[Izulde]

The three-game skid really has me nervous, because remember, the D-League playoffs is a one and done scenario.

But there's still more regular season basketball to be played and maybe we can work our funk out before then.

We finally cool off our losing streak with a 95-70 win over Los Angeles on a total team scoring effort and the best bench play we've had all year. 3 subs scored in double-digit figures - Joe Harris (10), Brandon Hunter (12), and Carlos Arroyo (11).

Unfortunately, we go right back to losing the next night, falling 78-66 to the Buckaroos, who have an absurdly short ench. Can't blame Kueth Flippen or Steven Wilkerson for the loss though, as Flippen double-doubled with 12 points and 12 rebounds and Wilkerson had a double-double himself, 12 points and 15 rebounds.

An important game against second-place Bakersfield was our next contest a week later and we destroy the Otters 92-68 as Joe Harris, Carlos Arroyo and Brandon Hunter each score 11 points off the bench, Steven Wilkerson grabs 18 boards and Milt Palacio dishes out 12 assists.

A new winning streak is born as we knock off Sioux Falls 96-80, Loren Woods and Jarrius Jackson the key bench men with 13 and 10 points respectively. We're suddenly getting a lot of value out of our reserves that we didn't before, but conversely, our starters aren't doing what they were earlier in the year either. Then again, we've also had a major shakeup in the starting five since then.

There's a chance for revenge against Idaho, as we draw a doubleheader against the Buckaroos for our next pair of games, but they beat us 83-82 and 76-64 despite 10 points and 12 rebounds from Steven Wilkerson in Game 1 and well, we frankly deserved to lose Game 2.

Another doubleheader, this time against Fort Worth. We split the Colonials, winning the first game 81-76 with five players in double-digit scoring, led by double-doubling Milt Palacio with 12 points and 10 assists, and losing the second one 82-73, as nobody really got in sync.

March ends on a happy, but frightening note, as we barely beat Bakersfield 78-77. Kueth Flippen was probably our best player on the floor, with 15 points and 8 rebounds. One trend I've noticed is that we haven't had the Player of the Game for a very, very long time and it's an area of concern.

The good news is, we're 34-12 and have clinched the regular-season D-League West Conference title, because with just four games left to play, there's no way Bakersfield can catch us at 7 games back.

Normally I'd review everything, but with only four games left, I may as well just roll out the rest of our regular season.

As it turns out, all of our remaining four against the Sea Dogs of Los Angeles, who have won just 10 games on the year.

Game 1: 93-80 Anaheim victory
Steven Wilkerson double-doubles with 12 points and 15 rebounds, all our starters save one scores 12+ points, Loren Woods comes out of nowhere to score 16 off the bench and Carlos Arroyo joins him in double-point sub land with 11.

Game 2: 92-77 Anaheim victory
17 points a piece from Nick Fazekas and Milt Palacio ensured the win, as all but one of our starters again scored 10+ points.

Game 3: 124-86 Anaheim victory
8 Cats in double figures, including all five starters. The breakdown:
PG Carlos Arroyo: 23 points, 8 assists and our first PotG in a while
SG Daequan Cook: 10 points
SF Kueth Flippen: 13 points
PF Nick Fazekas: 12 points
C Steven Wilkerson: 10 points, 9 rebounds
6th Brandon Hunter: 13 points, 7 rebounds
7th Jarrius Jackson: 16 points
8th Loren Woods: 10 points

Arroyo's performance has me tempted to cut Milt Palacio and after a moment's thought, I do and sign C DeSagana Diop, 7', 300 lbs, 26 years old and a 7 year veteran last seen playing for the Dallas Mavericks. He'll give us some more rebounding and defensive punch from the bench.

Game 4: 97-92 Anaheim victory
It was close, but we pulled out the Super Sweep behind 28 points from Carlos Arroyo, 21 rebounds from Steven Wilkerson and 12 and 14 respective bench points from Brandon Hunter and Jarrius Jackson.

And so we fast-forward to the eve of the playoffs.

On the NBA level, the East Conference finished with just 5 .+500 teams and the defending East Conference champion Charlotte Bobcats once again won the Southeast with a 40-42 record. The Raptors saved face in the Atlantic, capturing the division with a 42-40 mark.

In the West, 8 teams were over .500, including every one of the Pacific teams. Low man on the totem pole? The 43-39 Golden State Warriors. Phoenix once again lost its quest for a single-digit loss season, but the Suns still impressed at 70-12 and look primed to repeat as NBA champions.

The Dakota Great Apes won the D-League Eastern Conference at 30-20 and the Austin Mammoths were right behind at 29-21, making it the second straight year those two teams have been the East's best. We, of course, won the West, by an easy 9 games.

Because of our repeated shuffling at PG, the only Cat among the league leaders was Steven Wilkerson, second in rebounds per game at 10.2 and third in double-doubles with 14.

Gilbert Arenas won the scoring title with 31 points a game even, but his Wizards were the worst team in the East, winning just 22 games. Michael Redd and Allen Iverson came close, but fell just short of 30 per game at 29.6 and 29.2 points respectively.

Baron Davis of Golden State and Chris Paul of New Orleans were the only players to reach double-digit assist averages at 11.3 and 10.8 respectively. Chris Bosh won the rebounding title with 13.7 boards a game, but Andrew Bogut was close behind at 13.2.

Andrei Kirilenko fell just short in his quest to repeat for 4 blocks a game average at 3.9, but he did win the blocks title again, Josh Smith joining him in the 3 blocks per game category at 3 even. Allen Iverson averaged 2.1 steals a game, tied with Ron Artest for the lead in ballthievery. Gerald Wallace was just behind at 2 robberies a game.

Two rookies broke double-digit scoring averages, Brandon Brooks with 11.4 points a game and Ronny Smith with 10.3. Brooks also destroyed all competition for rookie assist leaders with a 7.2 average. Matt Dickel was a very distant second place at 3.5 assists per game. First-year boards per game went to Kelvin Moody with 7.3, Ronny Smith the silver medalist at 6.5 per game. Smith really recovered from his injury and went on to have a nice season it looks like.

Moody also took the blocks title at 1.8, though Derrick Robinson nipped his heels with 1.7 rejections a game and Julius Austin was the only rookie to average a steal a game, with 1.1.

Brooks, as you might expect, won the double-doubles rookie race with 13, Kelvin Moody in second place with 9.

Oh yes, that reminds me. The Knicks finished 26-66, a scant four-game improvement over my year, despite being much more talented. Unfortunately, the bastard who replaced me has a legitimate excuse with the rash of serious injuries.

One more update to make.

The Utah Six
PG Brandon Brooks (Portland Trailblazers)
-If he doesn't win Rookie of the Year, there's no justice in the world. His class's top scorer, assistant, and doubles-doubles man, he's quickly establishing himself as a bona fide NBA PG. And to think he's the guy I would've taken. Started 78 games. Rookie All-Star starter.

PF Kelvin Moody (Minnesota Timberwolves)
-Started all 82 games, but out of position at SF, which may have accounted for his somewhat disappointing rookie campaign relative to the hype surrounding him. I'm really looking for him to have a breakout season next year. Rookie All-Star starter.

SF Julius Austin (Miami Heat)
8.6 ppg, 4.2 rpg, to report the stats not yet seen. It doesn't look like he's going to be a legitimate offensive weapon. What he is, however, is a dominant defensive presence who should only get better as time goes on. Played in 70 games and started 56. Rookie All-Star starter.

C Rudy Braun (New York Knicks)
5.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 0.4 bpg. Unexpectedly won the Knicks' starting C spot for much of the season and played in 78 games, starting 59. His presence allowed New York to shift Joakim Noah out to SF and create an impressively large lineup. (Noah - 6'11" 230, Smith - 6'9" 216 Braun - 7'5" 301) Unfortunately, I just don't think he has the potential to go with his size and fully expect to see him back to the bench once the Knicks find a better option in the middle. Rookie All-Star starter.

SF Brian Robertson (Dallas Mavericks)
-Made 8 game appearances with the big club, yet still managed to start all 50 games with Fort Worth, averaging 7.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 blocks and 1.1 steals per game with the Colonials. Smart, disciplined player, but ultimately short on talent for the NBA level.

PF B.J. Whitehead (Houston Rockets)
-Averaged 3.8 points and 3.2 rebounds in 10.3 minutes in 24 games for the Rockets and 11.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 0.5 blocks and 0.8 steals a game in 37 starts for the Austin Mammoths. As far as I'm concerned, he's got some legitimate potential, but he'll probably never get a real shot in Houston. If I get back up to the NBA this next season, I'll see if I can grab him.

Next up, the postseasons.