games.
By Paul Levine, dpa