NBA Post All-Star Break Preview

To say the pendulum of power has shifted to the Western conference is an understatement as at least one team will win 45 games and not make the playoffs and there are legitimately 6 teams within 3 games of the Conference Lead. It's going to be a wild 10 weeks as teams jockey for playoff position and home court.
Phoenix Suns - Was it a gamble trading for Shaq? You bet. Could it blow up in their face? Of course. Are they getting the guy who carried the Lakers to 3 straight titles? Probably not. The Suns season will be defined by whether or not they win the championship with Shaq. The next 10 weeks will be spent figuring out how to best utilize Shaq within their system so by playoff time - he and the team are ready.

New Orleans Hornets - This has to be the surprise team of the season. Chris Paul has evolved into the premier point guard in the NBA making everyone around him better and the team has remained surprisingly healthy. Expect a second half-slowdown as this roster of oft-injured players begins missing some games and the Hornets find themselves on the road in round 1 of the playoffs.

Dallas Mavericks - Continue to chug along with another fine regular season and are within striking distance of home court advantage, but this team will be defined by how they fare in the playoffs. Unlike over the past couple of years, the Mavs may not face the same headlines during the playoffs as the Suns, Lakers & Spurs will likely be the prohibitive favorites. Could this work to their advantage?

Utah Jazz - Deron Williams has blossomed into one of the top point guards in the NBA and Carlos Boozer continues to be a dominant force inside. Kirilenko has played his best ball in three years. Have only lost 3 games since January 1 and will need to maintain this level of play if they want to be a home team in round 1 of the playoffs.

Los Angeles Lakers - If Kobe still wants to leave LA, then it has nothing to do with the roster around him. We saw the emergence of Andrew Bynum who has the makings of one of the top centers in the NBA, the free agent signing of Derek Fisher who handles the ball well and is the type of player you need to win and the trade for Pau Gasol who changes the Lakers from play-off participant to title contender. If Bynum comes back healthy, the Lakers should be disappointed with anything less than a trip to the conference finals - if not more.

San Antonio Spurs - The defending champs find themselves sixth in the conference and ailing as both Manu and Tony Parker have missed time. For the Spurs, Tony Parker's return is the key to the team's success. The West is too deep for the Spurs to expect to return to the finals without Parker for a significant amount of time and they need to get him back soon or risk traveling on the road in the first round of the playoffs.

Denver Nuggets - The Nuggets are having a good season and should be encouraged by the return of Kenyon Martin to play alongside Marcus Camby creating a formidable inside defensive presence. Anthony Carter has been giving them fine play out of the point guard position and the Iverson/Anthony combination gives this team the scoring punch it needs. If they were to acquire a point guard (A. Miller or M. Bibby) this team would instantly move to the upper echelon teams in the west.

Golden State Warriors - While many expected a drop off after last year's surprise run through the playoffs, Golden State recovered from a 0-6 start to having won more than 60% of their games. Expect them to battle Houston for that final playoff spot but finding themselves a game or two short from trying to recapture last year's magic.

Houston Rockets - The Rockets have been up and down all season with a few winning streaks and one six game losing streak. The team is adapting to Rick Adelman's philosophy and if Yao Ming can avoid his annual injury, this team should find itself in the playoffs but likely facing a daunting task to get out of the first round.

Portland Trailblazers - If it was the Portland, Maine Trailblazers, they'd be printing playoff tickets. Unfortunately, the team is out West and it looks like they won't sneak into the playoffs. However, considering the team lost 1^st pick Greg Oden before the season started, a winning record was a fool's dream, so the Blazers have been one of the surprises of the season. Expect them to continue to play well in the second half as they try and build momentum a run at the 2008-2009 playoffs where they are certain to be the "chic" pick.

Sacramento Kings - Prognosticators weren't expecting much out of this Kings team, especially with Mike Bibby missing the first half of the season, however, several young players have emerged and the Kings have been close to .500-ball. With the playoffs out of reach, the Kings are considering trading Bibby and Ron Artest for rebuilding parts. If that happens, will the younger players such as John Salmons and Francisco Garcia once again be able to pick up the Kings and keep them competitive in the powerful Western Conference.

Los Angeles Clippers - On the bright side, Chris Kaman has emerged as a rebounding force in an otherwise dismal season. Even without the loss of Elton Brand, these guys would have struggled to make a run at the playoffs. Rookie Al Thornton should continue to see an increase in minutes as the team evaluates him for next year. With Brand potentially opting out, Sam Cassell as trade bait or bought out, this team may have a new look next year.

Memphis Grizzlies - Rudy Gay has evolved into a premier player and in spurts Mike Conley, Jr. looked like a player; however, the team is clearly looking to the future with the trade of Pau Gasol. The question is how far out are the Grizzlies looking? Clearly the rest of this season will be evaluating Darko Milicic and the other young players. When all is said and done, expect them to end up with the worst record in the league.

Seattle Supersonics - No one expected it to be pretty - and it hasn't been. Super rookie Kevin Durant is putting a lot of points, but he's also averaging 17 shots a game. The roster is littered with sixth and seventh men. They may win some games down the stretch as veterans on the teams start auditioning for clubs for next year, but they're a couple years away from serious playoff contention.

Minnesota Timberwolves - Coming off a 32 win season you trade a potential Hall of famer in Kevin Garnett - you certainly can't expect to get better. After starting 4 - 26 in calendar 2007, the team has won six games since. While Randy Foye has been injured for most of the season, the additional wins would have been incremental. The Wolves are clearly looking to the future as they hope to build around Al Jefferson, who has been a double-double machine and Randy Foye.