NBA Teams – Page 2388 – NBA Blog

Bucks fire coach Larry Krystkowiak

The Milwaukee Bucks today relieved Larry Krystkowiak of his head coaching duties, General Manager John Hammond announced. The decision was made after Hammond met with Krystkowiak Thursday morning at the Bucks Training Center in St. Francis, WI. The search for the Bucks new head coach begins immediately.

“Larry Krystkowiak is a good man who worked very hard for the Milwaukee Bucks,” said Hammond. “Sometimes despite even the best efforts, the results don’t end up how we want them. At this time, I feel it is in the best interest of our franchise to make a change at the head coaching position. I want to thank Larry for his hard work and dedication to our team, and our entire organization wishes him and his family well.”

In less than two seasons as head coach of the Bucks, Krystkowiak compiled a 31-69 record (.310). He was named head coach on March 14, 2007, replacing Terry Stotts.

Krystkowiak was originally hired by the Bucks on June 22, 2006, as an assistant coach to Stotts. He came to Milwaukee following two seasons as the head coach at his alma mater, the University of Montana. He led the Grizzlies to a 42-20 record during those two campaigns and won back-to-back Big Sky Conference Tournaments. He also guided his Montana squad to two straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a first-round upset over Nevada in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
Krystkowiak’s coaching resume also includes a one-year stint as head coach of the Idaho Stampede (CBA), where he guided his team to a franchise-best 37-16 record during the 2003-04 season.

He has also spent time as an assistant coach at Norfolk Collegiate High School in Virginia (2002-03), at Old Dominion (2001-02), and at Montana (1998-2000).

Drafted by Chicago in 1986, Krystkowiak played in nine NBA seasons, including four with the Milwaukee Bucks (he spent five seasons in Milwaukee from 1987-92, but was injured during the 1990-91 season). He averaged 9.8 points and 6.0 rebounds in 225 career games with Milwaukee. He also played for San Antonio, Utah, Orlando, Chicago and the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 8.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 420 career NBA games.
He remains Montana’s all-time leader in points (2,017) and rebounds (1,105) after playing four years for the Grizzlies from 1982-86. In 1989, he became the only player in men’s basketball history at Montana to have his number (42) retired.

Saer Sene has right knee surgery

Seattle SuperSonics General Manager Sam Presti announced today, second-year center Mouhamed Sene had surgery this past Monday (April 14) to repair a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee. During the surgery, doctors discovered a chondral defect which required microfracture surgery.

Sene will be on crutches for six weeks and will be continually evaluated.

The injury was originally suffered during an Idaho Stampede game at Bakersfield of the NBA Development League on April 4.

Sene appeared in 13 games for the Sonics this season, averaging 2.3 points and 1.2 rebounds in 4.8 minutes per contest. Sene also appeared in 27 games for the Idaho Stampede this season, averaging 12.1 points and 8.9 rebounds in 27.5 minutes per game.

The 10th overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft, Sene has appeared in 41 regular season games in his two seasons with the Sonics and holds career averages of 2.0 points and 1.2 rebounds.

LeBron is first Cav to win league scoring title

The Akron Beacon Journal (Brian Windhorst) reports: It became official Wednesday. LeBron James became the first player in franchise history to win the NBA scoring title by averaging exactly 30.0 points. It was not a surprise. He grabbed the scoring lead in November and held it the rest of the way. It was not the highest scoring average of his career, though. He averaged 31.4 points per game in 2005-06. By combining it with averages of 7.9 rebounds, which was a career high, and 7.2 assists, which tied a career high, James became just the third player in NBA history to average 30 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in league history. The other two were Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan.

Jamario Moon a nice story for Raptors

The Toronto Star (Doug Smith) reports: The regular season ended where it really began for Jamario Moon, his season a surprising rise from obscurity to a starting NBA job on a playoff-bound team. A season few, if any, saw coming. And as he prepares for that playoff debut, he sees his true jumping off point as a start in a game here in early November. “I think after (that) game it was pretty much even throughout the whole season,” he said yesterday morning before the Raptors concluded the regular season with a 107-97 loss to the Chicago Bulls to finish with a 41-41 record. “I pretty much did the same thing – came out and brought energy, blocked shots, got steals, just got my hands on a lot of balls. “After I started (that) game, I just tried to come out and do the same thing every game.” Moon’s presence in the starting lineup has created the best feel-good story of a rocky season for the Raptors.

Mark Jackson leaving YES network

The New York post (Phil Mushnick) reports: Mark Jackson, the Nets’ popular YES analyst the last three seasons and a top candidate to become coach of the Knicks, hit YES with a farewell bomb last night when he announced on the air he would not be returning to call Net games… Jackson’s relationship with YES had been poor since Jackson, two seasons ago, rejoined ABC/ESPN, apparently without consulting YES.

Apr. 16: Sonics 126, Warriors 121

The AP reports: Kevin Durant set career highs with 42 points and 13 rebounds in his first professional double-double, and Jeff Green added 27 points to help the SuperSonics win what could have been their final game as a Seattle team, beating the Golden State Warriors 126-121 on Wednesday night. A strong season-ending performance by a pair of talented rookies would normally be a bright spot for fans of a lottery-bound team. But with the NBA Board of Governors set to vote later this week to approve the Sonics’ move to Oklahoma City after 41 years in the Emerald City, it’s unclear which fans will benefit… Baron Davis scored 21 points in 39 minutes after mysteriously being benched for the second half of Monday’s loss in Phoenix. Monta Ellis led the way with 24 points, Andris Biedrins had 20 points and 17 rebounds and rookie Marco Belinelli had a career-high 17 points.

Apr. 16: Suns 100, Blazers 91

The AP reports: Little-used Sean Marks had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Phoenix beat the Portland Trail Blazers 100-91 on Wednesday night in a game that ended up having no bearing on the Suns’ playoff seeding… The Spurs led Utah by 26 at halftime, and it wasn’t long before D’Antoni sent in reserves D.J. Strawberry, followed by Marks, Alando Tucker and Eric Piatkowski. Marks’ 16 points matched a career high and his 13 rebounds set a career high. Steve Nash, Amare Stoudemire and Shaquille O’Neal didn’t play after halftime. Stoudemire finished with 12 points in 18 minutes, snapping his streak of consecutive 20-point games at 18 games, the third-longest in franchise history… Travis Outlaw scored 24 points and had 12 rebounds for Portland, which finished 41-41 and missed a chance for its first winning record since 2002-03.

Apr. 16: Spurs 109, Jazz 80

The AP reports: The San Antonio Spurs wrapped up the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference playoffs in dominant fashion, routing the Utah Jazz 109-80 on Wednesday night. The Spurs will face the sixth-seeded Phoenix Suns in the first round. The Jazz will take on the Houston Rockets… Tony Parker had 24 points and 12 assists for San Antonio in the easy win. Tim Duncan added 14 points and 11 rebounds, and four other Spurs scored in double digits. C.J. Miles led the Jazz with 12 points. Mehmet Okur scored 11 and Carlos Boozer had 10 rebounds… Utah guard Deron Williams, who shot 2-of-6 from the field in the first half, didn’t play in the second half. He bruised his tailbone Saturday against Denver.

Apr. 16: Nuggets 120, Grizzlies 111

The AP reports: Carmelo Anthony scored 17 points and grabbed six rebounds in his first game since getting arrested on a drunken driving charge, and the Denver Nuggets reached 50 wins for the first time in 20 years with a 120-111 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night… Denver’s starters all watched the fourth quarter from the bench after taking a 99-84 lead with unusually deep rotations. Allen Iverson led Denver with 21 points. Kenyon Martin logged the most minutes among the starters, collecting 11 points and 10 rebounds in 24 minutes… Kyle Lowry led the Grizzlies’ starters with 22 points, and Hakim Warrick added 19. Reserve Andre Brown also scored 19.

Apr. 16: Rockets 93, Clippers 75

The AP reports: Luis Scola had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and the Houston Rockets locked up the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference playoffs with a 93-75 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night. Backup point guard Bobby Jackson added 15 points and five rebounds, and Tracy McGrady made up for a 2-for-11 shooting night with 11 assists as the Rockets improved to 22-2 in their last 24 home games… Jackson started for the second straight game in place of Rafer Alston, who strained his right hamstring against Denver on Sunday. Alston said he would likely miss Houston’s first two playoff games. Corey Maggette scored 22 points and Elton Brand added 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Clippers, who’ve lost five straight to Houston and 17 of the last 20 meetings.