Turkoglu, fatigued after a long playoff run and a long summer of commitments to the Turkish national team, is also being shut down for the early part of the week. Turkoglu is dealing with a knee problem that needs some time according to head coach Jay Triano. "It's his fatigue level right now," Triano said. "He's just going to work with (the training staff) and rehab his knee and get to the point where he can perform at 100%. The past four months he has played going back to June has been some pretty intense basketball so we are just going to ease him back in and make sure we don't wear him down."
The Turkish player,Ersan ILYASOVA, is back with the Bucks and being counted on as an important part of coach Scott Skiles' power forward rotation. He's played competitively at a very high level," Skiles said. "Just look at his body; his body is filled out. That comes from playing with one of the top clubs in Europe and also playing a starring role for Turkey's national team. That comes from playing with one of the top clubs in Europe and also playing a starring role for Turkey's national team. "All the time my goal was to get back," Ilyasova said. "I went overseas to be a good player and improve. I think I did really well for Barca the last two years. I played a lot of games there." Ilyasova helped Barcelona reach the Euroleague final four during the past season, a prestigious accomplishment for any top European club. He averaged 10.5 points and 7.0 rebounds in 22 Euroleague games, while shooting 49.5% from the field and 40.3% from three-point range. It's a good time for Ilyasova now, returning to the NBA and Milwaukee, a city he enjoyed during his two years here. Next summer he will enjoy another challenge as Turkey plays host to the 2010 World Championship.
Sloan enjoyed watching his Jazz hold on to beat Kobe Bryant and the 42-10 Lakers 113-109 at sold-out EnergySolutions Arena. "It was a big win, and I thought our guys played extremely well," the Jazz coach said after his 30-23 team. All-Star Bryant had a game-high 37 points for the league-leading Lakers, who came in having won both seven in a row overall and seven straight on the road, Mehmet Okur's 3-pointer with 48.8 seconds left broke the tie and put Utah up 110-107. The go-ahead shot was launched from Okur's favorite spot at the left angle. "That's what I've been waiting for, right there," Okur said, and he's not the only one and Mehmet Okur made 22 points- 8 rebounds- 2 assists and 3 stealing.
