[Izulde]

When Mateen Yeaton went down screaming on the court just three minutes into our final game of the month, our expectations for the regular season changed completely.

No longer could we realistically expect to challenge for the #1 seed. We now had to face the reality that at best, we could hope for the division title and probably the #3 or #4 seed.

I don't know where our offense is going to come from this month; I really don't. While we have guys on the team that can score, nobody strikes me as having that take charge, be consistent night in and night out, mentality like Yeaton and Jonte Jones. I think Vinston Henry can reach that level at some point, but he's not there yet.

But we have to play with the cards we've been dealt, misfortunate though they are.

Speaking of dealing, let's review February's trades.

Sacramento Kings receive
SG Andrew Bayno
Indiana Pacers 2022 2nd round pick

Indiana Pacers receive
SF Rick Smith

What this means for the Kings
Bayno is an average all-around backup guard, though the 26 year old does have some versatility with being able to play SF. He doesn't stand out in any one area and he doesn't have any real weaknesses, save for an inability to make defensive highlight plays.

What this means for the Pacers
The rookie Smith is four years younger than Bayno and can make the big highlight play on defense on occasion, but he doesn't have scoring instincts and he's a horrible ballhandler. He's also not exactly lighting up the D-League, averaging 7.7 points in 3 games as Albuqurque's 6th man.

Winner: Sacramento
Bayno's more polished and more versatile and the Kings get an extra draft pick besides.

Orlando Magic receive
PG Mikhel Zukauskas

Phoenix Suns receive
SF Charles Garren

What this means for the Magic
The Lithuanian Zukauskas is an extremely solid veteran PG, the 32 year old capable of passing the ball and scoring equally well. He's only an average defender though and mediocre at the free throw line. That said, he'll step in at the point and give Orlando a pretty good starting backcourt in him and Mike Conley.

What this means for the Suns
Garren, taken 9th overall in 2012 by the Washington Wizards, has never lived up to lofty expectations. But the 29 year old will still score some, grab a few rebounds and make a few steals. He slides in as the new PF in Phoenix after Suns star Antonio Sarchet was lost for the year in November with a torn knee tendon. He's also a $12 million expiring contract, which may end up being his greatest asset.

Winner: Draw
The deal benefits both teams without being an exclamation point. Orlando gives up financial flexibility to try and make a title run, while Phoenix improves their payroll health for next year and simultaneously begin clearing out the logjam in their backcourt. There's still an absurd glut, though.

Ouch on Sarchet, who I came -this- close to trading for in the offseason. Good thing I didn't.

Nigel Abel against Louis Mertens's porous defense. Yeah, that's going to go over well. I'm predicting 40 points from Abel and a home loss against Indiana to start the month. I end up wrong on both counts. Abel scores 19 and we obliterate the Pacers 117-96. Victor Gipson has been amazing since returning and he tops 3 Nuggets with 20+ points, scoring 28. Vinston Hentry is second with 24 points and Paulinho Buboltz is terrific with 22 points, 11 assists and 7 rebounds. Carlton Goree leads the reserves with 13 points.

All that offense evaporates in a 91-76 loss to the Clippers, our lone highlight Tzvetan Kishishev's 11 bench points. I'll be honest; the Clippers scare the shit out of me. It's a young, deep, talented team that's going to give us nightmares over the next several years of our Rings Quest. I really hope we never have to meet them in the playoffs, especially not this year.

A 103-87 loss to Portland really, really hurts. Victor Gipson's 18 points and 16 rebounds and Paulinho Buboltz's 17 points and 12 assists are nice, but we're struggling to score points right now and it's going about as bad as I thought it would.

We catch a breather in a back-to-back against two bad teams and win both. Victor Gipson plays phenomenally in our 114-95 win over the Spurs, with 24 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists and 6 blocks. Paulinho Buboltz makes an excellent scoring sidekick with 31 points. It's Paulinho Buboltz executing great plays again as we beat Phoenix 102-82 the next night. He finishes with 24 points and 11 assists on the same evening Tyrus Thomas elevates for 25 points and Carlton Goree scores 15 off the bench.

Defense and Paulinho Buboltz's 34 points grant us a 96-84 win in Charlotte. Vinston Henry grabs a double-double good for 10 points and 11 rebounds and Carlton Goree keeps building on his supersub reputation with 12 points.

We play somewhat better, but another game against the Clippers means a 102-91 loss, even with Paulinho Buboltz's 19 points and 13 assists, Victor Gipson's 24 points and 14 rebounds and Tzvetan Kishishev's 12 bench points.

Every win is a welcome win at this point, even when it's ugly as in our 98-84 triumph versus Milwaukee. Victor Gipson nets 15 points and 17 rebounds, Louis Mertens finally has a good game at SG with 22 points and Carlton Goree adds 12 points off the bench.

Vinston Henry puts up 24 points and our defense goes into lockdown in a 113-80 blowout of the Wizards. Tzvetan Kishishev and Carlton Goree continue to be our top reserves with 14 and 13 points respectively.

You know it's a bizzaro world from NBA tradition when the Clippers are the team that makes me break into a cold sweat and it's the Lakers who serve up our most complete game of the month, maybe even the year, in a 122-76 laugher. Vinston Henry has his second straight 20+ game with 23 points, Tyrus Thomas pulls down a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds and three bench players earn highlight nods: Carlton Goree (14 points), Tzvetan Kishishev (11 points) and Chezley McCleary (14 rebounds).

Remember how I said earlier that I think Vinston Henry could be a Yeaton or Jones someday? Well, he's getting there now, if his third straight 20+ game, good for 27 points and 17 rebounds, is any indication. His stepping up earns us a ridiculously huge 106-98 victory against the Kings, though credit also goes to Victor Gipson (15 points, 14 rebounds) and Carlton Goree, who came off the bench to score a sensational 25 points after Paulinho Buboltz had an 0 for 6 night in just 18 minutes before fouling out.

A road game against the Suns proves surprisingly tough, but we withstand their fourth quarter rally to emerge with a 100-94 victory. Paulinho Buboltz scores 28 and Tyrus Thomas and Victor Gipson stack on double-doubles of 16 points, 10 rebounds and 15 points, 15 rebounds to be the three heroes of the contest.

Great 120-85 win in Utah against the Jazz. Paulinho Buboltz scores 21, all five starters hit double-digit scoring and Carlton Goree has a fantastic 25 points off the bench. I still see him as our future at PG, even though he keeps ending up in a 6th man role and playing great in it.

Although we drop both games of the final back-to-back of the month, I'm impressed as hell with how the team's played overall after losing both our stars to injury. The Spurs beat us 102-90 as we shot horribly all night and only had Victor Gipson's 20 points and 12 rebounds to show for it and we shoot even worse the next night in a 109-95 pummeling by Portland, Victor Gipson's 13 points and 15 rebounds, Carlton Goree's 10 bench points and Chezley McCleary's 12 bench rebounds notwithstanding.

So where does it all leave us with 10 games left in the season?

51-21, leading the Northwest by 2 games over Portland and in 2nd place in the conference behind 53-19 Dallas. The Mavericks clinched the Northwest early in this month because the Spurs are only 34-39 while the Clippers have built a 47-26 record that gives them a game and a half advantage on the Kings.

No 50 game winners out East and the New York Knicks have usurped the top seed with a 48-23 record. Toronto's a game and a half behind both in the Atlantic and the #1 seed chase. 45-28 Orlando seems perpetually stuck on a 4.5 game lead over the Hawks in the Southeast, while the Central looks this:

Cleveland - 44-27
Chicago - 44-28 - 0.5 back
Milwaukee - 43-29 - 1.5 back
Detroit - 39-33 - 5.5 back

The Miami Heat have widened their gap as the league's worst team at 12-62. Bad for them, good for us.

In D-League news, Bakersfield already has the West long sewn up at 36-10, but Colorado lurks just half a game out of second with a 24-21 record and Darren Davis is posting 11.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.5 steals. Our scouts with the Timberjacks also tell us he projects to possibly have more upside than we originally anticipated, though I expect he'll need another year or two of seasoning down there before he joins our bench. I'm not terribly fond of that 43.9% shooting.

I still see him as a possible guard version of Tzvetan Kishishev, our Bulgarian who I absolutely love. In other words, a bench player who can score points and play excellent lockdown type defense.

But the happiest thought on my mind right now is that we've weathered the storm. Jonte Jones will be back for our next game and while we won't get Mateen Yeaton back before the regular season is over, he'll return just in time for the playoffs.