This Week in Sports :: April 29-May 2, 2008

Shaquille O'Neal

Even with the addition of Shaq, the Phoenix Suns weren't able to get past the San Antonio Spurs in the first round. See what else happened this week!

Suns Fall in First Round

When the Suns traded for Shaq last February, he was looked as being the final piece of the puzzle that would get the Suns over the hump and win a title. But the trade proved to nothing for the Suns as they fell to the defending champion Spurs for the second straight year. This year might have been more painful since the Spurs beat them in the Western Conference Finals a season ago, and this time around, they beat them in the first round. Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni is expected to be fired in the coming week. As for San Antonio, they advance to the second round where the will face their in-state rivals, the New Orleans Hornets.

Avery in Intensive Care

New York Rangers bad boy, Sean Avery, suffered a season-ending injury on Tuesday night's playoff game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Avery's lacerated his spleen after a hit in the first period. He has spent the last few days in the intensive care unit of the hospital where doctors are waiting for his spleen to stop bleeding. Avery's injury will not require surgery and is not believed to be life-threatening. That is not the only bad news for the Rangers. As of Friday, the Rangers are down 3-1 to the Penguins. Pittsburgh is 7-2 in the playoffs so far.

Diamondbacks on Fire

To a lot of people's surprise, the Arizona Diamondbacks have the best record in the MLB right now. As of Friday, the D'Backs have a 20-8 record and have won seven of their last 10 games. Arizona also leads the National League in runs and ERA. One of the main reasons for this success, is the Diamondbacks' stellar pitching staff - opposing players are hitting just .220 against them. On the flip side of their division, the Colorado Rockies are off to a, yes, rocky start. the World Series runners-up have an 11-17 record and are easily one of the most disappointing teams so far in the baseball season.

Notes Around the Sports World

On Tuesday, Kevin Durant of the Seattle Supersonics was named the 2007-08 NBA Rookie of the Year.

The Detroit Red Wings have swept their second round opponent, the Colorado Avalanche. The Red Wings await the winner of the San Jose Sharks and Dallas Stars.

After losing their first round series to the New Orleans Hornets 4-1, the Dallas Mavericks fired coach Avery Johnson on Wednesday. It was only two seasons ago when Johnson led the Mavs to the NBA Finals.

In last weekend's NFL Draft, the Miami Dolphins used their first overall pick to select OT Jake Long from the University of Michigan. Long was a First-Team All American as a junior and senior.

This Week in Sports :: April 14-18, 2008

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