Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash of Victoria has been named the NBA's Western Conference player of the week and Gerald Wallace of the Charlotte Bobcats was chosen the top player in the Eastern Conference.

Nash, last season's NBA MVP, led the league in assists in 9.7 per game in a 3-0 week for the Suns. He also averaged 21.7 points per game, shot 53.1 per cent from the field and had 3.7 rebounds per game.

Charlotte rookie forward Sean May was inactive for the Bobcats' game Saturday night against the Washington Wizards.

May has soreness in his right knee and is day to day.

May, the 13th overall pick in the June draft, had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Sept. 13 and missed a portion of the preseason, playing in just one exhibition game.  

But May had played in all 13 games in the regular season, including 15 minutes on Friday night in a 90-89 loss at Boston. He had four points and two rebounds.

There's another forward the Nets will put on their wish list when the time comes to add some length, though a deal could be problematic.

It's an old name, actually: Charlotte reserve Melvin Ely, whom the Nets pursued during the off-season but decided to put on hold until the Bobcats stopped asking for a No. 1 pick in return.

The 6-10, 260-pound forward is the most improved player on his team -- he's averaging 9.6 points and 6.8 rebounds in 24 minutes per game -- but he will probably become available because Charlotte has one stud (Emeka Okafor) and one promising rookie (Sean May) ahead of Ely on the power-forward depth chart.

Getting the salaries to match is going to be a thing. Ely makes roughly $2 million and, since Charlotte has to take some money back, the Nets would have trouble finding someone in that financial neighborhood. And, even if the Bobs accepted Cliff Robinson, they'd still want the draft pick, and the Nets consider that too high a price -- that was the case two months ago, anyway.

Charlotte scoring leader Gerald Wallace missed the Bobcats' game against Dallas on Friday night because of a chipped bone in his right wrist.

Wallace is expected to be sidelined at least a week.

"I felt like I came into this season so prepared and so ready to go," he said. "Then, to have a setback like this is tough for any player, yet alone for the type of year I was having. It's a minor setback. Hopefully I can bounce back pretty good."

Wallace is averaging 16.2 points a game. Keith Bogans started in his place.

Leading scorer Gerald Wallace is doubtful for the Charlotte Bobcats' game Wednesday night against San Antonio because of a mild concussion.

Wallace, averaging 16.5 points, hit his head on a drive to the basket in the second quarter of Charlotte's 95-91 overtime loss Monday against Utah. He did not play in the second half and missed practice Tuesday.

Coach Bernie Bickerstaff said the team will be cautious with Wallace, who missed four games last December with a concussion.

"It's completely up to the doctors," Bickerstaff said. "I talked with him early this morning and he's just very sore."

Gerald Wallace scored 25 points, including a layup with 2:24 to play in overtime, and the Charlotte Bobcats celebrated the opening of their new arena with a 107-105 victory over the Boston Celtics on Saturday night.

The Bobcats trailed most of the game but used an 11-0 run late in the fourth quarter to get back into it. The game went into overtime tied at 103, and Emeka Okafor put Charlotte on top with a jumper.

The Celtics had several miscues on offense, including consecutive fouls, before Delonte West tied it at 105 on a running jumper with 3:28 to go.

Then Wallace made a jumper to put Charlotte on top for good.

It was a perfect ending for the Bobcats, who played the first game in their state-of-the-art, $265 million downtown arena before a sold-out crowd.

Emeka Okafor considered taking the trolley to work Saturday night, a luxury Charlotte's star forward now has in the Bobcats' new downtown arena.

Okafor instead chose to make the two-minute drive from his high rise apartment, ensuring he made it in time for a red carpet celebration the Bobcats had before officially opening the $265 million facility for Saturday night's sold-out game against the Boston Celtics.

"This place is incredible," Okafor said before the game. "I'm just happy we have a place that everybody likes. The other place was not good at all."

The Bobcats played their inaugural season in the antiquated Charlotte Coliseum, a suburban facility that lacked the amenities and atmosphere found in today's NBA facilities. With fans still bitter about the Hornets' departure from Charlotte in 2002, the Bobcats struggled to draw at the Coliseum and ranked 28th in the league in attendance.