Antonio Daniels, who continually has improved the past two months, was at his best yesterday, scoring a season-high 21 points on his 31st birthday in a 113-104 victory over the Chicago Bulls at Verizon Center.
   
"I think this is the time of year for a veteran to step up -- guys who have been in the playoffs like he has, guys who are dedicated," Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said after his team improved to 34-31. "So he's focused in more, and he knows that each shot means a whole lot now. It's that time of the year for those types of guys."
   
Daniels, who signed a five-year, $30 million deal with the Wizards over the summer, looked awful for about the first two months of the season.
   
But after the Wizards and Chucky Atkins agreed on a buyout Jan. 18, Daniels found his comfort zone. This month he has been at this best, averaging 14.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists a game.
   
"It takes a while to find your niche," Daniels said. "You're pressing. You're trying to live up to this, you're trying to live up to that. You need to just calm down and be yourself, and it took a while for me to just be myself. It's a different situation -- new coaching staff, new team, new organization, new system. Once you find a way to blend yourself in without trying to do too much, everything kind of falls into place.
   
"Some nights it's scoring, some nights it's not," Daniels said. "Some nights it's defending. If everybody falls in and plays their role to the best of their abilities, we don't worry about who gets credit and we're a hard team to beat."