After Lex Luthor (in the form of a Nate Robinson) finally defeated Superman (disguise as Dwight Howard) in a memorable clash in the slam-dunk finale and the return of Batman and Robin (aka Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant) to power the West over the East in the annual mid-season classic, all 30 teams will now gear up for one big push in the final half of the regular campaign.
With the trading deadline just a few days away, big name stars like Amare Stoudemire, Vince Carter and Tyson Chandler to name a few, may find themselves sporting new team uniforms by next week. The Phoenix Suns had been keeping their lines open to all 29 other clubs on what they can offer for Stoudemire. However, with the recent firing of erstwhile Suns head coach Terry Porter, Stoudemire, one of the most feared frontliners in the league, might have a change of heart and decides to stay for good in the Desert City. Carter is being eyed by perennial powerhouse San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans are weighing their options on Chandler.
The Suns must be very careful in dealing Stoudemire. They are presently in 9th spot and just a game away from Utah Jazz for the last slot in the race for the Western Conference play-offs. Actually it is a very close fight thus far in the West for the 4th to 8th playoff slots. With the present win-loss cards of Portland (32-20), Houston (32-21), New Orleans (30-20), Dallas (31-21), Utah (30-23) and Phoenix (28-23), it will be very tough to predict on who will be in and who will be out of the play-offs come April. The Suns must know by now that Stoudemire can make or break their season.
The battle for the best over-all record and homecourt advantage throughout the post-season play is likewise so tight among the LA Lakers (42-10), Boston (44-11), Cleveland (40-11), Orlando (38-13), San Antonio (35-16) and Denver (36-17).
It will be interesting in the next few days as it will not only be the players and coaches who will play vital roles in the jockeying for positions among the aforementioned teams but of equal importance are their respective front offices, who will definitely do everything to just to come up with a monumental or blockbuster trade that can give their teams advantage for the final run.
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