Upcoming anniversaries: Ewing, Kobe, Alex English, more

5th Anniversary

02/28/03: The New York Knicks retire Patrick Ewing’s No. 33.

03/05/03: Kobe Bryant became the youngest player in NBA history to score 10,000 points.

10th Anniversary

02/25/98: Bill Fitch passed Red Auerbach (938) to become at the time the second-winningest coach in NBA history with a 117-108 win over Philadelphia.

02/27/98: The Indiana Pacers defeat the Portland Trail Blazers 124-59. The 65-point margin of victory is the second-largest in NBA history, outpaced only by the 68-point margin when Cleveland defeated Miami 148-80 on December 17, 1991.

03/01/98: Miami head coach Pat Riley became the fifth coach to record 900 career wins with a 85-84 win over New Jersey.

03/04/98: Arbitrator John Feerick upheld the NBA’s suspension of Latrell Sprewell for the 1997-98 season, resulting in a monetary penalty of $6.4 million, finding that the NBA’s investigation was “done in good faith and was fair and adequate.” Feerick also found “that the NBA complied with the standards of industrial due process.” He reduced the NBA’s suspension to the extent it had included approximately one month of the 1998-99 season. However, the arbitrator reinstated Sprewell’s contract with Golden State for the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons, finding that the combination of a one-season suspension and a contract termination would not be appropriate under all of the circumstances.

15th Anniversary

03/02/93: Denver retired the #7 jersey of long-time Nugget Alex English, who spent 10 1/2 of his 15 years in the NBA in the Mile High City, scoring a career total of 25,613 points.

20th Anniversary

03/02/88: The flaming basketball is adopted as Miami’s official logo from over 1,000 entries. Mark Henderson submitted the winning entry.

25th Anniversary

03/05/83: Golden State’s Joe Barry Carroll scored 52 points in a 127-121 Warriors victory over the Utah Jazz.

Gerald Wallace: post-concussion symptoms

Charlotte Bobcats forward Gerald Wallace developed post-concussion symptoms over the weekend that included headaches, drowsiness and soreness of the neck and jaw, according to Bobcats team physicians Dr. Glenn Perry and Dr. Joe Garcia.

Wallace is scheduled to see Charlotte-based neurologist Dr. Jerry Petty later this week, where he will go through a series of neural tests. Following the evaluation and based off the recommendation by Dr. Petty and team doctors, a timetable will be determined for his return. At this point, no timetable has been set.

Wallace suffered a Grade 3 concussion on Feb. 22 against the Sacramento Kings. Further tests at Presbyterian Hospital later that night revealed no fractures and no bleeding. The injury occurred with 9:54 left in the third quarter after an inadvertent elbow by Kings forward Mikki Moore. Wallace was immediately taken to the hospital for evaluation where he received a CAT-Scan and other on-site tests. He was later released and returned home.

Wizards notes

The Washington Wizards will visit the New Orleans Hornets tomorrow night (Monday, February 25th) in Louisiana on Comcast SportsNet and WTEM 980 at 8:00 pm.

This game marks the first of two meetings between Washington and New Orleans this season.  The Wizards and Hornets will conclude their season-series on March 2 in Washington.

Last season vs. New Orleans…The Wizards and Hornets split a pair of meetings, with each team winning at home…The Wizards’ loss in Oklahoma City on January 12, 2007 marked Washington’s tenth consecutive road defeat to the Hornets franchise; including games played in Charlotte, New Orleans and Oklahoma City…The Wizards’ 125-103 win at Verizon Center on March 17, 2007 was their third straight home win vs. New Orleans.

Washington last defeated the Hornets on the road on November 1, 2000 in Charlotte when the franchise was still the Charlotte Hornets.  That win came in the Wizards’ opening game of the 2000-01 NBA season.  None of the current Wizards played for Washington at that time.

This game marks the beginning of Washington’s 15th back-to-back set this season.  The Wizards are 6-8 to date in the first game when playing on consecutive nights.  Washington will conclude the back-to-back on Tuesday night in Houston.  The Wizards are also 6-8 in the second game of a back-to-back set.

Washington’s starting line-up of Antonio Daniels, DeShawn Stevenson, Antawn Jamison, Andray Blatche and Brendan Haywood started their ninth game together as a unit in Washington’s last game, becoming Washington’s second-most frequently used starting line-up this season.  The Wizards’ most popular starting unit — Daniels, Stevenson, Caron Butler, Jamison, Haywood — has started 27 games as a unit, and holds a 16-11 record in those games.  In all, Washington has used eight different starting line-ups this season, as the opening night line-up that featured Gilbert Arenas, Stevenson, Butler, Jamison and Haywood started just eight games together.  Antawn Jamison and DeShawn Stevenson are the only two Wizards to have started every game this season.

Despite Washington’s sub-.500 record this season (26-29, .473), the Wizards have outscored the opposition by three points this season, 5,421 – 5,418.  The Wizards are the only sub-.500 team in the NBA that has outscored their opponent this season.  Two teams with a +.500 record this season — Cleveland and Portland — have been cumulatively outscored by their opponents in 2007-08.

In Washington’s last game…The Wizards defeated the Charlotte Bobcats, 110-95, at Verizon Center on Saturday, Feb. 23…Antawn Jamison led five Wizards in double figures in scoring with 22 points…The Wizards improved to 7-2 this season when all five starters score at least 10 points…DeShawn Stevenson’s 20-point game marked his fourth game this season with 20+ points…Brendan Haywood finished with 15 points (6-12 FG, 3-3 FT), seven rebounds, a career-high five assists, and three blocked shots…Andray Blatche started his 12th game of the season, and finished with 13 points and eight rebounds…Antonio Daniels tallied 10 points, and improved to 20-17 as a starter this season…Oleksiy Pecherov finished one point shy of being the sixth Wizard in double figures in scoring, but finished with a career-high tying nine points and a career-high six rebounds…Rookie guard Nick Young grabbed a career-high five rebounds…Washington committed a team season-low seven turnovers…Caron Butler missed his eighth straight game with a left hip flexor strain.

Washington-New Orleans connections…Wizards forward Antawn Jamison was born in Shreveport, LA…Washington’s Antonio Daniels and New Orleans’ Bonzi Wells were teammates in Portland in 2002-03…Washington’s Caron Butler and New Orleans’ Rasual Butler were teammates in Miami from 2002-04…Washington’s Darius Songaila and New Orleans’ Peja Stojakovic and Bobby Jackson were teammates in Sacramento from 2003-05…Wizards Head Coach Eddie Jordan and Hornets Head Coach Byron Scott coached together on the New Jersey Nets teams that went to back-to-back NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003…Hornets Assistant Coach Darrell Walker played for Washington from 1987-1991; was Washington’s Head Coach for a 38-game stint in 1999-00; and served in the team’s scouting department from 2000-04.

T.J. Ford, Jose Calderon should play together

The Toronto Sun (Steve Buffery) reports: Jose Calderon has been saying it for months, and now T.J. Ford has emphatically jumped on the bandwagon. The two point guards want to stay together for as long as possible — even though they would have a lot more to gain from a personal standpoint if they split up. “Do I think it can continue to work? Yes I do,” said Ford this week, when asked about sharing duties with Calderon. “I think we both continue to make each other better. We set high expectations for one another (and) I think we do a good job supporting one another and I think our relationship is great.” Calderon is a restricted free agent at season’s end and GM Bryan Colangelo has made it known he will match all offers. But the question remains: Will Calderon be content to come off the bench once Ford is healthy? Or, for that matter, will Ford be happy coming off the bench?

Grizzlies waive Marcus Vinicius

The Memphis Grizzlies waived forward Marcus Vinicius (Va-NEE-Shus), club General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced today.

The 6-8, 225-pound forward was acquired in a three-team trade on February 21. Memphis received Vinicius from the New Orleans Hornets along with the draft rights to Malick Badiane (Muh-LEEK Bah-Dee-En) and cash considerations from the Houston Rockets. In return, the Grizzlies sent the draft rights to Sergei Lishouk (Sir-GAY Leesh-CHUK) to the Rockets.

The 43rd overall pick in the 2006 NBA Draft averaged 2.2 points in 5.3 minutes in 13 games for New Orleans this season.  Vinicius owns career averages of 1.9 points in 6.6 minutes in 26 games over two seasons with the Hornets.

Gerald Wallace concussion, amnesia

Charlotte Bobcats forward Gerald Wallace suffered a Grade 3 concussion tonight versus the Sacramento Kings and is experiencing a slight case of amnesia. Further tests at Presbyterian Hospital revealed no fractures and no bleeding.

The injury occurred with 9:54 left in the third quarter after an inadvertent elbow by Kings forward Mikki Moore.  Wallace was immediately taken to the hospital for evaluation where he received a CAT-Scan and other test. He has been released and is now home resting. He will not accompany the team at Washington tomorrow. No timetable has been set for his return.

Bobcats Sports & Entertainment owns and operates the Charlotte Bobcats (NBA) and operates the widely-acclaimed Charlotte Bobcats Arena, which opened in the fall of 2005.

Robert Swift has torn right knee meniscus

So far, Seattle SuperSonics center Robert Swift is good at two things: getting tattoos and suffering injuries. Here’s the latest:

Team general manager Sam Presti announced today that third-year center Robert Swift suffered a torn meniscus in his right knee during last night’s game at Portland. The extent of the injury was revealed in an MRI performed today. He will be re-evaluated by Dr. Steve Lombardo in Los Angeles.

“Robert is an important part of the Sonics, and we will continue to support him throughout this rehabilitation process,” Presti said.

Swift has appeared in eight games this season after a long rehabilitation during the off-season. The 7-1 center suffered a season-ending torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during a pre-season game last year on Oct. 25, 2006. Last night’s injury and last season’s ligament tear are not related.

Suns sign Linton Johnson to 10-day deal

The Phoenix Suns today signed forward Linton Johnson to a 10-day contract, the team announced.

The 6-8, 205-pound Johnson joins his fifth NBA team after spending parts of the last four seasons with the Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, New Jersey Nets and New Orleans Hornets. In 133 career games (27 starts), Johnson owns averages of 4.2 points and 3.5 rebounds in 15.0 minutes. The four-year NBA veteran enjoyed his best career season in 2005-06 with the Hornets, posting averages of 5.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 18.1 minutes in 27 games. Johnson signed his first NBA contract with the Bulls on Sept. 29, 2003.

A four-year athlete at Tulane University, Johnson averaged 6.7 points and 4.9 rebounds in 107 career games. An undrafted free agent out of college, Johnson averaged 9.0 points and 6.5 boards as a senior during the 2001-02 season.

The Suns roster now stands at 13.

Antoine Walker open to buyout

The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports: Wolves veteran Antoine Walker said today he’s open to a “workable buyout” of his contract, though he believes the odds of such a deal happening are slim.Walker said the next step in a season that’s turning more frustrating because of his limited role is to explore the possibility of a buyout. Any possible buyout would have to be completed before March 1 so Walker could be eligible to make a playoff roster with another team, said Walker’s agent, Mark Bartelstein. “It’s something we’ve thought about and are giving consideration to,” Bartelstein said. “If there’s something out there that would ultimately make sense, we’re open to it. I don’t know where it’s going to wind up yet.”Bartelstein declined to comment when asked if he has contacted the Wolves’ front office or owner Glen Taylor about a buyout.