Bucks Lose Rookie Ford for Season and Playoffs

Milwaukee Buck rookie point guard T.J. Ford will sit out the rest of the regular season and the playoffs because of a bruised spinal cord.

Ford hasn’t played since getting hurt Feb. 24, when he landed on his tailbone in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“T.J.’s bruise hasn’t healed as quickly as we had hoped,” General Manager Larry Harris said. “At this point, he would not have adequate practice time to return to playing condition, so the decision was made not to activate him for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs.”

Harris said Ford was expected to make a full recovery and be ready for training camp.

Ford, from Texas, was the eighth overall selection in last summer’s draft and averaged 7.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 6.5 assists. When he was hurt, he was leading all rookies in assists and ranked ninth in the NBA in assists.

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Memphis Grizzly forward James Posey was fined $7,500 by the NBA for kicking a ball into the stands. Posey was ejected with less than three minutes left in a loss to the Utah Jazz on Monday.

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NBA Commissioner David Stern expects Michael Jordan to become a team owner someday.

“Yes, I would predict that in the next few years Michael Jordan will be an owner of an NBA team,” Stern said. “It’s something I want to happen.”

Jordan most recent ventures into possible ownership deals included talks last summer with the Charlotte Bobcats and Milwaukee Bucks.

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The Chicago Bulls put guard Kendall Gill on the injured list because of migraine headaches, meaning he will sit out the rest of the season. ... The Toronto Raptors put point guard Rod Strickland on the injured list because of a back problem, sidelining him for the rest of the season. ... The Seattle SuperSonics signed forward Leon Smith for the rest of the season. Smith, drafted out of high school by the San Antonio Spurs in 1999, had been playing for the Continental Basketball Assn.’s Great Lakes Storm.