NEW YORK, Dec. 17, 2007 – Alando Tucker of the Albuquerque Thunderbirds today was named D-League.com Performer of the Week for games played during the week of Dec. 10. In two games, Tucker averaged 36.0 points, 6.5 rebounds while shooting 27-of-52 (.519) from the field.

Tucker, a Thunderbird by way of assignment from the Phoenix Suns, scored 40 points and grabbed eight rebounds during a Dec. 14 victory over the Bakersfield Jam. His 40-point performance tied the D-League best for the season. Tucker came out the next night, Dec. 15, to score 32 points and pull down five rebounds in a win over the Anaheim Arsenal.

A 6-6 forward from Wisconsin, Tucker was selected 29th overall by the Suns in the 2007 NBA Draft. In five games since being assigned on Nov. 29, he is averaging 28.2 points (tied for second in the D-League) and 7.0 rebounds. A first-team All-America and the 2006-07 Big Ten Player of the Year, Tucker averaged 6.0 points in two games with the Suns before his assignment to the Thunderbirds.

Other top performers in the D-League last week included Utah’s Morris Almond, averaged 31.5 points and 4.5 rebounds; Austin’s Keith Langford who averaged 25.0 points shooting 29-of-55 (.527) from the field; Rio Grande Valley’s Gabe Muoneke who averaged 27.0 points and 5.6 rebounds; Jeremy Richardson of Fort Wayne averaged 31.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals; and Rio Grande Valley’s C.J. Watson who finished the week averaging 24.3 points and 9.9 assists.

The NBA Development League is the NBA's official minor league, and the first-ever basketball league with direct affiliations to NBA teams. Now in its seventh season the D-League’s goals are to provide affordable, NBA-caliber entertainment to fans of its 14 teams, as well as continue to develop players, coaches, referees and front-office personnel for the NBA. As the single source for in-season player "call-ups" to the NBA, fans of the D-League enjoy the highest caliber of basketball played outside the NBA. In fact, former D-League players represented 10 percent of NBA players on 2007-08 opening day rosters, numbering 44 in total. In addition, the D-League has produced 25 percent of current NBA referees and 16 current NBA coaches, including head coach Sam Vincent with the Charlotte Bobcats. The D-League is an innovative and rapidly growing sports property that also serves as an experimental testing ground for new initiatives of the NBA and its teams, provides continuing education and professional development resources for its players, and is committed to serving its local communities through D-LEAGUE CARES and grassroots efforts.