The NBA calendar says the playoffs begin April 17. For players like Lonny Baxter, though, they've already begun.

Baxter won't be seeing the postseason as a member of the 23-53 Washington Wizards ? there's no such event for teams 30 games below .500 ? but the second-year player from Maryland knows that if he is going to have a future in the NBA, this is the time to show his stuff with just six games remaining.

"I look at it like this is really big for me, almost like a playoff run or something," Baxter said.

"My mindset is that I'm just going to go out and work hard, work on my game every day and try to go out there with intensity every time I'm called on. You just can't look at it like the season is over, because it's not over until the last game. You have to keep working and fighting every day until the end."