Real Deal

Now wait a minute. What sticks out with Varejao was his boneheaded plays, like those three idiotic turnovers he had, one that Beasley actually caused. If Varejao was the x-factor just because of his energy, I think you have to say the same for Beasley, who was really doing everything he could to crash the glass, throw down dunks to get the crowd going (including a massive dunk on an offensive board), and shooting 50% for 16 points, seven boards and just one turnover in under 30 minutes. Statistically, he had a better game than Varejao.

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/getty/a1/fullj.20738b808911f09c4829260be7345586/20738b808911f09c4829260be7345586-getty-90108021ab010_lakers_obama.jpg I had no idea Charles Manson won a ring with us.

Someone had to say it.

No idea. Anyone here interested in running it? Requirements are that you're good at math. Jer?

Pants on the ground, pants on the ground. Lookin' like a fool with your pants on the ground.

I actually thought this would be a little closer than a 20-point blowout. Good, definitely, but man, this game was boring in the second half.

Nice game-winner by Paul...and Marcus Thornton can be a pretty decent player in this league, he just needs to do a little more on the court aside from his scoring.

The Pacers are stupid. They won, but I don't see how Hibbert plays for less than 20 minutes, and doesn't start on top of that. They've been having trouble with size up front, so why not start Murphy at the four? Good games by both Hibbert (in limited minutes) and Rush. Young sure didn't help the Sixers last night.

Suns had the game in the bag for the longest time, but Dragic seemed to be the only player that wanted a win. Disappointing for most Suns fans, I'm sure. The Thunder need Utah to start losing games.

Amare is one to shy away from defense most of the time, but Jamison? Come on, the dude doesn't even like defense. Jamison would just wait for LeBron's penetrations, hitting 15-footers. That's how Cleveland would want him to be utilized in this offense. On the other hand, Amare would be rolling to the rim, and LeBron would toss oops to him all game long. There's no way you pass up on that opportunity. You'd have an athletic dunker/scorer in Amare, a plethora of shooters, a big smelly mass named Shaq inside, and one of the best players in the league in LeBron James. Just too many different ways of scoring the ball.

Damn Shaq anyways, I had him hitting 20 this game, and he only put in 19. Wade completely choked, also. Just a STUPID behind-the-back pass. I don't give credit to LeBron for that one...that was just an ignorant pass that probably would've went out of bounds in the first place. Both Wade and LeBron played lackluster second halves, though. Bron added 10, and Wade dropped just two, scoring-wise. And I wouldn't say the difference was Varejao. He screwed up 3-4 times while he was out on the floor. It was Shaq who dropped 19 and drew doubles, kicked a pass out to Gibson for a three, probably did that a couple of times (don't recall).

Hornets take this one. The Blazers need Roy. I know they beat the Magic without him, but that was just one of those bad nights for Orlando, as they've shown quite a bit this season. Wins against the Pistons and Sixers...just not enough for me to think they can beat a .500 team that will more than likely play like a .500 team. Gotta say I was impressed with Webster in that Pistons game, though. He shot really well. I just don't know how that will work out for him against a Hornets team that will stick Posey on him (or a very excited rookie in Marcus Thornton, who will play hard). Devin Brown won't be playing, so who knows how that will turn out for Webster.

Yeah, Charlotte doesn't have a chance, unless things just completely fall apart for the Nuggets. There's always a possibility that a team stinks for a full 48, but if Denver doesn't lay an egg, the Bobcats are toast. Breakfast reference.

Word is that Amare could be traded, and the news reported it ASAP. Players tend to play very well when they hear about a trade rumor involving them, so I see this game as the "Nash and Amare" show. Williams is still grabbing that wrist every game, so it's going to be all on Boozer and Utah's supporting cast to come through with the win, assuming Deron is still ailing. Suns should come out on top.

The Spurs are so inconsistent, I don't know when to bet on them winning games. So far this month, the Bulls have beaten Boston, Phoenix and Houston on the road. That's very impressive. I'll take the Bulls here, as long as Rose has an excellent game.

The Hawks haven't won in Houston since February 25th, 1999. That's ten consecutive losses, meaning no wins the last decade. That changes tonight.

Gasol may bother Howard a bit, and I'm not sure how Shard will fare against Zach Randolph. I wouldn't be surprised if the Grizzlies pull out a win here.

It looks like Eddie has been toying with the lineups in Philly. I'm not sure what he's after, though. I just hope Hibbert and Rush have big games. I really could care less who wins this one, haha.

Boston is due for a blowout, and now that they have Garnett back, it could happen tonight. The Clippers played ugly basketball against a terrible Wizards team last night, so I don't expect too much from them tonight.

Shaq has scored 20 or more just twice this season. This game should be his third time, and Cleveland has to realize that. But, it all depends on the Heat putting him in foul trouble, also. If you attack, Shaq rotates over and will almost always be late, and that's a trip to the line and another mark on the foul sheet for O'Neal. Beasley and Hickson should go back and forth, trying to outscore each other. Neither will want to play defense. I wouldn't worry that much about LeBron, just the shooters around him. It won't take much for someone like Gibson and Jawad to start lighting the net on fire. How many frees do you think LeBron takes tonight? Over/under 12.5, let's hear it. I call over.

Devin Brown? That's unexpected, but I guess the Hornets just need to get under the luxury tax threshold. Brown isn't that bad, really. He's been struggling with his shot, but with the right team, I'm sure he can turn it around. If you leave him open on the three, he'll more than likely knock it down, so that gives Chicago a three-point marksman off the bench, and a bigger spark than that of Aaron Gray.

Do you guys not watch Marc Gasol play? There are times where I would really consider trading Andrew Bynum for him, as well as he's been doing in Memphis. Now that I think about it, Amare to Cleveland wouldn't be that big of a deal at the end of the day, because the Cavs would still be fighting the Celtics in the ECF's, so there's no guarantee we'd find them in the Finals.

Well that will suck. I hope they trade Varejao and West, at least.

TIME: 6:25 PM EST TV: CBS

TIME: 7:20 PM EST TV: ESPN