The NBA season is beginning to take that final turn around the home stretch. While fantasy basketball owners are scrambling to make those last minute transitions in light of “real-life” trades and injuries, M.O.T. has yet to address the impact those deadline moves have made for the NBA teams either looking for that final push into the post-season, or looking to clear up cap space for the big free agent pool at the end of the year.

Fear not, my loyalists. The time is now. Let’s take a look at which teams bettered their chance at challenging the Lake Show for favorites to win it all this year, and who has made the right moves to build towards next season.

Dallas Mavericks acquire Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson from Washington

At first glance, this deal looked to be something serious. When you project a starting lineup that looks like this …

PG Jason Kidd, SG Caron Butler, SF Shawn Marion, PF Dirk Nowitzki, C Brendan Haywood, 6th Man Jason Terry

…one would have to consider this team a contender, right? Right?!? Well… not exactly. Jason Kidd was one of the best defenders at the 1 position before he became eligible for Social Security benefits. Yes, he’s still a walking triple-double on any given night, but he’s not fast enough to handle any of the younger point guards who will be manning the helm of the other teams they expect to see once the regular season finishes.

Under most circumstances, Caron Butler would be a great shooting guard, except for the fact that he can’t shoot. He’s hitting 41% of his field goals on the year, and is a career 44% shooter. It wouldn’t be that big of a tail-off if his 3-Point clip wasn’t at an atrocious 25% as well (career: 31%). I don’t want to hear the “let him acclimate to his new team” argument either, because he was just as bad this year with the Wizards. Yes, his numbers are roughly the same, but those percentages are going to be a problem, especially in the playoffs when the pressure increases.

Another year ends in disappointment for Mr. Cuban

Shawn Marion was a product of the Phoenix Suns Run-and-Gun system, and on top of that, he was their garbage man. They never drew up any plays for him, he just crashed the boards and scored mostly off of put-backs while playing great defense. Now, after somehow believing he could be the star of his own team and demanding a trade, being dealt to Miami and doing absolutely nothing there, going to Toronto and doing even less, then coming to Dallas, he’s just another guy in the lineup.

Dirk is simply the man on this team. Not much else needs to be said. And Haywood is as solid of a big man as anyone out there as long as he can stay healthy. With Jason Terry being the consummate professional and coming off the bench, these 3 are the staples for a title push. It’s too bad the other pieces make this puzzle look more like a Warshak test.

The best thing Dallas did in this deal was get rid of Josh Howard, who, ironically, after playing only four games with his new team in Washington, is out for the rest of the season with an ACL injury. The Wizards can now look at the 3 expiring contracts of the other players who came from Dallas in this deal and probably get more value by wiping their asses with them, or developing some Origami skills. There’s nothing left to see in D.C. this season, although I will say that Andray Blatche fellow has been playing some good ball as a starter.

Cleveland Cavaliers acquire Antawn Jamison from Washington

The big debate was who Cleveland would get to help bolster their team heading into the playoffs: Amar’e Stoudemire or Antawn Jamison?

It turns out Phoenix wasn’t fond of trying to explain to their remaining stars and fan base how trading Stoudemire would benefit the team in the long run, so they nixed the deal to the Cavs, thus opening the door for Jamison to head West. Cleveland went into the All-Star Break with a 13-game win streak, and since the deal, has dropped both games since adding their new Robin to LeBron’s Batman. Clearly, Antawn Jamison is not going to put this team over the hump. If anything, the impact he has on their chemistry may do more harm than good, like adding vinegar to cake mix. And it’s not like AJ is a proven winner, anyway. He’s never been past the second round of the playoffs, and never played for an elite contender … so what is it exactly he’s supposed to bring to the table?

LeBron/Antawn: Can these two come together to win? Doubtful

Look, the Cavs were Finals-bound before this deal, but it’s still not enough to put them over the hump, and that hump is wearing Purple and Gold.

New York Knicks acquire Tracy McGrady from Rockets, trade Nate Robinson to Boston

All eyes have been on the Big Apple this year, as the city Jay-Z and Alicia Keys notoriously paid homage to in their “Empire State of Mind” looks to make itself relevant again on the NBA radar. Everyone knows they’re gunning for any combination of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in the 2010 Free Agent Sweepstakes, and trading for Tracy McGrady was the first step in that process. This will now clear them enough cap space to spend $30million during the off-season on any of the three aforementioned studs who will be available, if not 2 of the 3. I can’t really knock this move at all, aside from McGrady being a living, breathing health insurance liability even when he’s brushing his teeth, let alone attempting to play in a profession paying him $22mil this season alone.

McGrady better have NY doctors on speed-dial

Regardless, I can guarantee two things from this deal: 1. McGrady has a better chance of his crooked eye going straight than finishing the season healthy, and 2. The Knicks will succeed in scoring either James, Wade or Bosh, and at least one other solid free agent before next year.

As for “Nasty” Nate Robinson going to Boston, I guess the Celtics front office felt they needed a dynamic scoring option to come off the bench. What I don’t like is that they gave up Eddie “In Da” House to get him. House is the kind of shooter who gets hot and stays hot for a long, long time. I have friends who witnessed this in person, since he dropped 49 points against my high school alma mater (big up to Hanford, learn how to defend the perimeter though). We’ll see how this plays out, but I don’t see Boston beating the Cavs, Magic or even the Hawks if they face any of those teams in the playoffs. They sold their souls for that championship a couple years ago, now it’s time to accept the fact that their “Big Three” has already succumbed to the “Big Knee Injury”. Has Kevin Garnett been the same since missing most of last year? Simply put: no. Nor will he ever be.

Portland Trail Blazers acquire Marcus Camby from L.A. Clippers

This was a huge move by Portland, considering Greg Oden and Joel Przybilla have been lost for the year. Still, any time you talk about Camby, you have to talk about how this guy gets hurt more than Jake from The Bachelor (have you ever seen a grown man cry as much as this dude?). A healthy Camby means Portland can make a solid run now that the highly-underrated Andre Miller is the loan shark at PG with Steve Blake gone as part of the deal to bring Camby over. And with Brandon Roy back from the sidelines, can this team contend? No, but they are building a strong foundation with some wily veterans (Miller, Camby) and a solid core of young scorers (Roy, LaMarcus Aldridge, Martell Webster, Jerryd Bayless) to contend in years to come. They’ve played well this year despite a ton of injuries, but the question remains, can they all be on the court at once to fulfill their potential?

Houston Rockets acquire Kevin Martin from Sacramento

The Rockets made a valiant and admirable effort in an attempt to take down the Lake Show last year, getting closer than any other team by pushing Phil Jackson and Co. to 7 games. They are now with Trevor Ariza and without Ron Artest, who regardless of what you may believe was a heavy catalyst in making that team go as far as they did. Although Ariza helped the Lakers last season, he’s not the kind of player to rely on offensively as Artest is, and his poor shooting percentages (38% FG, 61% FT) aren’t what you want in a primary scoring option. Enter K-Mart. No, not the store, and no not the guy from the Denver Nuggets. I’m talking about the best pure scorer in the NBA you might not have heard of. This K-Mart shoots with a funky release and scores at will. I’m not exactly sure how durable he is, as the past 2 seasons he saw extra time on the pine due to injury, but when he’s 100%, watch out. Houston somehow always seems to get it done even when it’s without their best players, so if Yao Ming were to come back next year, this team can do some damage. As for this year, however, a second-round finish is the ceiling.

Can the Lakers repeat with Kobe banged-up?

I’ll go on record with this – Lakers vs. Cavs in the Finals. It’s a foregone conclusion as far as I’m concerned. Denver, Dallas, and Portland may threaten in the West; Orlando, Boston, and Atlanta may threaten in the East. In the end, though, it’s going to be the big money matchup the NBA has been waiting for: Kobe vs. LeBron. It’s why Nike has those ads with the puppets for each icon, and really, would you want to see any other teams play in the Finals? NO, you wouldn’t. You’re not a basketball fan if you oppose this matchup, sorry to break it to you. With that said, I find it hard to believe the Cavs have enough to beat the Show, even with Kobe at less than 100%.

L.A. played very well without Kobe in 5 games, going 4-1 with their only loss coming down to the final possession against a solid Boston team. The ball movement was better than we’ve seen with Kobe in the lineup, and I’m sure as they ease Kobe back into games, they’re going to rely less on him for the scoring load, which means less one-on-one basketball with Kobe dribbling to creating his own shot. Regardless of this, even without Kobe, the Lakers are a Top 3 team in the league. Yes, I said it. Probably even still the best team.

Even at 80%, he's better than 99% of the league

Each player on that team has an understanding of when to step up, and that is solely attributed to Phil Jackson’s ability to manage the team not only as players, but as people. You can take my word for it, or you can wait for the season to unfold and listen to all the “I told you so’s” that follow once it happens. Either way, I still told you so.

Letting The Dogs Out – Weekly Awards

It’s time for Tiger Woods to take a BOW.

"King Kong ain't got sh*t on me!!!"

Is it because he finally came clean in making a public appearance and statement after his post-Thanksgiving car wreck/infidelity scandal?

No.

Is it for finally addressing when he may return to the golf circuit, which could be as early as later this year?

No.

How about for managing to still be married to the wife he more or less successfully cheated on, ultimately proving that “it’s cheaper to keep her?”

No.

Tiger gets the Best Of Week award simply for being able to hold a press conference with only who he wanted to be there, without having to answer questions, and for locking it down on ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, MSNBC, E!, ESPN, CNN, the Golf Channel, the Home Shopping Network, the Playboy Channel, and Telemundo all at the same time. That is super strong if you ask me. And you thought the President was the only person with that kind of pull. Eat your heart out, Obama.

Oh, WOW, the nerve of those golfers who claimed Tiger was stealing their spotlight from the Match-Play tournament with his press conference. I got news for you guys … without Tiger, you guys are all irrelevant. Golf doesn’t exist without Tiger, and to be honest, I don’t even know if that tournament is still going on, let alone who might have won. You guys NEED Tiger back, so if anything, you should be assisting him with the healing process. I address the golf field as a whole, because I can’t even point out any of you individually. You are all the Worst Of Week. Get good then have an opinion. If anything, Tiger’s press conference brought more attention to you guys than anything else. Take solace in knowing that and move along, because there’s nothing to see unless Tiger’s involved.

This has been another Moment of Truth …