Boston CelticsDavid Green

Through all of the trades that were going on this year, I still feel that the Boston Celtics can take it all the way. They have a strong starting squad with Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce leading the way. They should be strong going into the playoffs. Yes, there have been some big trades going around like Shaq going to the Suns and Ben Wallace heading to the Cavs, but all around it is going to be hard to match up with the Celtics. You still have James Posey, Eddie House and Tony Allen averaging over 18 points per game. Also, Leon Powe will be that X-Factor in the playoffs in terms of rebounding and defense. Right now they are doing enough to have a good spot for the playoffs and put themselves in a good position to make it to the championship. They are in first place right now in their division with losses to spare. I really think the big reason why they have a better chance of winning the championship out of all the other teams with big name players is that they are hungry. Moreover, as the Western Conference is beating itself up because the teams are closer in standing, the hardest competition for Boston is the Detroit Pistons and they aren’t really the same without the fab-five they had when they won the championship in 2004.

Allen, Garnett and Pierce have all been close to getting a ring, but they always fall short because they never had a strong enough supporting cast to take them to the top. Now they see what they have and there is no stopping them.

They really have no reason why they should not win the championship this year. Hopefully nothing happens to the trio where they would miss out on their rings, knock on wood.

Los Angeles LakersAlexander Villanueva

The NBA trade deadline that passed on Feb. 21 had many blockbuster trades that happened since the beginning of the month of February. But the trade that truly stood out was the trade between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Memphis Grizzles, since the trade was largely in favor of the Lakers.

The blockbuster trade that involved the Lakers and the Grizzles was the most ridiculous trade anyone has ever seen. The trade included Grizzles all-star forward/center Pau Gasol and a 2010 second-round draft pick. And the Lakers managed to rid themselves of Kwame Brown’s large contract, rookie Jarvis Crittenton and veteran Aaron McKie, plus trade rights to Marc Gasol and first round picks for 2008 and 2010.

This trade made the Lakers a championship contender instead of a team that’s just heading to the playoffs hoping to get past the first round.

It’s puzzling how this trade happened because the Lakers gave away very little talent to obtain such a good player, but this may have come as a result of the Grizzles’ general manager wanting to clear Gasol’s salary off the books. Gasol will make at least $56 million with four years remaining on his contract (including this season).

Since Gasol has been on the Lakers roster, they have won eight of the nine games played.

The Lakers will win the championship despite other blockbuster trades that happened around the league, even one made by the Phoenix Suns that brought a slow, aging Shaquille O’Neal. This makes one wonder if the Suns’ general manager, Steve Kerr, drank too much crazy juice. Note to Kerr: Stop drinking from Tom Cruise’s personal well!

Boston CelticsCameron Ross

The NBA trade deadline has passed and a lot of teams acquired talented players for playoff runs. The Boston Celtics should be the favorite going into the final stretch of the season.

Behind leaders like Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, the Celtics dominated the first half of the season and by adding Kevin Garnett, they only got stronger.

The Celtics are a balanced team with great scoring and strong defense. The team may lack punch at the center position but it has decent depth off the bench and very strong starters.

The team currently has the best record in the league and has been practically perfect against the Western Conference.

Since it’s nearly unbeatable at home and it will likely have home court advantage going into the playoffs, the team stands to make a run at the championship.

If Boston can get past Detroit, there is a good chance they will be favored against any team in the West.

With only one loss in their division and current 18-7 road record, the Celtics definitely have the ball in their court.

As long as Garnett continues to mesh with the team and maintains strong rebounding the team should be favored.

The three-headed monster should prevail from the East and march into the championship series with a head of steam if it can knock out its other series quickly.

Garnett, Pierce and Allen seem eager to win a championship as all of them have stellar careers with the need for the final prize of a basketball player, especially with Allen and Garnett on the wrong side of 30 ready to begin the downside of their careers.

Los Angeles LakersJustin Tejada

Between a torn pinky, a broken ankle, a bum back, and a busted knee, the Lakers seem to be hurting quite a bit. But despite those injuries, it isn’t – or at least it shouldn’t – be enough to discount them in the slightest and I think they have a pretty good shot of getting to the finals.

The pinky has altered Kobe’s play by a somewhat notable margin but he’s still just as good as ever. He should be able to soldier on through to the end of the season to get that badly needed surgery, so that’s a non-issue for the most part.

The addition of Pau Gasol to the lineup has seriously ramped up the game play of the entire team and that far-reaching giant has been pulling a lot of his own weight despite the short time he’s been with the team. He’s had zero rest since his trade and that’s been agitating his sore back somewhat, but I think that rest over the All-Star Weekend has done him a world of good: He’s good to go.

But I think what everyone is looking at is Andrew Bynum’s knee. Since injuring it in mid-January, doctors have projected that he’d be returning in eight or so weeks. That places his next on-court appearance sometime in the middle of March.

So here’s what we’re looking at come the end of March: Bynum, Gasol, Kobe, Odom, and Fisher. That’s the team to beat this season, provided they can all come out to play on the court barring any more injuries or unforeseen mishaps. I may have said “if then, maybe so” one too many times for comfort, but if they can pull it together, then the Lakers will be a force to be reckoned with in the coming months.

The State Hornet Sports Department can be reached at [email protected]