Jasper Johnson the Albuquerque Thunderbirds has been named NBA D-League Performer of the Week for games played during the week of Feb. 16, 2009.  Johnson is the second Thunderbird to earn the honor this season, joining teammate Will Conroy.

Johnson led the Thunderbirds to two wins last week, extending the team?s winning streak to five games while averaging 34.0 points and 13.5 rebounds while shooting 25-of-38 (.658) from the field.  He set new season high?s on Saturday when he scored 42 points and grabbed 19 rebounds in a win over the Tulsa 66ers.

The Atlanta Hawks today assigned guard Thomas Gardner to the Anaheim Arsenal of the NBA Development League, according to Hawks Executive Vice President and General Manager Rick Sund.

Gardner, in his second NBA season from Missouri, has appeared in five contests this year with the Hawks, averaging 1.6 ppg and 0.8 rpg (.273 FG%, .250 3FG%).

Blake Ahearn of the Dakota Wizards has been named NBA D-League Performer of the Week for games played during the week of Feb. 2, 2009.  Ahearn is the first Dakota player to earn the honor this season.      

Ahearn led the Wizards to a 3-0 record, averaging 29.7 points and 8.3 assists while shooting .519 (27-of-52) from the field and connecting on 12 three-pointers.  On Saturday Ahearn scored 32 points and added 10 assists in a 115-92 win over the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

The Milwaukee Bucks today signed Eddie Gill of the Colorado 14ers, making him the eighth Call-Up of the 2008-09 NBA Development League season and the 127th overall since the league began play in 2001.  The call-up is the third of Gill?s career and the first for the 14ers this season.  

Gill, a 6-1 guard, has appeared in 22 games for the 14ers this season, averaging 16.2 points, 8.2 assists (second in the NBA D-League) and 4.2 rebounds.  Gill scored in double-digits 19 times, including 10 point/assist double-double performances.

The Boston Celtics announced today that they have reassigned rookie guard J.R. Giddens to their NBA Development League affiliate Utah Flash.  This is the second time this season that Giddens has been assigned to Utah.

Giddens appeared in 13 games for the Flash averaging 17.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.2 rebounds, 1.46 steals, and 1.54 blocks in 37.6 minutes per game.  Giddens was ranked 20th in the NBADL in scoring at the time of his recall on January 8.

Will Conroy of the Albuquerque Thunderbirds and Dontell Jefferson of the Utah Flash have been named NBA Development League Co-Players of the Month for games played in January.  

In 13 games for Albuquerque, Conroy, a 6-2 guard, averaged 26.7 points, 8.2 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals while leading the Thunderbirds to a 10-3 record.  During the month Conroy scored in double digits in all 13 games, posting six double-doubles (points/assists) while shooting 50 percent (119-of-240) from the field and 29-of-79 (.367) from behind the three point line.  

Jefferson competed in 11 games for the Flash during December and averaged 21.4 points, 6.2 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals while shooting 46 percent (81-of-177) from the floor.  During the month, Utah posted a record of 8-3 while Jefferson scored a season-high 38 points on Jan. 26 against the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

The Continental Basketball Association announced on Monday that it will cut the season short because of financial concerns.

"This is the best course of action for the CBA to take at this time," CBA commissioner Dennis Truax said in a statement. "The economy has affected us all and we are now directly seeing the fallout from that. We will be holding an owners meeting during the finals as we look to restructure the CBA and come back next season stronger than ever."

The regular season, which usually runs through mid-March, will conclude on Tuesday.

The top two teams, the Albany Patroons and the Lawton-Fort Sill Cavalry, will play a three-game series to determine the CBA champion.

Joe Crawford of the Los Angeles D-Fenders has been named NBA D-League Performer of the Week for games played during the week of Jan. 27, 2009.  Crawford is the first Los Angeles player to earn the honor this season.    

Crawford averaged 26.3 points and 4.3 rebounds in three games for the D-Fenders. He led Los Angeles to a 2-1 record, including two wins over the first-place Idaho Stampede.