From the start, Avery Johnson was a perfect fit as coach of the Dallas Mavericks.

At the end, it was pretty obvious he wasn't.

Johnson lost his job yesterday, a move the team referred to as "relieving him of his duties." The softer tone made sense considering that in three-plus seasons Johnson guided the Mavericks to the finals for the first time and to a club-record 67 wins the following season.

Yet for all the high points, there were some serious lows -- blowing a 2-0 lead in those finals, getting dumped in the first round of the playoffs after that 67-win season and then, the final straw, getting knocked out in the first round again this season after Dallas shook up its roster and mortgaged some of its future to acquire Jason Kidd.

In those three consecutive postseason wipeouts, the Mavericks lost 12 of 15 games, including all nine on the road.

"Was it time for a change? I guess," said Dirk Nowitzki, who became the league MVP under Johnson's watch. "... Unfortunately it's just one of those situations where everybody's got to move on."

The final mark during Johnson's tenure: 194-70 in the regular season, 23-24 in the playoffs.

Kevin Durant, the SuperSonics' dynamic young star, has been chosen as the NBA rookie of the year, The Associated Press has learned from a person with knowledge of the vote.

Gilbert Arenas, who missed most of the regular season after knee surgery, decided to end his season.