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| Luke Ridnour, who played 16 minutes in Wednesday's season finale, scored only two points.
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Our View: There is speculation that Wednesday was Ridnour's last game in Seattle. Earl Watson took over the point guard spot and Ridnour hasn't played a significant role since. The team is expected to make an attempt to trade the guard during the upcoming draft.
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| The Rockets will be the only team missing its starting center when their first-round series against the Utah Jazz begins on Saturday.
The Rockets will be without Yao Ming and point guard Rafer Alston making the Rockets all the more dependent on All Star shooting guard Tracy McGrady. |
Our View: McGrady, arguably the best shooting big guard in the league, can't carry the Rockets to the second round himself.
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| New York Knicks head coach Isiah Thomas has apparently already been told he will not return next season, ending a disastrous two-year tenure on the bench, this according to the Sports Network.
The Knicks closed out a 23-59 season on Wednesday with a 132-123 loss to the Indiana Pacers, giving Thomas a record of 56-108 in his two years after replacing Larry Brown. |
Our View: No replacement has been rumored yet.
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| Richard Hamilton hip is the focus of concern in Motown as the team approaches their first postseason game this weekend. |
Our View: Rip is the Pistons; go-to scorer on a team that doesn't have a lot of scoring. His health is key to the Pistons advancing beyond a first round matchup against the red-hot Philadelphia 76ers.
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| Ray Allen and the Celtics enter the playoffs as the favorite to win the NBA title. The East, a doormat to the West, even when Shaq and the Heat won the title, have rarely been the favorite over the last decade. Allen is key to Boston's success. |
Our View: A clutch shooter and a great postseason asset, Allen only needs to avoid injury to help his team to the finals and assist fantasy owners in playoff formats.
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| Ramon Sessions was named the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month of April, this according to NBA.com. Sessions was the only rookie in the league who averaged a double-double with averages of 11.5 points and 11.3 assists. |
Our View: Sessions really showed what he was capable of late in the year, and his name is one to remember next year at the draft table if the Bucks put the ball in his hands again.
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| Kevin Durant was named the Western Conference Rookie of the Month of April, this according to NBA.com. Durant led all rookies with a scoring average of 24.3 for the month with 4.1 assists per game as he shot 46.1% from the field and 84.4% from the line. |
Our View: Durant put up solid numbers this season on offense with 20.3 points a game, but his lithe body limited him to just 4.4 rebounds per game, a total that needs to improve to make him a fantasy force.
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| Kevin Garnett missed practice on Thursday due to a "family matter", this according to the Boston Globe. |
Our View: The truth appears to be that Garnett's wife is expected to give birth today, so provided everything goes well Garnett should be back at practice on Friday.
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| The Milwaukee Bucks fired head coach Larry Krystkowiak on Thursday after a 31-69 record in less than two years with the club, this according to NBA.com. “Larry Krystkowiak is a good man who worked very hard for the Milwaukee Bucks,” said GM John Hammond. “Sometimes despite even the best efforts, the results don’t end up how we want them." |
Our View: The Bucks are a sad franchise in most respects, but even for them 31 victories in 100 games isn't going to cut it. No word yet on who might replace him.
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| The Bulls fired interim head coach Jim Boylan on Thursday, this according to Slam Sports. "I was brought in here in the middle of the season," Boylan said yesterday. "It's kind of a tough situation...Sitting in the head coach's seat was comfortable and enjoyable. I loved the challenge." |
Our View: There is a whole ton of blame to go around in Chicago and this will likely be the first of many changes in the Windy City this off-season.
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| Kobe Bryant was named the Western Conference Player of the Month for April, this according to NBA.com. Bryant led the Lakers to a 7-1 record on the month with averages of 26.1 points and 5.5 assists. It was Bryant's second player of the month honors. |
Our View: Bryant scored 28.3 points per game this season with 6.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists in a season that just might earn him MVP honors. He is obviously one of the top options in playoff pools as the Lakers figure to challenge for the championship.
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| Hedo Turkoglu was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Month for April, this according to NBA.com. The Magic went 5-3 on the month as Hedo average 19.8 points and 6.4 assists while shooting 50.4% from the field. |
Our View: Hedo finished the year averaging 19.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game and he was a true difference maker given his mid to late round selection in most fantasy drafts this season.
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| Deron Williams played only half of his clubs last game because of sore rear end, this according to the Salt Lake Tribune. "I'm definitely slowed down by it,'' Williams said. "It's hard to push off. I see openings and I can't get to them just because I can't push off, I can't explode like I'm used to. It definitely affects my game and affects my teammates because I can't push the ball like I normally do |
Our View: Williams has been a stud all season with an average of 18.8 points and 10.5 assists a game, so if he continues to be limited by his injury it will have a huge effect on the Jazz ability to do anything on offense.
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| The season has ended on a negative note that will be painful to bear this offseason for the Golden State Warriors, but center Andris Biedrins did what he could to add one more win to the record. Biedrins shot 8-of-13 from the field and 4-of-7 from the free-throw line to score 20 points with 17 rebounds (including 10 offensive) on the evening. |
Our View: It was another great effort from the center, but the Warriors still fell in defeat to the Seattle SuperSonics, 126-121, putting one last sour note on a season that came just short of a playoff berth.
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