They've got the talent and the chemistry, but Rasheed needs to be kept in line. With Ben Wallace gone, there is nobody in the locker room that will keep him in check. Also, how well can they really do under a first-year coach?

What, you mean Sulky McWhinesalot? Maybe it was Rasheed keeping him in line.

And yes, I am a Bulls fan.

I'll skip the East and go straight to the point. The *Rockets*? I'd take a bullet for your freedom to say it, but this seems like the kind of faintly out of date pick John McCain would make. McGrady was once superman, but is now merely excellent. Several years in, we now know that it's hard for Yao to hold up an whole NBA season. And Artest has blown his fuse often enough we know that he's not a long-run bet, either.

If we could flash back a few years, when we were all innocent of these guys' strengths and weaknesses, then maybe you could pick the Rockets. But of the many powers in the West, it'll be the most durably built that will come out on top.

Last five starting centers of NBA champions with regular season stats for that year:

2008 - Kendrick Perkins - 6.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.5 blocks

2007 - Fabricio Oberto - 4.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, .3 blocks

2006 - Shaq - 20 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.8 blocks

2005 - Nazr Mohammed (w/ Knicks & Spurs) 9.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.1 blocks

2004 - Ben Wallace - 9.5 points, 12.4 rebounds, 3 blocks

Mehmet Okur - 2007/08 stats - 14.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, .4 blocks

As you can see with the exception of Shaq in 2006 and Wallace on the boards and defensively in 2004 - you don't need a great center to win in the NBA anymore if you have the right pieces like a Duncan, Pierce, Wade, Garnett etc.

In other words - why not for Utah? They still have Williams and Boozer and Kirilenko makes up for some of Okur's defensive liabilities with his blocks. A more realistic impediment to Utah winning it all is probably Deron Williams injury status and the toughness of the Western conference - but if he is healthy he could lead them deep into the playoffs. That said I like another Celtics/Lakers finals this year.

Not everyone was high on the Celtics. Most people picked the Lakers for the bottom half of the West.

I have more faith in the Rockets this year. You have Scola and Landry with another year of experience. Aaron Brooks is starting to look like he can contribute. We added Brent Barry to spread the floor a bit more. Yao is going to try something different this year and both he and Addelman won't be so reluctant to give him some rest. TMac won't have to carry the teams offense as much with more offensive weapons around him like Artest who should be on his best behavior in his contract year and playing for a championship.

A lot of people want to write off the Rockets for some reason (maybe an understandable distaste for Artest), but once everything starts to click, we're going to be nasty.

I just hope we get to play Utah again this year in the playoffs.

You take those cruel, hurtful words back. Greg Oden's beard is by far the most exciting thing in the NBA.

At least this isn't the same Lakers - Celtics article everybody else is writing. And hey, it could happen.

showed how good they can be last year by putting together the second longest winning streak in NBA history, much of it without Yao. They lost to the Jazz in the first round because three of their starting five (McGrady, Battier and Alston) needed immediate surgery and a fourth (Yao) was out altogether. No team in the NBA could win under those circumstances. Artest will make an already excellent defensive team even better and much more physical. Barring injury (you always have to say that about the Rockets), they're going to kick a lot of butt this year, but unfortunately not Laker butt. The Lakers start three guys who are 6'10" or taller; the Rockets have one guy on the whole team taller than 6'9". In head-to-head match-ups, the Lakers will keep the Rockets out of the paint and outrebound them. They'll also outrun them. Lakers-Celtics rematch in the finals.

An aging team, they will have trouble getting by Orlando, Philly, and Cleveland - not to mention Boston.

Boston v Lakers in the Finals - won by healthier of the two

Boston barely beat Cleveland.

The Lakes win it all.

from the perspective of a Celtics' fan, the Pistons were the least impressive team they faced en route to the Finals.

I am a lifelong Pistons fan, and I am really glad the NBA season started so I can talk about a team from Michigan without everyone laughing at me. But I do think that this year is the start of a rebuilding period. They've still got a solid young starter in Prince, but the rest of the team is getting long in the tooth. As much as I love the guards, Hamilton and Billups are past their prime, and 'Sheed is looking real old. That's not to say that they're not all great players still - but I doubt they have what it takes to match up against the other championship-caliber teams. Does anyone have any thoughts as to who they might be able to pick up midseason? And who would we trade to get him? They need a premier forward or center to compete this year as far as I'm concerned, to fill in that fifth starting spot.

All that being said, Dumars is an amazing executive and I have faith in whatever move he makes. I also like how the team develops rookies - Prince being the prime example. His stats have improved every year, and he has now reached the point that I think he would be an asset to just about any team in the league. Of course I just now remembered Darko, which sort of undermines Dumars's decision-making.

My money is on the Cavs. If they'd had Boobie for Game 7 (he was hurt or something...can't remember...), they beat the Celtics. In any case, that series was a tossup. Getting Mo Williams for not much was a great move.

The Pistons are gonna be right there; the CW is so quick to discount them. Remember, Detroit took a big hit in the playoffs when Billups had that nasty hamstring injury where he did the splits. They have some good young players too; I believe there's another year or two in their window.

Celtics are definitely not repeating. Posey is gone, and frankly he alone covered up a lot of weaknesses in Doc's game/personnel management and the rest of the roster's tendency to wilt under pressure.

I like the Rockets too, but (and I love him) Yao is gonna get hurt...the only hope is he gets it out of the way early enough in the season.