LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo are ready for NBA restart. (Getty Images)

Basketball is back. It may not be the usual games we’ve been accustomed to, but it’ll have to do.

The NBA and its partners have created a unique bubble plan, setting up shop at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.,where 22 teams will be participating in an AAU-type environment. The bubble plan has daily COVID-19 testing and strict policies about entering and reentering the Orlando bubble. When players arrived in the sprawling campus at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex, they quickly found out nothing will be normal about this restart.

Yahoo Sports writer Chris Haynes gave an insider’s perspective on life in the NBA bubble. Teams have designated hotels and food is brought to players’ rooms. There is a “snitch line” that makes sure everyone is following COVID-19 protocol. Even Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s leading expert on infectious diseases, was impressed with the $170 million program. It is the most comprehensive plan from all the major sports leagues dealing with the coronavirus pandemic. If this bubble plan bursts, we might as well cancel the rest of sports for 2020. If it works, you’ll see other leagues implement a similar program. It’s a copycat league.

There was some unfair chatter of a possible asterisk next to the team that wins the 2020 NBA championship. Yeah, there will be an asterisk. But it’ll say this: * Won championship despite going through the most difficult road of any NBA team in history. No home court advantage. No crowds. Giant video monitors serving as backdrops. Practices held inside a ballroom. Plenty of social distancing. And oh by the way, if a player is infected with the coronavirus, they’ll need to be quarantined.

The coronavirus pandemic halted the NBA season for five months. That’s equivalent to an entire offseason. There will be rust. There will be fitness issues (remember Shawn Kemp after the 1999 strike). There will be upsets. There will be missteps. This is a season unlike any other. Buckle up, folks. It’s going to be crazier than Mr. Toad’s wild ride.

The favorites: L.A. Lakers, L.A. Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks

The Lakers, Clippers and Bucks were head and shoulders above the rest of the competition when the sports world shut down on March 11. Fast forward to July following a four-month layoff due to the coronavirus pandemic and the three teams favored to win the NBA title are … drum roll, please … Lakers, Clippers and Bucks. So, basically nothing changed.

The Lakers were probably the team that was most affected by the COVID-19 shutdown as they were coming off huge wins against the Clippers and Bucks days before commissioner Adam Silver hit pause on the 2020 season. The lethal combination of LeBron James and Anthony Davis make the Lakers a difficult matchup for anyone. Offensively, the Lakers have the NBA’s most efficient offense. LeBron has been the Lakers catalyst even at the advanced basketball age of 35. But LeBron is no ordinary baller. In year 17 as a pro, LeBron averages 25 points per game and leads the league in assists (10.6). His offensive game was rounding into playoff form in March. The Lakers did take a hit defensively with the loss of lockdown perimeter defender Avery Bradley, who decided not to participate in the bubble plan. The loss of Bradley leaves a huge void in the backcourt as head coach Frank Vogel will be forced to shuffle his backcourt rotation and may have to give minutes to Dion Waiters and J.R. Smith. Waiters was cast aside by the Miami Heat while J.R. hasn’t played in a meaningful NBA game since 2018.

The team most equipped to handle the Lakers in a playoff series is the Clippers. Reigning Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard wants nothing more than to ruin the Lakers party, become the undisputed king of L.A. and validate his position as the best player in the world. The Clippers have the deepest roster among the 22 teams in the restart. The only question mark(s) is on-court chemistry. Paul George is still rounding into shape coming off surgery to both shoulders while Kawhi remains under load management protocol. PG and Kawhi don’t have lot of court time together, but when both were in action the Clippers were 24-8. The Clippers owned the third-best offensive rating and fifth-best defensive rating. They also have the best bench in the league (51.5 points per game), led by super subs Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell, who could start for many clubs. L.A. also added guard Reggie Jackson and forward Marcus Morris, giving coach Doc Rivers a plethora of options. LouWill and Trez will miss the opening week of the restart, but both are expected to rejoin their teammates when the seeding portion of the schedule concludes. The Clippers are a confident bunch and they’re not worried where they end up in the standings.

The Bucks likely benefitted from the long layoff as they were in a bit of a funk (6-4 in their last 10 games) after the All-Star break. All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo sustained a left leg injury during the loss against the Lakers in March and appeared a little fatigued. Milwaukee’s title hopes rest on the broad shoulders of Giannis, who is having an MVP season (29.5 points per game, 13.9 rebounds, shooting 55 percent from the field). He’ll need to be at his absolute best because his supporting cast isn’t good enough to carry him. Good news is The Greek Freak appears to be healthy again. Giannis needs to be special if the Bucks are going to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1974 when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the face of the franchise.

Contenders: Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, Houston Rockets, Philadelphia 76ers, Boston Celtics

There is a major logjam of teams in the discussion. Even though these teams are all capable of making a deep playoff run, they have some weaknesses that could be exposed and eventually derail their championship hopes.

Houston is going all-in on small ball, putting Robert Covington (6-8) and P.J. Tucker (6-5) in the frontcourt with guards Eric Gordon, Russell Westbrook and James Harden in the backcourt. Coach Mike D’Antoni could either look like a genius or he could lose his job. He will lean on his two superstars, Harden and Westbrook, to generate most of the offense. That’s a heavy burden even for a dynamic duo averaging a combined 61 points a game (No. 1 in the league). If one of them has an off night it could be lights out for the Rockets. As an added distraction, you have the Westbrook COVID-19 positive test. Houston, that’s a problem.

Speaking of COVID-19, Nuggets All-Star center Nikola Jokic is also coming off a positive virus test. The good news is Jokic has recovered and looks in fantastic shape, stunningly slim. The Serbian big man was listed at 280 pounds at the start of the season and he appears to have shed at least 25 pounds. Jokic is the linchpin to everything the Nuggets do. The Nuggets will go only as far as Jokic can carry them.

Did anyone say COVID-19? If there’s such a tag as Team COVID, it’s the Utah Jazz. Center Rudy Gobert was one of the first faces of the coronavirus pandemic as his positive test triggered the league-wide shutdown. Guard Donovan Mitchell also tested positive for the virus, and there was a period during isolation when Gobert and Mitchell were at odds. Mitchell reportedly was upset about Gobert’s careless behavior about the coronavirus. Both appear to have squashed their reported beef. But one issue Gobert and Mitchell won’t be able to fix is the absence of Bojan Bogdanovic. The veteran sharpshooter had wrist surgery and won’t be playing in the bubble. Bogdanovic was averaging 20.2 points per game and 41 percent from 3-point range before shutting it down.

If there was team that needed a reset it would be Philly. The Sixers greatly underachieved during the season and almost seemed disinterested. All-Star center Joel Embiid appeared out of shape prior to the pandemic and fellow All-Star Ben Simmons kept teasing us with his new jump shot but kept disappointing us, too. When they are both clicking, Embiid and Simmons pose a lethal 1-2 punch talented enough to save coach Brett Brown’s job. The reboot could turn out to be a blessing in disguise.

The Celtics have a budding star in Jayson Tatum, and he could finally have his breakout moment. The one negative for the Celtics is their lack of size. Tatum is the Celtics’ tallest starter at 6-8 and all their rotational players with the exception of Enes Kanter are 6-8 or shorter. Celtics are severely undersized against their two biggest obstacles: Philly and Milwaukee.

Sleepers: Dallas Mavericks, Toronto Raptors, Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder

What do the Mavericks, Raptors and Heat have in common? They all have coaches with championship pedigree. The restart will be a sprint, and teams with steady leaders should thrive.

Rick Carlisle, who led the Mavericks to an NBA title in 2011, is one of the game’s best in-game strategists and he has a wonderful chess piece to play with in rising superstar Luka Doncic. The Mavs offense revolves around Doncic. The 2019 Rookie of the Year now has a full two years of NBA experience to process in his super high basketball IQ, and his arrow is pointing way up. In his second year in the Association, Doncic nearly averaged a triple-double (28-9-8). Looks like Luka is ready to make the jump into elite status.

It’s a bit odd to call a defending NBA champ a playoff sleeper, but Nick Nurse and the Raptors have gotten almost zero respect following their stunning win in the 2019 NBA Finals over the Golden State Warriors. When Kawhi left for L.A., almost all the basketball pundits left the Raptors for dead. Guess what? The Raptors are still ticking. Paschal Siakam has emerged as a bonafide No. 1 option. Kyle Lowry and Marc Gasol have logged a lot of miles, but they are crafty veterans who know how to turn it on in the postseason. Don’t sleep on the team from The North.

Erik Spoelstra hasn’t had much to work with since LeBron left town and Dwyane Wade’s skills started to fade. This year, Spo has a boatload of talent. With Jimmy Butler leading the way, third-year player Bam Adebayo emerging as the secondary star, role players Kendrick Nunn, Duncan Robinson and rookie Tyler Herro all gaining confidence by the day, Miami has a young, hungry squad looking to put some serious heat inside the Orlando bubble.

Billy Donovan may not have a NBA championship ring, but he does own two college basketball championship plaques when he led the Florida Gators to back-to-back NCAA tournament titles in 2006-07. With the departures of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Paul George, Donovan can freely coach the Thunder without having to worry about hurting a superstar’s ego. And he has a veteran leader in point guard Chris Paul to help him guide a young and energetic squad that will be a tough out.

Kawhi Leonard drives to the basket against Anthony Davis. (Getty Images)

The biggest winner during the NBA offseason was the city of Los Angeles.

Staples Center will be the center of the basketball universe as we enter the 2019-20 NBA regular season because two of the best teams in the league will play 82 times in Downtown Los Angeles.

The pride of Riverside, Calif., Kawhi Leonard chose the glitz and glamour of Hollywood over the cold winters in Toronto (duh!) and he brought another Southern California native, Palmdale’s Paul George, with him. Leonard and George now form a formidable 1-2 punch as members of the L.A. Clippers. Add pitbull guard Patrick Beverley and super subs Lou Williams and Montrez Harrell in the mix and you have a team that is favored to capture the NBA title.

This could be the year the Clippers will finally be able to put up a real banner at Staples Center instead of those giant selfies that hung during the Lob City era.

“Everybody being high character. Sacrifice. Wanting to win. Determination. Knowledge. All that together. Just being on the floor, going out there as one unit. All trying to accomplish that ultimate goal. That’s what drives a championship team,” Leonard said.

LeBron James has been awfully quiet all offseason — outside of a few Taco Tuesday posts on social media. LeBron is so accustomed to playing through June that this was the first offseason where he had a full five months off in more than a decade. And all this waiting has King James extremely anxious.

“I’m very motivated. Right now I’m not in a talking-about-it mode. I’ve been very quiet this summer for a reason,” LeBron said. “My mother always taught me don’t talk about it be about it. That’s where I’m at. As a team and myself, we need to get the Lakers back to where they’ve been accustomed to.”

LeBron appears rested and ready to go, and he now has a super sidekick in All-Star forward Anthony Davis.

The LeBron-AD combo became a reality after the Lakers traded away one-third of their roster. But the Lakers brass feel it was a necessary move because now they feel like they have their best 1-2 punch since Shaq and Kobe.

OneManFastBreak predicts the eight teams that’ll make the playoffs in the Western Conference:

1-L.A. Clippers (58-24) – The Clippers would be a lot higher if it wasn’t for Paul George’s offseason surgery on both his shoulders. The timetable PG’s return is around November. Also, the Clippers are planning to implement the same load management approach the Toronto coaching staff did with Kawhi. It won’t matter much if Kawhi or PG take a few games off. These Clippers are the deepest team in the league. Center Montrezl Harrell brings effort and energy every single night, and combo guard Lou Williams is arguably the best closer in the game. Doc Rivers’ crew will be there in April, May and potentially June.

2-Denver Nuggets (56-26) – Nikola Jokic is now universally recognized as the best center in the NBA. The big man from Serbia is redefining the center position with his ability to score, rebound and pass. Jokic is the anchor of a Nuggets squad that is deep and talented. Point guard Jamal Murray gained some much needed playoff experience last year and ready to become the team’s closer. If Michael Porter Jr., 21, ever gets out of the training room and onto the court, the Nuggets could be battling for the top spot in the West for the next few years.

3-L.A. Lakers (54-28) – The Lakers have five championship-caliber players on the roster: LeBron, AD, Danny Green, Avery Bradley and Kyle Kuzma. To win a title, you need at least seven to eight solid guys in the rotation. For now, the Lakers don’t have that. Rajon Rondo, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Dwight Howard are extremely limited, and so is JaVale McGee. You can’t trust them in a seven-game series. As long as Davis and LeBron are healthy, the Lakers have a formidable squad. But if one or both miss time, the Lakers are back to being a lottery team. Bringing back Rondo was a mistake. It hinders the progress of Alex Caruso and Quinn Cook.

4-Houston Rockets (53-29) – It is now or never for coach Mike D’Antoni. D’Antoni has his best roster since his Phoenix Suns days, and some could argue it could be better. James Harden is at the height of his powers and there are no signs of him slowing down. In fact, he seems to be getting better and better. The acquisition of Russell Westbrook was panned by critics. Not sure why. Westbrook is a former MVP who is hungry for a title. He and Harden are good friends off the court, and they played together in Oklahoma City. Great players figure out a way to co-exist on the court. Harden and Westbrook will figure out a way to make it work in Houston.

5-Portland Trail Blazers (50-32) – If you still don’t think Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum are two of the best guards in the league then you should pull up YouTube videos from the 2019 playoffs. Lillard sent the Thunder home with a dagger 3-pointer from Beaverton, while McCollum was at times the best player on the court during the Blazers-Nuggets series that was an instant classic. The loss of center Jusuf Nurkic was masked with the addition of Hassan Whiteside. If Whiteside can provide rebounds and defense, Lillard and McCollum will take care of the rest.

6-Utah Jazz (49-33) – Donovan Mitchell has been teasing us for the past couple of years with his star potential. It’s time for Mitchell to finally make that big leap and become the true alpha dog. Mitchell has a better supporting cast this season with the acquisition of point guard Mike Conley and sharp-shooting forward Bojan Bogdanovic (the taller Bogdanovic).

7-San Antonio Spurs (48-34) – The Spurs have made the playoffs for 22 straight seasons under Gregg Popovich, and that streak will continue this season. Popovich may have pulled off his best coaching job last year. Pop integrated DeMar DeRozan into the Spurs system and had him play the Manu Ginobili role. LaMarcus Aldridge is doing his best fulfilling the Tim Duncan role. Now, Pop’s next challenge is to develop a point guard to play the Tony Parker role. He’s got a couple of willing students in Derrick White and Dejonte Murray.

8-Golden State Warriors (46-36) – It’s strange seeing the Warriors this low in the postseason seedings, but that’s the harsh reality brought about by the departure of Kevin Durant, the injury to Klay Thompson, the loss of Andre Iguodala and the retirement of Shaun Livingston. The biggest challenge for coach Steve Kerr and his coaching staff will be managing the minutes for Steph Curry and Draymond Green. Will Kerr burn out Curry and Green just to earn a seventh or eighth seed? That’s a tough call for a proud franchise.

Last teams out: Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Memphis Grizzlies

Stephen Curry and Harrison Barnes ended Golden State’s title drought in 2015. (GETTY IMAGES)

There are 30 teams in the NBA, but realistically speaking there are only a handful of teams capable of hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy.

If you’re a fan of the Sixers, Kings, Lakers, Nuggets, Nets and Hornets, it’s probably safe to book that reservation to Las Vegas or the Caribbean in June.

Sure there are plenty of contenders for the championship, such as the Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, Atlanta Hawks and Chicago Bulls. But these teams have major questions that’ll ultimately lead to their downfall during the knockout stages.

The Rockets are a wonderful offensive team, but can they make enough stops on the defensive end when it counts? The Grizzlies are a fantastic defensive team, but can they score enough points? The Hawks have a well-balanced team, but do they have that superstar to close out games? The Bulls have all the pieces to win in the playoffs, but can Rose stay injury free?

OneManFastbreak.net examines the five teams, in no particular order, with the best shot at winning the 2015-16 NBA championship.

Cleveland Cavaliers — LeBron James came within two games of ending Cleveland’s decades-long title drought. LeBron posted historic numbers during the NBA Finals, but even his superhuman effort wasn’t enough to beat the Golden State Warriors. LeBron is more than capable of lifting a team to the Finals, especially in the weak Eastern Conference, but he needs help to finish the job. The Cavaliers have the roster to compete for a title. The only roadblock at this point is health. Kevin Love missed nearly the entire playoffs because of shoulder injury, and the Finals might have had a different result had Kyrie Irving not gotten hurt on a freak knee-on-knee collision with Klay Thompson. Love appears to be healthy, while Irving is on schedule to return in January (or sooner). The Cavs have one goal in mind and that’s win a title, and Las Vegas oddsmakers love the Cavs this season. Anything less than The Chip would be a major disappointment.

Golden State Warriors — The Warriors had one of the greatest seasons in NBA history. They finished the 2014-15 regular season with the best record. Stephen Curry was named the league MVP. And the Dubs capped off their storybook season by capturing the franchise’s first NBA title since 1975. Steve Kerr made this coaching gig look real easy by expertly navigating his team through the playoffs without a hitch in his rookie season. His second season, however, if off to a rough beginning. Kerr has taken a leave of absence after undergoing back surgery during the summer.

Steve Kerr won a title in his first season as coach. (GETTY IMAGES)

Luke Walton takes over as the interim coach, and he’ll be tasked with the keeping the ship on course until Kerr returns. Walton shouldn’t have too much to worry about because the Warriors still have the best roster in basketball. Curry and Thompson are now walking around with championship swagger, and Draymond Green is $82 million rich after inking a five-year deal. Until someone knocks them out, the Warriors are wearing the championship belts and the road to the title goes through the Bay Area.

San Antonio Spurs — Gregg Popovich and R.C. Buford pulled off the biggest stunner during the offseason when they acquired the top prize in the free-agent market. LaMarcus Aldridge’s arrival in San Antonio opens up two avenues. The Spurs hop back on the fast lane to the NBA Finals and it also sets them up nicely in the future when Tim Duncan decides to hang up the sneakers for good. Duncan turns 40 next April, but he doesn’t look like a guy who is ready to dip into his retirement savings. The Big Fundamental signed a two-year extension for a modest $10.4 million. That’s quite a major discount for a first-ballot Hall of Famer and arguably one of the 10 greatest players in the history of basketball. It just shows Duncan’s commitment to winning. He may not be the player he was 10 years ago, but he’s still a very effective player on both ends and remains the heart and soul of the Spurs.

Oklahoma City Thunder — If there is anyone who has something to prove this season it’s Kevin Durant. After playing in a career-low 27 games in 2014-15, the man with the Twitter handle @kdtrey5 is on a mission to show the world he’s back to reclaim his most valuable player status. Durant’s return only bolsters an already formidable Thunder lineup. KD and Russell Westbrook form the best 1-2 scoring punch in the league, two unstoppable scoring champs who can take over a game at any moment. The challenge for first-year coach Billy Donovan is to find a way to unload some of the burden off KD and Westbrook, something former coach Scott Brooks wasn’t able to do. Donovan, an accomplished college coach, made two smart moves after his hiring. He brought in Maurice Cheeks and Monty Williams as assistant coaches, and he’ll lean on those two as he adjusts to the rigors of an 82-game NBA schedule. The Thunder’s title hopes largely depend on how quickly Donovan can convince Durant and Westbrook to buy into his program.

Los Angeles Clippers — The Clips went from title contender to borderline playoff team then back to being title contenders in one bizarre week in early July. The DeAndre Jordan drama that unfolded during the free-agency period was something straight out of an episode of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.” Once the L.A. smog cleared up, Jordan remained a Clipper and the Dallas Mavericks must have felt like a jilted GF. With Jordan back in the fold, the Clippers have what it takes to compete for a championship. They also added big-game performer Paul Pierce to help fix some of the problems that has plagued the team the last two postseasons, such as blowing leads in the fourth quarter. The window of opportunity for Chris Paul is closing fast. It’s now or never for the All-Star point guard, who has never reached the conference finals in his career. CP3 and the Clips hope to put up a real banner at Staples Center instead of those ridiculous giant selfies.

Doc Rivers, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin couldn’t get past the conference semifinals. (GETTY IMAGES)

It’s difficult to quantify the debacle that just occurred in the 2015 Western Conference semifinals when the team that fell apart has very little history to begin with.

The Clippers were one win away (or one quarter away) from reaching their first conference finals only to watch it all go up in a cloud of smoke about as thick as the L.A. smog. The Clippers blew a 3-1 series lead and were eliminated from the postseason in spectacular fashion with a Game 7 loss in Houston. It marked only the ninth time in NBA playoff history a team tossed away a 3-1 series lead.

”It’s disappointing,” Clippers forward Blake Griffin said. ”We were close, but close doesn’t really count. Almost doesn’t count. We were up 3-1 and didn’t put them away. We can’t look at anybody but ourselves.”

Griffin did all he could to avoid the collapse. He averaged nearly a triple-double during the series, and he posted 27 points and 11 rebounds in 44 minutes in Game 7. His fellow superstar, Chris Paul, also left it all on the court. CP3 had 26 points and 10 assists despite playing with a bad hamstring.

Paul summed up his frustration by quoting Will Ferrell’s character, Ricky Bobby, from “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.”

“Ricky Bobby, like [he] said, if you’re not first you’re last,” Paul told reporters. “Being close ain’t good enough.”

It’s another offseason in which Paul will have to figure what went wrong. Last season, he took much of the blame for the Clips’ playoff loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Paul failed to reach the conference finals yet again. Throughout the playoffs, ABC analyst Jeff Van Gundy kept referring to CP3 as The Great Chris Paul. We’ll have to put “great” in quotes because “great” players are usually able to push their teams past the second round. “Great” players don’t blow 3-1 leads in the playoffs. And “great” players don’t let their teams blow a 19-point second-half lead in close-out games.

That’s exactly what happened in Game 6.

The Clippers basically had one foot in the Western Conference finals when the Rockets slammed the door on their foot with a historic comeback despite not having their best player, James Harden, on the court. During a key stretch in the fourth quarter, the Clippers looked gassed and couldn’t make a shot, and that included their two superstars. Paul went 1-for-5 while Griffin was 0-for-4 from the field. The role players couldn’t bail them out either, as J.J. Redick, Matt Barnes, DeAndre Jordan and Jamal Crawford all folded under pressure. When the final buzzer sounded, the Rockets had outscored the Clippers 40-15 in a 12-minute horror flick that will go down as the defining moment of the Chris Paul and Blake Griffin era.

“We just stopped playing,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said of Game 6. “You could see it. We got the lead and kind of got comfortable and started making plays that you shouldn’t make. Then we it got to eight (point lead) and we couldn’t make a shot.”

It would be unfair to say the Clippers choked against the Rockets, but that’s the CliffsNotes version of this story. When it was time to apply the knockout punch, the Clippers couldn’t pull the trigger. And Paul and Griffin where in the middle of it. Those are the two faces of the franchise. They’re the ones in the State Farm and Kia Motors commercials. When the Clippers needed their two stars to deliver an award-winning performance they both forgot their lines.

So what’s next for the Clippers? They’ll have to deal with a few in-house chores, most notably the contract of Jordan. The 6-11 center who blossomed into a defensive player of the year candidate this season is an unrestricted free agent. He has hinted he’d like to return to his home state of Texas.

It could be a long hot summer in L.A.

Gregg Popovich and the Spurs were eliminated by the Clippers in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs. (GETTY IMAGES)

Ask any basketball reporter and they will tell you their two greatest fears are being denied a free pregame meal and interviewing Gregg Popovich.

Popovich is undeniably one of the greatest coaches in NBA history. He helped build a model franchise in San Antonio, and he’ll likely find himself in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame some day.

Sure, he can be surly with the media because, let’s face it, winning five championships affords him that luxury.

Pop can play the role of Tywin Lannister better than anyone in the league. One bad question and you’re quickly sent to the chopping block. Just ask poor TNT sideline reporter Jaime Maggio when she had the unenviable task of trying to get more than five words out of the San Antonio Spurs coach.

In their in-game interviews, Maggio seemed like she couldn’t wait to get it over with as much as Pop.

Pop likes to poke the media for bad questions, and the media — for whatever reason — doesn’t poke him back even when Pop makes bad coaching decisions.

Pop isn’t immune to questionable moves. Remember Game 6 in the 2013 NBA Finals when he inexplicably took out Tim Duncan late in the game that allowed Chris Bosh to grab an offensive rebound and flip the ball to Ray Allen for a game-tying 3-pointer. The Heat went on to win Game 6 and eventually Game 7 to win back-to-back titles.

The poor-coaching bug hit Pop again in this year’s playoffs when he made several head-scratchers in the first-round series with the L.A. Clippers.

Let’s start with the hack-a-DeAndre-Jordan strategy.

It’s not a bad strategy to deploy, and it’s a momentum killer — we get it. But you can’t overuse it. It’s a get-out-of-jail card, which can only be good one time. Pop called for the hack-a-Jordan so many times TNT analyst Reggie Miller started shortening it to “hacka.”

Pop has repeatedly said he doesn’t like using the strategy, but it’s allowed in the rules so he’ll take full advantage until someone in the league decides to amend it. You can make a case either way whether the strategy works or not. Proponents say it works because you’re putting a sub-50 percent free throw shooter at the line and you remove the threat of the 3-point shot, especially when you’re ahead. However, opponents say the fouling strategy puts teams in the bonus a lot quicker, making it tougher to play defense without fouling. And it also stymies your own flow on offense.

What Pop and the Spurs coaching staff fell asleep on was the poor decision to use some of Tim Duncan’s fouls on hack-a-Jordan. Duncan is the most valuable Spur, so you don’t want to waste his fouls on silly fouls. But yet there was Duncan, hugging Jordan time after time, putting him in foul trouble in at least three of the seven games in the series. Why not send Matt Bonner or Aron Baynes to commit hack-a-Jordan?

Speaking of Baynes, Popovich’s decision to assign him to Clippers All-Star forward Blake Griffin in Game 1 led to a Clipper blowout. Griffin dunked on Baynes so hard twice the Spurs backup center lost an “r” in his first name. Baynes never saw Griffin again for the rest of the series.

But Popovich saved his most egregious error in the final moments of Game 7 when he chose to have Danny Green guard Chris Paul instead of Defensive Player of the Year Kawhi Leonard. As it played out, Paul beat Green going to his right and banked in the game-winning shot with one second left to eliminate the Spurs in the playoffs.

Green is a capable defender, and he’s had some success against CP3. But when you have the best one-on-one defender in the NBA, don’t you want to stick him on Chris Paul? Would love to find an answer from Pop, but the media is too scared to ask him that question.

Joel Huerto is editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling’s racially insensitive remarks spark a firestorm of criticism. (GETTY IMAGES)

Adam Silver’s first major decision as NBA commissioner was swift, forceful and warranted.

Silver announced Tuesday that the league is banning Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling from the NBA for racially charged remarks he made during an argument with his alleged mistress. Sterling is also fined $2.5 million, the maximum allowed by the league, and Silver urges the NBA Board of Governors to force Sterling to sell the team.

The decision was justified because of the gravity of the situation.

Sterling has a long history of being insensitive toward minorities. Twice in the last 15 years he was sued for discriminating against blacks, Latinos and Asians. Those who have come to know Sterling — arguably one of the worst owners in sports — are well aware of his reputation. His views are straight out of the mind of a plantation owner. He’s Cliven Bundy without the Cowboy hat and ranch.

When TMZ obtained the audio recording between Sterling and his female friend, V. Stiviano — who is half his age — the rest of the world got to know the real Donald Sterling. When TMZ gets a hold of something it spreads like a forest fire.

Here’s part of their conversation published by TMZ and Deadspin:

V. Stiviano: I don’t understand, I don’t see your views. I wasn’t raised the way you were raised.

Donald Sterling: Well then, if you don’t feel—don’t come to my games. Don’t bring black people, and don’t come.

V: Do you know that you have a whole team that’s black, that plays for you?

DS: You just, do I know? I support them and give them food, and clothes, and cars, and houses. Who gives it to them? Does someone else give it to them? Do I know that I have—Who makes the game? Do I make the game, or do they make the game? Is there 30 owners, that created the league?

DS: It’s the world! You go to Israel, the blacks are just treated like dogs.

V: So do you have to treat them like that too?

DS: The white Jews, there’s white Jews and black Jews, do you understand?

V: And are the black Jews less than the white Jews?

DS: A hundred percent, fifty, a hundred percent.

V: And is that right?

DS: It isn’t a question—we don’t evaluate what’s right and wrong, we live in a society. We live in a culture. We have to live within that culture.

V: But shouldn’t we take a stand for what’s wrong? And be the change and the difference?

DS: I don’t want to change the culture, because I can’t. It’s too big and too [unknown].

V: But you can change yourself.

DS: I don’t want to change. If my girl can’t do what I want, I don’t want the girl. I’ll find a girl that will do what I want! Believe me. I thought you were that girl—because I tried to do what you want. But you’re not that girl.

The comments were downright disturbing, but not stunning. In today’s world, if you think racism doesn’t exit then you must be hiding under a rock. No matter how far we’ve come as a society and no matter how many times we’ve moved forward, there is still a large portion of society who are racists and bigots. Sterling is not the first nor the last billionaire who thinks the playing field should not be level.

Other NBA owners didn’t exactly condemn Sterling’s remarks until a couple of days later. They have their own skeletons in the closet. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban says he doesn’t want to associate himself with an owner who have racist views, but punishing owners for making ignorant statements is a “slippery slope.”

Sterling must not like prosperity because it took three decades for his franchise to finally enjoy a winner on the basketball court. The Clippers were the laughingstock of the NBA until Chris Paul joined forces with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan to form Lob City in 2011.

With Doc Rivers at the helm, the Clippers are legitimate championship contenders this season. But after Sterling’s skeletons spilled out into the open, the Clippers name is sullied again.

The players silently protested at the start of Game 3 of their playoff series with Golden State by removing their warm-up sweaters and dropping them at center court. They flipped their T-shirts inside-out so the Clipper logo doesn’t show on their chest or back.

Paul says the team is unified more than ever and moving forward because they don’t want one man to ruin the season. But you can see the stress on Paul’s face. He looks fatigued from all the off-the-court drama he has to deal not just as a player but as president of the NBA Players Association.

Rivers also looked stressed. As much as he wanted to focus on the series with the Warriors, the Sterling debacle is inescapable.

The Clippers head home to L.A. for Game 5. But being at home probably won’t keep them safe from the dark cloud that hangs over the entire organization.

“We’re going home now,” said Rivers. “Usually that would mean we’re going to our safe haven. And I don’t even know if thats true.”

Joel Huerto is editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

LeBron James and Blake Griffin could meet in the 2014 NBA Finals. (GETTY IMAGES)

It’s not hard to figure out who the NBA is pulling for in the 2014 playoffs. All you need is take one look at the TV schedule and you’ll find the answer.

ABC showcased the Clippers-Warriors opening game on Saturday, and Game 1 of the Heat-Bobcats matchup on Sunday. It’s a clear indication the league considers the Clippers and Heat as the two sexiest teams in the postseason, and potential showdown in the NBA Finals could generate major buzz.

Who wouldn’t want to see the Heat and the Clippers? The Heat are the two-time NBA champs and they have the best player in the world in LeBron James. And If Dwyane Wade’s knees are right, Miami has two of the most dynamic players in the league.

The Clippers don’t have history on their side but, between Chris Paul’s State Farm commercials and Blake Griffin’s Kia Optima and GameFly ads, they lead the league in most air times off the court.

And that whole Lob City thing isn’t too bad to watch either.

The league won’t admit it but it would be a major blow to Commissioner Adam Silver’s gut if the Heat don’t make The Finals.

No disrespect to the Indiana Pacers, who are a good team but not box office, the Eastern Conference playoffs are far more interesting with the Heat in it. Let’s not even waste time talking about the early rounds of the East playoffs because Miami is booked for the conference finals.

It would be a shame if Miami and Indiana didn’t play each other in the conference finals, but LeBron and Co. could care less who they play. The goal is to reach The Finals for the fourth consecutive year. Ratings would take a nosedive if the Heat are not playing in June.

Silver would prefer not to explain the NHL-type ratings should The Finals include the Pacers and the Spurs, or Pacers and Clippers, or Pacers and Thunder.

Unfortunately for the new commish, the Spurs will have a major say in the whole playoff picture. San Antonio should get by Dallas in the first round and should beat the upstart Blazers in the semifinals. Tim Duncan and Co. will most likely avoid their playoff nemesis in Oklahoma City because the Clippers — assuming they take care of business against the Warriors, which won’t be easy — will knock off the Thunder, setting up a Spurs-Clippers Western Conference finals.

The playoffs are all about matchups and the Clippers do not match up well with the Spurs, who have owned the Clips going all the way back to their San Diego roots.

The Clippers under Doc Rivers are a far better team than they were last year, but they’re still not in the Spurs’ class in terms of defense and discipline.

The Spurs have proven during the course of the regular season that they’ve rebounded from last year’s stunning loss in The Finals and are ready to retake the throne from King James.

For the first time in 16 years, Kobe Bryant won’t be playing on Christmas Day. (GETTY IMAGES)

This wasn’t how the NBA schedule-makers envisioned Christmas Day.

When they pitted the Lakers and Heat, they had visions of LeBron James going head-to-head with Kobe Bryant at Staples Center. Instead, they’ll likely get LeBron versus. . . . Wesley Johnson?

When they pitted the Bulls and the Nets, they had visions of Derrick Rose crossing over Deron Williams at Barclays Center. Instead, they’ll settle for Williams versus. . . . D.J. Augustin?

When they pitted the Spurs and the Rockets, they had visions of James Harden pulling the Euro step on Euro step king Manu Ginobili. Instead, Ginobili could be Eurostepping . . . Francisco Garcia?

And when pitted the Thunder against the Knicks, they had visions of a scoring duel between Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony. Instead, the crowd at Madison Square Garden could see Durant versus . . . Iman Shumpert?

Bah, hambug!

Unfortunately for the league, injuries are playing tricks on them. The injury bug bit Rose (torn meniscus, out for the season) and Kobe (knee fracture, out six weeks) hard, while Harden and Anthony are game-time decisions because of  sprained ankles. That’s two former league MVPs definitely out, and possibly the reigning scoring champion and former sixth man of the year missing from the NBA Christmas showcase.

The Knicks star left Monday night’s win against the Orlando Magic, and Mike Woodson told ESPN radio that the team will closely monitor his status.

“We got to weigh it out,” Woodson said. “He came in and got treatment today and he’ll get treatment through probably the evening and then tomorrow when he wakes up and comes in we’ll have to assess it at that time.”

The Lakers may have the worst luck when it comes to injuries. Aside from Kobe’s broken bone in his kneecap, Steve Nash has only appeared in a handful of games due to nerve damage to his neck. His two backups, Steve Blake and Jordan Farmar, are also out. Blake is dealing with a torn ligament in his elbow, while Farmar has a bad hamstring.

Mike D’Antoni is so fed up with the injuries he told Lakers Nation to follow another ballclub. He later apologized for that temporary lapse in judgment.

The sprained ankle monster nearly swallowed LeBron. But league honchos David Stern and Adam Silver can rest easy because The King isn’t expected to miss the Heat’s game in L.A. If LeBron were to miss the Christmas Day game, the NBA might was well cancel the rest of the schedule.

On a much, much, much smaller scope, J.J. Redick will miss the Clippers-Warriors matchup. Had to throw that in there to keep the theme going. Good news is, the Splash Brothers, Chris and Cliff Paul, Blake Griffin and the Griffin Force are all healthy so the nightcap could live up to the hype.

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Chris Kaman will lean on Lakers veteran Pau Gasol to show him how things run in Mike D’Antoni’s system. (GETTY IMAGES)

Chris Kaman’s NBA journey has brought him back to where it all began when he was drafted sixth overall by the Los Angeles Clippers in 2003.

Except, he is returning to L.A. to play with the Lakers. And he is interested in proving the Clippers wrong for trading him to the New Orleans Hornets in the Chris Paul deal.

“After all the years of service I put into that organization, not letting me know that something was going down … I found out off the TV. I thought that was a little unprofessional,” Kaman told the L.A. Times’ Mike Bresnahan. “But I’m just looking for a fresh start. I’m feeling pretty good here.”

After losing Dwight Howard to free agency when he bolted for the Houston Rockets, the Lakers were in need of another big man since Pau Gasol is 34 and coming off an injury-plagued season. The Lakers settled on Kaman, who may not command the same star power as Howard did but is a serviceable big man who won’t blow up the salary cap.

Kaman has only averaged 48 games per year the last three seasons, which is one of the reasons they got him so cheap (one year contract worth $3.1 million). He made $8 million last with Dallas.

He played in 66 games the Mavs, and played well despite limited minutes (20.7). He averaged 10.5 points per game and 5.6 rebounds, but project his stats — given 36 minutes per game — and he would have averaged 18.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks.

Depending on how he’ll be used, he could give the Lakers a good option at center next to Gasol if head coach Mike D’Antoni plays Pau at power forward. Kaman has looked good in preseason, averaging 11 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists in five games. So, playing the two 7-footers together could work. But knowing D’Antoni he’ll prefer a smaller lineup and go with a forward who can shoot threes.

Kaman has a year to make a good impression and possibly earn one last big contract. “It’s tough when you have a couple rough years, people forget about you a little bit,” he said. “I know that I’m capable of playing at this level with these guys. I’ve done it for 10 years.”

He definitely has all the motivation he needs to go out and have a good year. The wins and losses will take care of themselves. But, Kaman has another chance in the city where it all started and that’s more than a lot of players can hope for.

Darren Jacks is a regular contributor to OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @djroxalot.

All-Star point guard Chris Paul led the Los Angeles Clippers to 56 wins in the 2012-13 season. (GETTY IMAGES)

The Clippers capped off one of their best seasons in a long time, winning 56 games and finishing fourth in the Western Conference. The last time the franchise won 49 games the team was still in Buffalo and John Wooden was still coaching at UCLA.

By firing head coach Vinny Del Negro after the team got bounced in six games by the Memphis Grizzlies, it paved the way for the hiring ex-Clipper Doc Rivers to run the team. There was speculation that All-Star guard Chris Paul wanted Del Negro gone, but management squashed that quickly.

Rivers who was able to get out of his contract with the Boston Celtics, and the move convinced Paul to re-sign with the team. Losing Paul would have set the franchise back yet again, and turned them back to the old Clippers.

OneManFastBreak.net examines the teams in the Pacific Division and where they’ll finish:

1-LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS

Bringing in a championship-caliber coach in Rivers immediately paid dividends, as the Clips were able to acquire Darren Collison, Byron Mullens, J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley (they traded Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler to Phoenix in a three-team deal with the Suns and Bucks). Collison replaces Bledsoe as the backup point guard, Mullens will back up center DeAndre Jordan, and the team re-signed Matt Barnes and Ryan Hollins. They also added free agent Antwan Jamison who crossed the hall to sign with L.A.’s other team. They also added small forward Reggie Bullock in the draft.

Redick gives them a shooter they so desperately needed last season. He is a career 39% 3-point shooter and will help a team that made just 35.8% of their shots from behind the arc, which was 15th in the NBA. They made just 30.4% when it mattered most, in the postseason. Redick and Dudley (40.5% career shooter on threes) should upgrade that immediately. Dudley also gives them a much better starter than last year’s options: Butler and Grant Hill, who retired.

Collison may not be a starting caliber PG, but he’s more than capable of being a super sub that can provide 18-20 minutes per game and spot start on occasion if they want to rest Paul and keep him healthy for the playoffs. The Clippers could also use both Paul and Collison in certain situations. Collison may not be as athletic as Bledsoe, but the team played the Bob Barker role and thought the price was right when they signed him.

Mullens had a career season last year (10.6 points per game, 6.4 rebounds per game and two assists per game), but he played nearly 27 minutes and it was for the lowly Charlotte Bobcats. Mullens is a better backup than Ronny Turiaf, but he shouldn’t play more than about 13-15 minutes. Hollins returns, but he’s really an emergency option since he doesn’t provide much in the way of production (3.4 points and 2.3 rebounds).

Bullock has talent, but he may have difficulty seeing much playing time with the additions the team made. He will likely see some time in the NBADL.

So, are the Clippers that much better?

Griffin needs to continue to develop and not just be interested in being an ESPN highlight reel. His rebounding needs to get better and he needs to work on developing a mid-range game so defenses can’t just pack the paint. Jordan needs to show he is still a good defensive player and improve his rebounding. His production took a dip after signing a huge contract. The Clippers got better on paper, but they need to show they are a true title contender. Despite some of their shortcomings, the Clips will win the Pacific and it shouldn’t be that close.

2-GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

Stephen Curry is the engine that runs the Warriors. He went from being a very good player to franchise player with a true superstar season (22.9 points, 6.9 assists, while making 45.3% of his threes). Curry had several memorable performances (a 47-point game against the Lakers and a 54-point game against the Knicks), and had 13 games where he scored at least 30 points.

Curry and Klay Thompson (16.6 points on 42.2% shooting and 40.1% on threes) form one of the best young backcourts in the league. They will be a great duo for a long time and the foundation of their offensive production.

Jarrett Jack (12.9 points and 5.6 assists) was a luxury they were able to enjoy last year as a backup PG, but as a free agent he wasn’t interested in sticking around. He left for the Cleveland Cavaliers, while dependable reserve forward Carl Landry left for the Sacramento Kings. In doing so, Golden State lost two crucial players who were instrumental in their playoff run.

They also dumped some salaries by trading Andres Biedrins, Richard Jefferson and Brandon Rush, plus two first-round and two second-round picks to the Utah Jazz for Kevin Murphy. They brought in Andre Iguodala as an upgrade at small forward. He gives them a solid defender and a player who can run the offense when Curry isn’t in the game.

The salary dump was made to clear up space needed to convince Dwight Howard to come to Oakland, but ultimately they struck out when he chose the Houston Rockets. However, they have salary cap flexibility by unloading the unwanted contracts.

In order to try and add some depth to the bench the Warriors signed Toney Douglas as the backup PG to try and replace Jack (Iguodala may also play some point), Marreese Speights to replace Landry as the backup big man and Jermaine O’Neal as a backup to often-injured big man Andrew Bogut.

The Warriors caught the NBA by surprise last season and that won’t happen again. In order for them to build on what they accomplished they’ll need to stay healthy. Bogut was the only starter who missed a lot of games, but Curry’s ankles are just a twist away from sidelining him for an extended period.

3-LOS ANGELES LAKERS

Well, the Dwight Howard experiment didn’t work out quite the way the Lakers planned it and now they move forward with a lot of uncertainty.

The Lakers were active in free agency, but they were limited to the bargain-basement talent because of limited cap room. They brought back backup guard Jordan Farmar (who was with them from 2006-10), and signed center Chris Kaman, small forward Wesley Johnson, swingman Nick Young, power forward Elias Harris and small forward Shawne Williams.

Kaman will most likely start at center while Gasol stays at PF, giving the Lakers two 7-footers in their frontcourt. Kaman had a disappointing year in Dallas (10.5 points and just 5.6 rebounds in 20 minutes per contest, while appearing in 66 games), but the hope is next to Gasol, he’ll be able to provide 14-15 points and 8-9 rebounds.

Farmar is more suited to Mike D’Antoni’s frenetic pace than the triangle offense he played under Phil Jackson. If Nash gets hurt, Farmar should be able to step in and run the offense, along with Steve Blake. That’s if they don’t tinker with the offense, and there is a possibility they will since they brought in assistant coach Kurt Rambis, a longtime assistant and one-time Lakers head coach.

Young, Johnson and Williams will try to replace Metta World Peace, who was released under the Amnesty clause and signed with the New York Knicks. Young provides scoring and could start the season at shooting guard if Kobe Bryant isn’t fully recovered from his torn Achilles’ tendon. Johnson, who could start at SF, finished the 2012-13 strong for the Phoenix Suns averaging 13.4 points in 21 starts. On March 18, 2011, Young scored a career-high 29 points against the Lakers.

Jordan Hill returns from a hip injury that caused him to miss 53 games, and he’ll provide relief to Kaman or Gasol. After the Lakers acquired Hill from Houston in 2012, he became their energy guy off the bench and had several good games that earned him a nice contract in the summer of 2012.

Steve Nash, Gasol and Kobe will be counted on to carry the bulk of the scoring, but the free agent signings should help provide a much better bench. Whether or not this could be a case of addition by subtraction, not having Howard will be interesting to see. They won’t have to deal with the Dwight drama.

4- SACRAMENTO KINGS

The Kings have been known the last few years for being the new Los Angeles Clippers, a team that just can’t compete night in and night out. But, that might be changing.

The Kings had a pretty good offseason as they traded Tyreke Evans (in a three-team deal for Greivis Vasquez) to the New Orleans Pelicans and replaced him with Kansas University shooting guard Ben McLemore, the seventh overall pick in the draft. It was amazing McLemore fell as far as he did and Sacramento benefited from it. They get the most NBA-ready player (by most scouts’ opinion) from this year’s rookie class.

Versatile forward Luc Richard Mbah a Moute was acquired from the Bucks for a pair of second-round picks, and they also brought back Carl Landry (he played 28 games for the Kings in 2009-10). Sacramento became more athletic with the moves and added a solid veteran in Landry.

McLemore and DeMarcus Cousins give the Kings a good 1-2 punch. Cousins is one of the most talented players in the league when he’s focused, and they brought in a highly respected coach in Mike Malone to take over the reigns.

The Kings have a long way to go before they become a serious playoff threat, but they certainly became more competitive.

5-PHOENIX SUNS

The Suns seem to be lost in the post Amare/Nash era, much like the Bulls were after Phil Jackson, Michael Jordan, and Scottie Pippen departed. There was no clear plan on how they want to go about rebuilding and it showed last season after trading away Steve Nash to the Los Angeles Lakers.

They made some moves that should improve them over the long haul, dumping the erratic Michael Beasley, trading hard-nosed defender and outside shooter Jared Dudley and veteran small forward Caron Butler for Eric Bledsoe in a three-team deal. Adding Bledsoe gives them an exciting and talented young player who should help sell tickets.

Goran Dragic played well in his first season as a full time starter (14.7 points, 7.4 assists and 1.6 steals).  Bledsoe and Dragic give the Suns a backcourt that can pass the ball and get everybody involved in the offense. And both players can shift between PG and SG. Archie Goodwin was added via the draft and could push incumbent backup Shannon Brown for playing time.

If healthy, center Marcin Gortat can provide 15 points and 9-10 rebounds. But, that’s no guarantee since he has averaged just under 60 games per year in six seasons. If he’s banged up, rookie Alex Len — the fifth overall pick in the draft — will see some playing time as the main backup after Jermaine O’Neal and Hamed Haddadi left for free agency.

Gerald Green continues his nomadic journey through the league (third team in three seasons) and he’ll have every opportunity to show he can play. He’s just 27 and has 50 career starts, but he’ll have some competition. P.J. Tucker is a talented defender (something Green isn’t) and could earn some minutes and starts.

Marcus and Markieff Morris will be the platoon tandem at PF with holdover Channing Frye providing the outside shooting (almost half of his attempts were from beyond the arc) at the position if the Morris twins struggle. Frye also provides a bigger option at 6-11.

The bench isn’t that strong so the starters need to play well. But, expectations are lowered since this is a basically a full rebuild operation with a new coach in Jeff Hornacek, who should be able to find success over the long term. Hornacek was a scrappy player and should be able to relate to his players. They should be in the Andrew Wiggins/Jabari Parker sweepstakes when the next draft rolls around. This is a team in transition and sorely in need of more talent.

Darren Jacks is a regular contributor to OneManFastBreak.net. Send him an email at djroxalot@hotmail.com.