The quiet notes will take quick looks at what is going on in the NBA.

The top teams are:

(in no particular order)

San Antonio Spurs (now with Kurt Thomas) until proven otherwise in the playoffs

Detroit Pistons now with added youth

Boston Celtics with the 3 amigos

The hottest team:

Houston Rockets with an energized T-Mac and best center Yao

Biggest question?

Who will play better? Cleveland with Wallace or Chicago with Gooden?

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How can this be?

It is a reach even for 7′ 6″ Yao Ming to win 11 in a row.

Tracy McGrady playing consistently good?

Houston even trades two players away, do not suit up the guy they get and still keep winning!

How can this be?

Well, admittedly, most of the teams they beat were pretty bad teams, but they did just knock off Chris Paul and the Hornets (sounds like a 60’s rock group) and there were a couple of close scrapes with the Cleveland PreWallace LeBrons led by Cavalier LeBron James, which the Rockets managed to pull out.

Still… They are winning!

And get this, they have not lost in February and finish the month with games against the Big Ben-less Bulls, the Wizards minus Agent Zero, and the Pau-less Grizzlies (get it, paw-less Grizzlies, ok, bad joke).

Sounds like 3 more wins and an undefeated month to me.

Side Note: Your intrepid author was pretty harsh on Houston a while back and is currently flogging himself.

It seems the Rockets are worthy.

When both Yao and T-Mac are on, they are pretty hard to beat. In fact, they will kill you from inside and out.

But there is a new element developing and we will have to see if it stays when they play the better clubs.

The Rockets have held eight of their last nine opponents under 90 points. source

Coach Rick Adelman is trying to get this team to take small steps towards being a top team. Right now they are in a dog fight to just make the playoffs.

“I told the team, ‘You put yourself in position to make a move,’ ” coach Rick Adelman said. “It’s our season to make what we want to make of it. Are we going to take advantage of what we’ve done to get to this point? We’ve gotten back into the whole thing. Or are we going to go up and down?” source

Hard to complain right now. Winning can breed a certain level of confidence that will improve your play once the big boys come into town.

Learning to defend your home court is almost essential.

These are the lessons the Rockets learn as they feed off of Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Do the Rockets make the playoffs?

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We only have to look to Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports to tell us about the Top 5 most disappointing teams of the season and, to be sure, you have your favorites as well.

Your intrepid author’s illustrious comments are in italics.

We are the most disappointing. Oh no!

1. Houston – They discovered the truth about this team’s limitations. From Tracy McGrady’s mental and physical fragility to an absence of athleticism, they were a flawed power. They’re devoid of an identity, stuck between what they were with Van Gundy and what they’ll never be with Adelman. source

What the heck? This team is slow and has put everything into two guys that have never won anything.

2. Bulls – Yes, the Bulls struggled to compartmentalize the Kobe Bryant trade talks and some of their own failed bids for contract extensions. Nevertheless, this is still largely a winning, young core. Sure, general manager John Paxson wishes he could have do-overs on choosing Ben Wallace over Tyson Chandler, and Tyrus Thomas over LaMarcus Aldridge, but he’s still had far more makes than misses.

Surprise, no Kobe, no winning. The Skiles message could last so long with a team that just lacks an inside presence.

3. Milwaukee – Among league executives, there’s a belief that the Bucks are close to declaring everyone available, except for Yi Jianlian and Andrew Bogut. Larry Harris is fighting for his job as general manager. Owner Herb Kohl mandated playoff contention in the offseason, and the Bucks are spiraling. In the horrific 45-point loss to the Pistons, one league executive monitoring the game said of the Bucks, “After five minutes, that team just quit.”

Stop picking on this team. They are what they are, and that is very young. Yi and Bogut can be for real given time and teammates.

4. Miami – The Heat are bad now and Shaquille O’Neal’s cap-clogging contract doesn’t expire until 2010, when Wade can opt-out into free agency. He is the biggest sports star in South Florida, but he has to wonder how long and how hard Riley will go as the Heat’s emperor. After all, he has rebuilt Miami twice now, won his elusive post-Lakers title, and it’s difficult to believe he’ll summon that winner within to stay with the grind.

Riley eventually burns all his teams out. Shaq is old and Wade has zero teammates. The Shaq trade was for an instant title and it worked. Now it is over.

5. New York – Thomas promises that he isn’t leaving until he’s delivered that championship. Of course, the fear in New York is that Dolan will hold him to his word. Everyone keeps saying that it can’t go on like this, but it does and it probably will. As much as Thomas has feigned befuddlement over his players’ effort, those inside and outside the locker room at MSG have privately doubted his work habits as coach this season. To think that he’s even preparing for opponents, even putting in the hours, is debatable.

You have heard from me on the Isiah Thomas situation before. Bad management, poor coaching, and selfish players. Lots of talent, but no way to channel it.

Houston and the Bulls can still improve in this season. The other 3 have an uphill battle.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Do you have any disappointing additions?

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You talking to me?

The Bulls are going no where in the NBA this season.

That means you have to blame someone.

They did. They fired the coach, Scott Skiles.

Oh, it was going to happen sometime anyway. Scotty is too fiery to last too long with any pro team. He probably should be coaching in college where a coach can really rule over the team.

When you have Scott’s attitude and your team begins to lose, you will begin to lose your team. It is part of the package in NBA Basketball.

You hire Skiles as a coach and you get better, like with Brown. He’s smart and demanding. Those are good things. He sees the game more quickly and clearly than most coaches working today. He has a plan and a system of play that’s appealing to watch. He emphasizes the right things: defense, teamwork and accountability.

I’d recommend Skiles to just about any team in the NBA.

Like Brown, he tires of his players, in part because his standards are so high. source

It was not all Scott

Scott was not the sole problem in Chicago. Scott gave his all and wore out his message, but the Bulls have problems beyond Scott Skiles.

First there were the failed expectations of the Ben Wallace deal. Ben was on the downhill slope of his career and fit perfectly into the Pistons roster. Chicago thought it would work for them just as well. It didn’t.

Then there were some major gaffes by the GM John Paxson.

There were no major acquisitions in the off-season. Instead, the most notable moves were the ones the Bulls did not make — contract extensions for Ben Gordon and Deng and a blockbuster trade for Kobe Bryant.

And Deng finally acknowledged the negotiations and trade talk may have weighed down the team.

“I keep saying the whole idea that the contract thing isn’t a big deal with me, but it’s getting to a point where I don’t know,” he said. “It’s not like I came in and said I’m not going to play hard. It’s a life-changing decision. When I made the decision, I decided that I’m just going to play. It became part of it because that’s what people kept talking about. We struggled and they kept coming up.” source

They had better think about getting Kobe, because things just are not working as they are now.

Scott explodes through college

Scott played his college ball at Michigan State University and you never saw a guy fuller of spit and fire than Scott. He was linked to some drinking problems in his junior year and had other problems with cocaine and weed before that.

His college coach, Jud Heathcote, came to Scott and asked him if he would prefer to redshirt and not have to face all the hostile fans, while court dates and stuff were going one. Jud reasoned a lot of it would die down in a year.

Scott said no. Bring it on. And bring it on they did. Opposing fans were merciless and booed and chanted at him in every arena. All Scott did was play out of his gourd.

Scott ended his career as All American, Big Ten MVP, Big Ten Scoring Champion, and All time scoring leader for MSU.

Scott has always been me against the world.

NBA Basketball Fan Question What should the Bulls do now?

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Jordan and Kobe, old Bull and future Bull?

Ok, ok, Lamar had a good night and the Lakers took down the Bulls. So what?

Lamar had 17 points and 16 rebounds. Good for him, no knock on Lamar.

But you know, nobody cares about that, because tomorrow Lamar goes back to being an undersized center or an inconsistent power forward.

You just want to know the latest Kobe rumor.

Hey, did you hear Kobe is going to…

Meanwhile, Kobe was slowed down a little.

Slowed by a groin injury, Bryant scored 18 points but was a non-factor for long stretches against the team he targeted as a possible destination during the offseason.

“Everybody’s contributing and playing well,” Bryant said. “It makes the game fun.” source

Why Kobe should be a Bull

Ok, here is the beef. The Bulls are 8 – 14 mired in the basement of the Central Division. And let’s face it; the Central is loaded with solid teams. In other words, the Bulls may be going nowhere.

Now LA is having a pretty good season, but they are not strong enough or deep enough to go anywhere in the playoffs.

Now you have your facts. So what is holding up a trade of Kobe to the Bulls?

Deng dang ding a ling dang

The Lakers want Luol Deng. Is Luol Deng going to rescue the Bulls? No, he is not.

Is Deng such a good young player that you have to hold on to him? Not for the right opportunity to improve.

Think of Kobe and Ben Gordon sharing that backcourt for the Bulls and the defensive mindset brought by the Bulls by Coach Scotty Skiles and former Piston Ben Wallace.

Gentlemen, the Eastern Conference has room for a strong Bulls team to do some playoff damage.

Kobe too risky?

Chicago has been praised so much for their careful rebuilding of the franchise that they seem incapable of pulling off the big move. They are caught up in their carefulness, if that is even a word. Chicago would be afraid to use that word, because it might not be a word. Too much risk.

Chicago Bulls, you need to trade for Kobe now!

NBA Basketball Fan Question Would you trade for Kobe, if you were Chicago?

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The Bulls are 1 – 5.

How can that be?

There are basically 5 reasons.

Oh, this is a joke right. The five reasons are the 5 starting players, right?

No, there are really 5 reasons and here they are.

1. Point guard play

Kirk Hinrich owns an assist-to-turnover ratio of just 2-1 and leads the Bulls in personal fouls. The fifth-year guard threw one pass Saturday night against the Raptors that a youth basketball coach would stop a practice to criticize, a one-handed, cross-court pass across his body.

“Offensively we aren’t sharp, and ultimately that’s my responsibility,” Hinrich said. “I haven’t been playing very well.” source

Hinrich and Gordon? Make the trade for Kobe!

2. Shooting slumps

Can happen to any team.

3. Coaching communication

Never easy to be one of Scott Skiles little minions.

4. Wallace’s woes

Slowed through four games by a sore left ankle, Wallace hasn’t come close to resembling the dominant rebounder and defender he can be. Already, he has sat for three entire fourth quarters, although the other four starters joined him for Saturday’s blowout loss.

In the two games since Wallace has said his ankle is better, he has just 12 rebounds. That used to be one night’s work—and often then some—for him.

Wallace was on the down slope when they got him. What did they expect?

5. Mental fortitude

The “Kobe! Kobe!” chants are now as much a part of home games as Benny the Bull. The multimillion dollar extensions for Deng and Gordon went unsigned. The Eastern Conference is stronger.

Easy solution. Make the trade for Kobe!

NBA Basketball Fan Question Would you make the trade?

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Rasheed to Ben – You need to do something about that lineup

Chicago finally got a victory and it was against arch rival Detroit 97 – 93. Last year Detroit eliminated Chicago from the playoffs and frankly, if the playoffs started today, they would do it again.

The key to victory in this game for Chicago was Tyrus Thomas and that can not be the Bulls modus operandi. Tyrus is not going to lead you through a 7 game series.

This game was not Wallace on Wallace as Ben plays a smaller part now and Rasheed was lighting them up with 36 points.

OK, enough downplaying of this Chicago victory. It was still a victory over Detroit and the Bulls can always use that for confidence moving forward.

“This was a hard one to lose,” Wallace said. “The shots I got down the stretch couldn’t have felt better. You’re just going to have some of those in and outs like that on a night.”

But when Smith missed the first of two from the line it was 96-93 and the Pistons got one last chance for a tie. Hamilton’s 3-pointer was short and the Bulls rebounded with 2.9 seconds left.

Thomas’ free throw sealed the victory for the Bulls, who have had their share of early season distractions, including trade rumors involving Kobe Bryant. source

Chicago has been patient in carefully building a lineup for playoff success and maybe a little too patient. They play strong team defense, but tell me, who really scares you in this lineup?

Detroit does not have a superstar, but has a collection of players that always present a mismatch for at least 2 positions in every game. Where does Chicago get their mismatch?

It is time for Chicago to roll the dice and go for Kobe.

Kobe Bryant would provide that mismatch, that player that scares you, that player that could come up big in the playoffs.

If not Kobe, then someone else. It is time to stop being happy with an occasional victory over the Pistons.

It is time to get serious.

NBA Basketball Fan Question What trade would you make?

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Ha! The rumors were flying and Kobe was to be a Bull.

Not going to happen.

That is, if you listen to Jon Paxson, GM of the Chicago Bulls.

“There’s not a deal done,” he said Thursday. “There’s not going to be a deal done.”
Paxson said they discussed “parameters,” but the sides “never got down to the nuts and bolts of it because there was never a deal to be done.”

Paxson’s comments came a day after a flurry of rumors. Speculation picked up Wednesday, with one report saying the Bulls, Kings and Lakers were discussing a three-way deal that would bring the superstar to Chicago.

That scenario had Paxson sending Ben Gordon and a signed-and-traded P.J. Brown to Sacramento, with former Piston Ben Wallace of the Bulls and Ron Artest of the Kings heading to Los Angeles. Paxson dismissed the rumor, saying a deal involving Brown would send the Bulls over the luxury tax threshold. source

Hmm, where there is smoke there is fire, right? Especially in California these days. Luxury tax is not going to stop this deal or any other deal for Kobe.

Seems more likely that the Bulls would lose both veteran big men for Kobe at a time when the Lakers might have a hard time demanding top dollar for him.

The rumors won’t stop and we love rumors.

According to the Chicago Tribune one of the many trade rumors involving Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers this week, included the Phoenix Suns, who wanted to gauge the Bulls’ interest in trading Thabo Sefolosha and other considerations as part of a package to send Bryant to the Bulls and likely Shawn Marion to the Lakers. source

Hmm, the Suns would strengthen the Lakers with Marion? Doubtful.

Here is yet another trade rumor.

Lakers vice president Magic Johnson said the deal isn’t going to happen.

”A deal can’t get done because they won’t include [Luol] Deng,” Johnson said Tuesday on TNT. ”And without Deng, a deal can’t get done.” source

No Deng, no deal. Well, deng it all, what is it going to take?

Today, Kobe is still a Laker.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Who do you think will land Kobe?

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Dallas Mavericks will win the NBA Championship, according to SI.com writer Ian Thomsen. The runner up will be the Detroit Pistons.
The stars will be Dirk Nowitzki and Josh Howard for the Rockets.

Editor Note: Mark Cuban finally dances with the stars to the title!

Let’s look at the other writer’s choices:

Marty Burns: NBA Champion – San Antonio Spurs
Runner Up – Detroit Pistons

Editor Note: David Stern will not be happy with the low TV ratings. Maybe Rasheed can create some controversy.

Chris Mannix: NBA Champion – San Antonio Spurs
Runner Up – Boston Celtics
Chris has Tony Parker playing to the level of Jason Kidd and Steve Nash.

Editor Note: Parker? Come on, maybe playing with female fans heads everywhere. Tony is a great complement to The Big Fundamental, but he is no Kidd or Nash.

Jack McCallum: NBA Champion – Dallas Mavericks
Runner Up – Boston Celtics
Jack has the Mav’s highly motivated after last year’s disappointment in the first round.

Editor Note: Again we have Cuban dancing. They must have started playing defense or something. It would be great to see Garnett in the finals.

Steve Aschburner: NBA Champion – Phoenix Suns
Runner Up – Cleveland Cavaliers
Steve has the Mavs and Spurs beat each other up before facing Phoenix.

Editor Note: Ok, the Suns, but the Cavs coming back with the poor off season they had? If so, give LeBron another 80 million in endorsements. Hmm, LeBron and Nash, David Stern is licking his chops.

Paul Forrester: NBA Champion – Dallas Mavericks
Runner Up – Chicago Bulls.
Paul has the Bulls possibly picking up Kobe.

Editor Note: The Bulls are not ready.

NBA Obsessed pick: NBA Champion – Phoenix Suns
Runner Up – Detroit Pistons
Your Hit and Run author is tired of the Spurs and my poor Pistons will be the bridesmaid.

Big question: Where are Shaq and the Heat?

See some of SI.com’s other picks here.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Who are you picking and why?

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Rasheed – always laughing, yet always intense

Rasheed is never timid with an opinion.

He is also never had a problem being controversial or confrontational.

Wallace is also a big reason at 6′ 11″ as to why the Pistons are big winners every year.

“Hey Rasheed, will the Pistons win the East?”

Rasheed answers.

“All those teams made changes to try and get with us — Boston, Chicago — all those teams are trying to catch up with us. I am not worried about what they do. I am confident here with this camp.” source

Now we turn to Rasheed’s coach Flip Saunders and ask Flip about confrontations with Rasheed.

“Are ‘Sheed and I going to have confrontations? Yes,” the coach told reporters. “We can get that out of the way right now. I can’t be afraid of confrontation because there are things I want done and things I will demand. ‘Sheed can be great and sometimes ‘Sheed can snap. That’s who he is. There’s going to be confrontation. But anytime we’ve had a confrontation, the next day it’s like nothing happened.”

Hmm, wonder what could upset the Pistons march to the Eastern Crown? Hey, maybe a Kobe trade?

Bryant is the only current NBA player with a no-trade clause, ensuring he’ll call his own shots and limiting any leverage the Lakers might hold in trade negotiations. He reportedly has listed Dallas and Chicago as the only teams to which he would agree to a trade. It’s unlikely the Lakers would deal him to a Western Conference opponent knowing that Bryant would return to Los Angeles as much as three times during the regular season as well as a playoff series. source

Oh well, believe it when you see it and even then there is a little thing called chemistry.

Can’t get enough of Rasheed Wallace? There are 100 reasons to love him! Try this excerpt from Scoop Jackson.

‘Scoop’ Jackson writes: “In the past 15 months since he was traded here, I think I’ve done four feature stories on him. All saying the same thing: that he’s the most valuable player in the League. No one understood. Not even him.

He stays leaned against the wall. Sony headphones in standard post-game position, covering his temples.

‘So, what’s been up with you?’ he asks.

‘Tryna stay outta jail.’ I answer.

‘That ain’t easy for a black man to do.’”

Meanwhile, Rasheed predicts the Eastern Conference will go to the Pistons!

NBA Basketball Fan Question Who are you predicting to win the East?

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