Dakota Wizards general manager Tom Waggener said putting together a league's schedule is a lot like being a referee - no matter what you do, you're never going to make everybody happy.

But by and large the Wizards are pleased with their 2008-09 schedule, which was released by the D-League on Tuesday.

One thing that pleased Waggener is the high number of weekend games - 14 of Dakota's 24 home dates will be on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

Another is that the schedule is a bit more balanced than last year's. There are no road trips longer than four games and no seemingly endless stretches where they play the same team over and over again, like last year's run against Fort Wayne.

Plus, as a bonus, the Wizards begin and their season at home - the opener against Iowa on Nov. 29, the finale against Anaheim on April 10.

"We've got a lot of weekend games, which is great, plus New Year's Eve," Waggener said. "Things are broken up a little better and spread out a bit more."

With the D-League expanding to 16 teams, some thought was given to a four-division setup. That would have resulted in the Wizards and their archrivals, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, being in separate divisions.

Instead, the three-division setup remains, with the Erie BayHawks added to the Central and the Reno Bighorns joining the West.

The Wizards will play each of the teams in the Central - Sioux Falls, Erie, the Iowa Energy and the Fort Wayne Mad Ants - seven times each. They will play the other 11 teams in the league twice each.

One change fans will notice in next season's schedule is the abundance of Sunday games. The Wizards have seven Sunday home games, up from four last year, and the most they've ever had. Four of the Sunday games will take place in December.

"We wanted to have them as 3 o'clock starts, but then you're going head-to-head with football," Waggener said. "We still felt it was better for us to take a chance on a Sunday in December rather than a Tuesday or Wednesday."

Other notes on the 2008-09 schedule:

n Erie will be Dakota's opponent for the traditional New Year's Eve game.

n The Wizards will again travel to Sioux Falls to play the Skyforce on Christmas Day.

n The dates for games at the D-League Showcase, which will be played in Orem, Utah, have not been set.

n The D-League all-star game is scheduled for Feb. 14 in Phoenix as part of the NBA's all-star game weekend.