The trade is expected to give Charlottes outside shooting

FIVE QUICK HOOPS THOUGHTS 1. DAMIAN LILLARD (Blazers): Caught his act in Toronto on Sunday versus the Raptors. Man, this kid can really play. Love his game. Excellent vision, wonderful change of pace/speed, good creativity, explosive first step and smarts. He shoots it well from behind the arc and is a crafty screen and roll guy. Has taken a nice step in year two and the best is yet to come. Point guards who can get in the lane at will and make others better are a must in todays NBA and Portlands got a guy thats a keeper. As Raptors Terence Ross (picked two spots after Lillard) mostly watched from the bench, Lillard was a load for his team to deal with. The luck of the draft - the Blazers got themselves a significant piece to build/turn their team around with. Hes Legit. 2. OMER ASIK (Rockets): Things are getting testy in Houston with Asik demanding a trade and hanging his head about the arrival of Dwight Howard. With this situation deteriorating by the day, it will get harder and harder for GM Daryl Morey to get significant value for him because teams will know that youre stuck and you have to move him and that lowers what you have to give them back in return. Asiks immature reaction to the events have made it more difficult for him to get moved. Get your head up and be a pro and go out on the court and play your tail off and youll get your wish. If not, Rockets are stuck taking back pennies on the dollar and will be boxed in. Not pretty. 3. LANCE STEPHENSON (Pacers): This man is going to get paid this off-season. Hes a free agent at the end of the year and his value is increasing day by day. He plays with great energy and determination and his overall skill set has improved beautifully. Averaging close to 14 points per game, as well as over five rebounds per game and five-plus assists per game. Really impressive and the fact that hes shooting the three Ball so well at 45 per cent is opening lots of eyes. I said this last year about Paul George and Ill say it now about Stephenson; the best thing that ever happened to him and the Pacers has been the injury absences of Danny Granger. Its truly allowed these guys to play through mistakes and have to carry a significant role early in their career and its paid huge dividends. The Pacers scouting staff deserves lots of credit for coming up with this second round gem, as well as for guys like George who was a 10th pick. The most underrated aspect of winning organizations is having great scouts who have the knack for evaluating/projecting and picking players. Another diamond in the rough while other organizations cant even get out of their own way. 4. KLAY THOMPSON (Warriors): Averaging close to 21 ppg and playing lights out right now. Look at his shooting numbers: - 51 field goal percentage and 55 three-point field-goal percentage. This man has wonderful shooting mechanics and has figured out how to get his game off with the dribble and can help you in the transition game as well as in the slower half-court style. When you watch a guy polishing his skills and getting the rough edges off his game its neat to witness and were seeing it here. Becoming one of the better young two guards in the League. A talented guy, yes, but more importantly he plays the game with the proper tempo and there is a method to his approach. Im a fan. 5. ZACH RANDOLPH & MARC GASOL (Grizzlies): Memo to coach Dave Joerger: stop listening to those goofballs who are whispering in your ear about pace of play and shooting more threes. I love these guys who think theyre smarter than everybody because they come up with all these fancy mathematical formulas to explain their clueless theories. Im a huge believer that for every ounce of intelligence you have you better have a pound of common sense to go along with it. Theyll be the same ones to fire you when the win-loss mark doesnt work out. Slow it down and pound the heck out of folks. On Sunday, I watch them punish Sacramento (I know--its the Kings) in the paint for a combined 41 points and 18 rebounds. Your teams strength is power basketball; rebounding, defense and winning ugly. Play to your strengths. This isnt a beauty contest. Sure everyone wants to run up and down and shoot threes and entertain. Beauty to me is finding a way to win games and that means hiding your weaknesses and playing up your advantages. Open your eyes and trust your gut and pure instincts and realize the reality of what youre working with. Dont outsmart yourself. 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The Reds will host the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight in the opener of a four-game series at Great American Ball Park, and the debut matchup will feature a pair of pitchers whose recent resumes have included a fair number of bases-clearing hits.CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The Charlotte Bobcats are trying to bolster their 3-point shooting for the playoff stretch run. The Bobcats acquired guards Luke Ridnour and Gary Neal from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for guard Ramon Sessions and forward Jeff Adrien just hours before the NBA trade deadline Thursday, both teams announced. The trade is expected to give Charlottes outside shooting a boost as the Bobcats make a push for the playoffs. Neal, a career 43 per cent 3-point shooter, should help a team that lacks a true shooting guard. Session was a valuable backup point guard for Charlotte but Ridnour should help to fill that void. Neal spent three seasons with the San Antonio Spurs before signing this past off-season with the Bucks as a free agent. He is averaging 10 points and shooting 39 per cent from 3-point range. Ridnour, in his 11th NBA season, can play both guard spots. Hes played in 36 games this season and is averaging 5.7 points and 3.4 assists in 21.2 minutes. Hes averaging 9.8 points per game for his career. "We are excited to add a pair of quality players to our backcourt," Bobcats president of basketball operations Rod Higgins said in a press release Thursday. "Gary is an exceptional shooter and Luke is a veteran point guard who can help us off the bench. They both have significant post-season experience so they know how to get where were trying to go. We look forward to adding them to our rotation.dddddddddddd" Bucks coach Larry Drew said Neal was in a tough situation playing behind younger players after being with a successful team in San Antonio. He said Charlotte will be a good fit, as centre Al Jefferson will require double teams and help free up Neal for open 3-pointers. "That, I think, is a great situation for the both of them," Drew said. "You look at what they have in Jefferson, a guy that certainly can command a double-team, it opens it up. He can stretch the defence." Higgins called Sessions a true professional and thanked him for his effort in Charlotte. Sessions was having a successful second season with the Bobcats, averaging 10.5 points and 3.7 assists per game. He started seven games with point guard Kemba Walker out with a sprained ankle and filled in well. Sessions, who likes to drive to the hole and draw contact, has averaged at least 10 points per game in each of his last five seasons. Adrien has seen limited action for the Bobcats and hasnt been in their rotation much in recent weeks. He has played in 25 games and averaged 2.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. The Bucks acquire two expiring contracts in the deal and will avoid paying Neal $3.5 million next season. Charlotte was eighth in the Eastern Conference playoff race, 2 1/2 games ahead of Detroit, after Wednesdays games. The Bucks have the worst record in the NBA. 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