Laettner

The first time Brian Davis tried to enter the NBA, it was as a second-round draft choice of the Phoenix Suns in 1992. For a player who had been on three Final Four teams at Duke and a starter on the 1991 and 1992 national championship teams, the obstacle was daunting. "They had Charles Barkley, Dan Majerle, Danny Ainge and Cedric Ceballos," Davis said yesterday, naming the Suns' small forwards and shooting guards, the two positions the 6-foot-7 Davis had played for the Blue Devils. After a year playing in France, Davis made the Minnesota Timberwolves the next season.

CHICAGO - Stick around the NBA long enough, and things can change, like a reputation. The proof of that is in the rebirth of Christian Laettner's career. Though he had produced solid numbers, Laettner, a 10-year veteran, was labeled as brooding and difficult to play with in his stops with Minnesota, Atlanta, Detroit and Dallas - teams that had little or no chance of winning titles. Laettner's basketball name had become so sullied that the Mavericks essentially threw him into a deal in February with Washington, with Hubert Davis, Courtney Alexander and Etan Thomas for Juwan Howard and two others.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Duke's strategy for handling Iowa's pressure defense was simple -- let 6-foot-11 Christian Laettner throw the ball over the top and attack.The Blue Devils made it work, closing the first half with a 13-1 surge and beating the Hawkeyes, 85-70, yesterday in the National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament to earn its sixth straight trip to a regional semifinal."Our goal was to break the press. Most teams see [Iowa center] Acie Earl back there and they don't want to attack because he's such a great shot blocker," said Duke's Thomas Hill, who sparked the decisive run with a dunk and three-point play.

WASHINGTON - The Washington Wizards' coaching staff and players spend a lot of time trying to persuade Christian Laettner to shoot, which should come as a surprise to anyone who lost sight of the former Duke star's career after he led the Blue Devils to two national titles in the early 1990s. But Laettner showed no hesitation in pulling the trigger last night, hitting three big jumpers in the fourth quarter to help the Wizards pull out a 101-98 win over the Chicago Bulls before 20,172 at MCI Center.

WASHINGTON - Addressing the media for the first time since coming off a five-game suspension, Washington Wizards forward/center Christian Laettner expressed regret yesterday for violating the NBA's drug policy and declared himself "committed and devoted" to making sure it doesn't happen again. "It feels great. ... I still love the game," Laettner said after practice. "It was tough being away. Sometimes you say to yourself, `I need a vacation,' but as soon as I got back out there, I realized how much I miss the game.

WASHINGTON - All the rumors swirling around MCI Center were confirmed last night, as the Wizards dealt Wisconsin guard Devin Harris and forwards Jerry Stackhouse and Christian Laettner to the Dallas Mavericks for forward Antawn Jamison and cash considerations. The Wizards selected Harris, the 2003-04 Big Ten Player of the Year, as the No. 5 pick in the NBA draft. With the deal, the Wizards hope to cash in this season on talent, rather than wait for it to develop. The Wizards suffered through a 37-45 season with one of the youngest teams in the league as nine Wizards had two or fewer years of NBA experience.

BasketballMinnesota Timberwolves: Activated F Christian Laettner. Placed C Eric Riley on the injured list.HockeyBinghamton Rangers (AHL): Loaned C Dennis Maxwell to Charlotte.

DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke retired Christian Laettner's number and rediscovered Bobby Hurley all in the same passionate and bittersweet night.The top-ranked Blue Devils got an unexpected lift from Hurley's early return to action last night as they slammed their way past Virginia 76-67 in hot and loud Cameron Indoor Stadium.It was a critical victory for the Blue Devils (22-2, 12-2), who clinched at least a tie for the ACC regular season championship. They forged the triumph under a smothering set of conflicting emotions that swirled around Laettner's honor, Hurley's comeback, the loss of Grant Hill (sprained ankle)

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Some University of Kentucky fraternit pledges made the steal, but campus police blew the whistle and called foul.Kentucky officers have confiscated several sports items they say pledges at the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity took from the Duke and North Carolina campuses last weekend during a retreat.Christian Laettner's retired jersey was one of the stolen items.UK Police Chief W. H. McComas said they were tipped off Monday night that a fraternity pledge had Laettner's No. 32 white and blue mesh jersey and was showing it off in a campus dorm.