NEW ORLEANS HORNETS
Recap Rewind: Some mediocre (at best) opponents for the Hornets the past week. They stumbled back from the All-Star break by losing to the Bobcats in Charlotte, 104-100. Tyson Chandler continued his monstrous play of late, scoring 16 and grabbing 20... A better result Wednesday in New Jersey, as David West's season-high 32 points led the Hornets to a 111-107 win over the Nets... Back home in new Orleans on Friday, the Hornets hosted the Seattle Supersonics, and were lucky to come away with a 98-97 win when Ray Allen's buzzer-beating three failed to connect. Chandler and West were impressive again, combining for 38 points and 30 rebounds.
Notable News: The Hornets have somehow sneaked into the seventh spot in the Western Conference, having won eight of their last eleven. They're 27-29 on the season... The big news right now is the play of Chandler, who is averaging 12.7 points and 16.9 rebounds in eleven February games. Some are calling him the best center in the West not named Yao Ming... Chris Paul has been struggling with his shooting of late, knocking down just 21-of-58 (36%) in the past five games... Some rumblings about owner George Shinn's demands for a $20 million practice facility in New Orleans... Still no good estimate for Peja Stojakovic's return.
Fast Forward: The Hornets are in Cleveland on Tuesday to play the Cavaliers. Wednesday sees them back in Oklahoma City to host the Atlanta Hawks, followed by a Friday trip to Chicago to play the Bulls. On Sunday, it's back to OKC to host the Utah Jazz.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS
Recap Rewind: The Spurs are playing winning basketball once again, with wins over Denver, Atlanta and Seattle last week pushing their happy streak to five games... Last Wednesday's trip to Atlanta saw Manu Ginobili torch the Hawks for a season-high 40 points, including 24 in a row at one point. Tim Duncan added 30 points and 9 rebounds... Back in San Antonio to host the Sonics on Saturday, a balanced scoring effort and some tight defense gave the Spurs the 102-71 win. Bruce Bowen held Ray Allen to just 12 points, while Tony Parker led the way on offense with 21 points on 10-of-15 shooting. The game was over by halftime.
Notable News: The Spurs mini-streak has them a half game ahead of the Utah Jazz for the third seed in the Western Conference. Their 38-18 record puts them 5.0 games behind the Suns... Matt Bonner is back in action for the Spurs, having missed a month due to injury. He scored 13 points in the Seattle game after struggling in the two contests prior... Robert Horry dropped four thriples and finished with 17 points in that same Seattle game. Apparently that's the second most Horry has ever scored for the Spurs during the regular season... As is always the case with this aging team, there are some nagging health issues.
Fast Forward: The Spurs try to extend their hot streak when they host the Toronto Raptors today (Monday). Friday sees them take on the visiting Orlando Magic, before they begin a four-game road trip Saturday in Houston.
DIVISION REPORTS
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
Central Division
Southeast Division
Western Conference