The All-Warrior Team

Alonzo Mourning has likely played his final game in the NBA. He suffered a torn patellar tendon in his right knee last month, and while a younger player could expect to return from a similar injury in time for next season, the 37-year-old veteran had already stated unequivocally that this season would be his last.

It's been 16 years since Mourning came into the league, and in that span he's established himself as one of the greatest defensive players of all-time despite missing one full season and portions of three others due to a kidney disease that eventually required a transplant. Not many players would have continued to persevere in the face of such tall odds, but Mourning has always embraced a true warrior's mentality.

In fact, that mentality made Mourning the type of player he was. He's been one of most intimidating defensive players for as long as he's been in the league, and even in a reduced role following his comeback he ranked among the leaders in blocked shots. Even as disease robbed him of his prime years and age slowed him upon his return, very few players ever matched the intensity he brought to the court each night.

In honor of Mourning's distinguished career, let's take a look around the league and recognize those who play every game with the same passion and fire by naming the All-Warrior Team.

C – Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic

Howard has improved each and every year he's been in the league, which is awfully impressive considering he came in averaging a double-double. He's the NBA's rebounding king (and could easily hold onto the crown for the next decade), ranks fourth in the league by averaging a 'Zo-like 2.7 rejections per game and leads his team in scoring with a career-high 22.4 points per game.

How consistent has Howard been this year? He has 30 double-doubles in 35 games, six more than anyone else in the league. Oh, and the next game he misses will be his first. The scary thing is that he's still only 22 years old. With his work ethic and off-the-charts athleticism, he's on path to going down as one of the all-time greats. That's a bold statement to make about someone who still has a good decade and a half left in his career, but it's true.

PF – Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics

There are very few players who have Garnett's burning desire to win, and even fewer with such a strong sense of loyalty that he lasted as long as he did in Minnesota without requesting a trade. After finally being dealt this summer and shedding the burden of being the face of a franchise, he's embraced life as being just one piece of Boston's Big Three, along with Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.

But make no mistake: Pierce may be the leading scorer and Allen may take more big shots at the end of games, but Garnett is the glue that holds it all together. For example, when he sat down early in the first quarter after picking up a pair of fouls against the Detroit Pistons on Saturday, the Celtics scored just two more points over the next eight minutes. It was only after he returned that they were able to turn things around and pull out the win.

SF – Ron Artest, Sacramento Kings

There's a good chance that Artest might be a little bit crazy, but that's part of what makes him so invaluable on the floor. He literally doesn't know how to play the game at any other speed than full-throttle: it's all or nothing when he's on the court, harassing his opponent on both sides of the ball from the opening top to the final buzzer. Yes, there's a lot of baggage that comes with having him on the roster, but at the end of a close game when you absolutely need a stop, there are few other players you'd rather have on your side.

SG – Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers

Bryant may be the league's most competitive player since Michael Jordan finally retired for good. That's both a blessing and a curse; unlike Garnett, he's often lacked the tact to cope with the frustration of losing without alienating those around him. The Lakers are at their best when everyone on the team is able to contribute, but Bryant is obviously capable of taking over any game whenever he wants.

PG – Sam Cassell, Los Angeles Clippers

Cassell may not have made as many All-Star teams as some of the other players on this list, but the fact that he's not only still in the league at 38 years old but also starting proves that he's lived up to Mourning's standard of perseverance.

The Clippers aren't doing too hot this year, but Cassell's mere presence as a leader both on and off the court was credited as being one of the major factors in this franchise's resurgence a couple of years ago. Even though his shot isn't as consistent as it once was, he's just as willing to take huge shots with the game on the line now as back when he was winning championships his first two years in the league with the Rockets.

The NBA is filled with hard workers – some players make the game look easy, but nobody coasts on talent alone in the NBA. That said, the above five players are in a league of their own when it comes to combining work ethic, talent and determination. Mourning may be retiring, but he leaves behind players cut from the same mold.

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ATLANTA (AP) -Alonzo Mourning refused to leave what might have been the last game of his career on a stretcher.

After tearing the patellar tendon in his right knee in Miami's game against Atlanta on Wednesday night, the 37-year-old Heat center was placed on the stretcher, but he refused the ride.

"That's not the way I envisioned myself walking off the court for the last time in my career,'' he said. "I've been through so much in my life. If I had to crawl off the court I would have. Nobody was going to push me off on a stretcher off the court. That wasn't going to happen.''

Mourning already has said there is "zero chance'' of playing another season.

"We tried to help him up and he just said 'It's over, it's over,''' Miami's Udonis Haslem said.

Mourning sat up, rose to his feet and limped to the Miami bench with the assistance of teammates. He received an ovation as he made the slow, painful walk to the bench.

Miami spokesman Michael Lissack said an examination at Philips Arena, including X-rays, revealed the injury. Mourning will have more tests Thursday with team physician Dr. Harlan Selesnick, including an MRI.

"Dr. Selesnick will let me know tomorrow,'' said Mourning, who was on crutches after the game. "But obviously it's going to require some kind of surgical procedure. And it'll be done as soon as possible.''

Lissack said it wasn't immediately known if the injury could end Mourning's season.

Injuries such as this typically take at least three months to heal.

When asked about Mourning's outlook, Heat coach Pat Riley said "I think we should really wait on that. But it's not good.''

"I'd never put anything past Zo. But the knee injury is ... sad for me because I know him. I've been really close to him. It's sad to see him really be hurt.''

Mourning is in his 15th year in the NBA, including 11 seasons with Miami.

Mourning was hurt when attempting to defend the basket on a layup by Atlanta's Mario West. Replays showed Mourning's knee buckled without contact from West as Mourning was about to jump.

"When I planted I felt like my foot slipped,'' Mourning said. "It happened so fast though. It really did. I didn't even watch the tape. From what everybody else told me that was watching it, they said it looked like I slipped.''

Mourning is a seven-time All-Star and two-time defensive player of the year.

His 15 years in the league do not include a full year he missed because of kidney problems that led to him getting a transplant in 2003.

"Each of you here know I've been through a whole lot worse than this,'' Mourning said. "It's disappointing to even think that my career would end this way, but there are so many other things that life has to offer for me. I have a great family and I have so many other opportunities out there.

kaynak : NBA

Heat's Mourning appears finished

Victor Baldizon/NBAE via Getty ImagesAlonzo Mourning of the Miami Heat is scheduled to have what is likely career-ending knee surgery.

MIAMI - The career of Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning has likely come to an end.

The veteran big man is scheduled to have knee surgery Thursday to repair a torn patella tendon in his right knee, according to a report on the Miami Herald's Web site.

Facing a six- to eight-month recovery that will sideline him for the remainder of the season, the 37-year-old Mourning has probably played his last NBA game.

Even before he suffered the injury in Wednesday's loss to Atlanta, Mourning had said this would be the last season of his 15-year career. He did not back off that claim following Wednesday's game and seemed resigned to the idea of retirement.

"It's disappointing to think that my career may end this way," Mourning said after Wednesday's game. "But there are just so many other things that are important in life. I have my whole life to do other things."

Mourning suffered the tear as he raced down the court and planted beneath the rim to block a shot in the first quarter of the Heat's 117-111 overtime loss to the Hawks.

After crumpling to the floor, the 15-year veteran immediately grabbed at the knee and pounded his fist to the court. He was initially put on a stretcher before leaving under his own power and being helped to the locker room by his teammates.

Mourning, who had averaged 6.0 points and 3.8 rebounds entering the game, scored five points before the injury.

A seven-time All-Star, Mourning played a role in Miami's NBA title run in 2006 and is one of the most popular - and hard-working - players on the squad.

"It's tough to see a guy work so hard and go out like that," Miami swingman Ricky Davis said Wednesday.

A two-time Defensive Player of the Year, Mourning defeated the odds just by stepping on the court in recent years. He was diagnosed with a rare kidney disease in 2003 and returned for the 2004-05 season after a transplant.

The second overall pick in the 1992 draft out of Georgetown, Mourning became the latest in a line of great Hoya pivot men in the NBA, joining Patrick Ewing and Dikembe Mutombo. He has averaged 17.1 points and 8.5 rebounds in 838 career NBA games.

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Heat, Bucks both try to break losing streaks

A pair of struggling teams meet Wednesday as the Miami Heat host the Milwaukee Bucks. Both teams enter this contest looking to snap four-game losing streaks.

Miami began the season without superstar Dwyane Wade and went 1-6 in his absence. Now that Wade is rounding into playing shape, center Alonzo Mourning has been lost for the season with a torn patellar tendon and Shaquille O'Neal has missed the last two games with a hip injury.

Wade's 48-point effort was not enough in an overtime loss to the Orlando Magic on Friday. He managed just 12 points in Saturday's 96-74 loss to the Washington Wizards.

The Bucks have suffered from a lack of defensive intensity this season, relying on big men such as Charlie Villanueva, Yi Jianlian and Andrew Bogut, who prefer to play facing the basket.

Milwaukee suffered an embarrassing 114-69 loss at Detroit on Monday in which it shot just 36 percent (26-of-72) while allowing the Pistons to shoot 58 percent (45-of-77). The Bucks also committed 21 turnovers.

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Injury May End Alonzo Mourning's Career

Alonzo Mourning refused to leave what might have been the last game of his career on a stretcher. After tearing the patellar tendon in his right knee in Miami's game against Atlanta on Wednesday night, the 37-year-old Heat center was placed on the stretcher, but he refused the ride.

"That's not the way I envisioned myself walking off the court for the last time in my career," he said. "I've been through so much in my life. If I had to crawl off the court I would have. Nobody was going to push me off on a stretcher off the court. That wasn't going to happen."

Mourning already has said there is "zero chance" of playing another season.

"We tried to help him up and he just said 'It's over, it's over,'" Miami's Udonis Haslem said.

Mourning sat up, rose to his feet and limped to the Miami bench with the assistance of teammates. He received an ovation as he made the slow, painful walk to the bench.

Miami spokesman Michael Lissack said an examination at Philips Arena, including X-rays, revealed the injury. Mourning will have more tests Thursday with team physician Dr. Harlan Selesnick, including an MRI.

"Dr. Selesnick will let me know tomorrow," said Mourning, who was on crutches after the game. "But obviously it's going to require some kind of surgical procedure. And it'll be done as soon as possible."

Lissack said it wasn't immediately known if the injury could end Mourning's season.

Injuries such as this typically take at least three months to heal.

When asked about Mourning's outlook, Heat coach Pat Riley said "I think we should really wait on that. But it's not good."

"I'd never put anything past Zo. But the knee injury is ... sad for me because I know him. I've been really close to him. It's sad to see him really be hurt."

Mourning is in his 15th year in the NBA, including 11 seasons with Miami.

Mourning was hurt when attempting to defend the basket on a layup by Atlanta's Mario West. Replays showed Mourning's knee buckled without contact from West as Mourning was about to jump.

"When I planted I felt like my foot slipped," Mourning said. "It happened so fast though. It really did. I didn't even watch the tape. From what everybody else told me that was watching it, they said it looked like I slipped."

Mourning is a seven-time All-Star and two-time defensive player of the year.

His 15 years in the league do not include a full year he missed because of kidney problems that led to him getting a transplant in 2003.

"Each of you here know I've been through a whole lot worse than this," Mourning said. "It's disappointing to even think that my career would end this way, but there are so many other things that life has to offer for me. I have a great family and I have so many other opportunities out there.

kaynak : NBA