News from January 3. The NBA named Kevin Durant (OKC) and LeBron James and Dwyane Wade (Mia) as Players of the Month. Durant averaged 29.4 points and 5.7 rebounds as Oklahoma City went 11-5. James averaged 25.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 6.8 assists and Wade averaged 27.9 points and 6.9 rebounds as Miami went 15-1. The NBA named Gregg Popovich (SA) and Eric Spoelstra (Mia) as Coaches of the Month. San Antonio went 13-2 and Miami went 15-1. The NBA named Blake Griffin (LAC) and Landry Fields (NY) as Rookies of the Month. Griffin averaged 23 points and 13.5 rebounds as the Clippers went 7-8. Fields averaged 8.8 points and 7.9 rebounds as New York went 8-5. The NBA named Chauncey Billups (Den) and Dwyane Wade (Mia) as Players of the Week. Billups averaged 25.3 points and 6.3 assists as Denver went 3-0. Wade averaged 36.7 points and 7.3 rebounds as Miami went 3-0. The LA Clippers released Jarron Collins. Danilo Gallinari (NY) is expected to be out 2 to 3 weeks with a sprained left knee. Minnesota activated Jonny Flynn and placed Sundiata Gaines on IL. Golden State activated Dan Gadzuric and placed David Lee on IL. Charlotte activated Kwame Brown, Eduardo Najera, and Tyrus Thomas and placed DeSagana Diop, Nazr Mohammed (knee injury), and Gerald Wallace (left ankle injury) on IL. Diop is out for the rest of the season with a ruptured right Achilles tendon. Orl 110, GS 90 at Orl Hedo Turkoglu (Orl) had 10 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists, and 5 steals. Dwight Howard (Orl) had 22 points on 7-9 FG and 8-12 FT, 17 rebounds including 6 offensive, and 5 turnovers. Jason Richardson (Orl) had 20 points including 4-7 3-pointers and 5 rebounds. Dorell Wright (GS) had 17 points and 6 rebounds. Monta Ellis (GS) had 20 points and 7 rebounds. Mia 96, Cha 82 at Cha LeBron James (Mia) had 38 points including 15-26 FG, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists. Chris Bosh (Mia) had 11 points. Dwyane Wade (Mia) had 31 points including 12-20 FG and 11 rebounds. Stephen Jackson (Cha) had 22 points, 5 assists, and 5 turnovers. D.J. Augustin (Cha) had 16 points. Mia shot 48.7% (37-76) FG and Cha shot 38% (30-79) FG. Bos 96, Min 93 at Bos Paul Pierce (Bos) had 23 points and 6 rebounds. Rajon Rondo (Bos) had 6 points and 16 assists. Ray Allen (Bos) had 20 points including 4-5 3-pointers. Michael Beasley (Min) had 19 points. Kevin Love (Min) had 12 points including 3-11 FG and 24 rebounds including 5 offensive. Den 113, Hou 106 at Den Carmelo Anthony (Den) had 33 points including 13-14 FT, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists. Nene (Den) had 16 points and 11 rebounds. Aaron Afflalo (Den) had 15 points including 5-7 FG. Luis Scola (Hou) had 24 points and 7 rebounds. Kyle Lowry (Hou) had 21 points including 4-7 3-pointers and 7-10 FT, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals. Den shot 34-40 FT and Hou shot 7-10 FT. Uta 102, Det 97 at Uta Paul Millsap (Uta) had 15 points and 10 rebounds. Al Jefferson (Uta) had 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Deron Williams (Uta) had 22 points including 13-13 FT and 10 assists. Tayshaun Prince (Det) had 26 points including 11-19 FG and 5 assists. Tracy McGrady (Det) had 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 11 assists. NO 84, Phi 77 at NO David West (NO) had 17 points, 8 rebounds including 5 offensive, and 3 blocks. Emeka Okafor (NO) had 13 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Chris Paul (NO) had 15 points including 4-11 FG and 5 assists. Andres Nocioni (Phi) had 13 points and 7 rebounds. Elton Brand (Phi) had 14 points and 10 rebounds. NO shot 44.9% (31-69) FG and Phi shot 34.1% (30-88) FG. Spencer Hawes (Phi, strained back) did not play. Schedule for Tuesday, January 4 (All times Central) Milwaukee @ Miami 6:30 pm San Antonio @ New York 6:30 pm Toronto @ Chicago 7:00 pm Oklahoma City @ Memphis 7:00 pm Portland @ Dallas 7:30 pm Atlanta @ Sacramento 9:00 pm Detroit @ LA Lakers 9:30 pm Schedule for Wednesday, January 5 (All times Central) Toronto @ Cleveland 6:00 pm Chicago @ New Jersey 6:00 pm Milwaukee @ Orlando 6:00 pm Washington @ Philadelphia 6:00 pm San Antonio @ Boston 6:30 pm Charlotte @ Minnesota 7:00 pm Golden State @ New Orleans 7:00 pm Portland @ Houston 7:30 pm Atlanta @ Utah 8:00 pm LA Lakers @ Phoenix 9:30 pm ESPN Denver @ LA Clippers 9:30 pm ---- Patricia Bender pbender@eskimo.com For Trianglons puzzles: http://www.trianglons.com For NBA stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/index.html For Mavs stuff: http://www.eskimo.com/~pbender/mavs.html