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.

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.

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.

Steve Blake battles Chandler Parsons for the ball. (GETTY IMAGES)

With the Black Mamba still rehabbing from a torn Achilles tendon, the Los Angeles Lakers turned to the White Shadow — aka Steve Blake — in crunch time.

Blake hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to lift the Lakers to a 99-98 win over Dwight Howard and the Houston Rockets on Thursday night.

“This was a huge win for us,” Blake said to TNT’s Craig Sager, “considering the way we have played the last two games on the road.”

Blake was referring to the 125-94 loss to the Golden State Warriors in Oakland on Oct. 30 and a 123-104 loss to the Dallas Mavericks Tuesday night. Blake finished with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting against the Rockets, and was 4-for-6 on 3-pointers.

The Rockets (4-2) made a huge push in the second half after trailing 64-50 at halftime. James Harden scored 15 of his game-high 35 points in the second half to spearhead the run. Harden was Houston’s Mister-Do-Everything, grabbing five rebounds, dishing out four assists, snagging four steals and blocking two shots.

In his first game against his former team, Howard scored scored 15 points and had 14 rebounds and was defended pretty well by the L.A. big men.

Blake made three of four 3-pointers in the first quarter, while Steve Nash made two threes to help jumpstart the Lakers (3-3), who took a 36-19 lead after the first 12 minutes. Nash ended up with 12 points and six assists.

Blake and Nash entered the game struggling from the field. Blake was converting just 30% of his shots and Nash was making just 28.1%. The two veterans set the tone for the game.

Head coach Mike D’Antoni benched Shawne Williams and started Chris Kaman at center, moving Pau Gasol to power forward. The two 7-footers were effective in the first half, and were a huge reason L.A. was able to build an early lead. Gasol struggled offensively as he scored just two points on 1-of-10 shooting. He did grab 12 rebounds and was a factor on defense as he matched up with Howard on the defensive end.

Once again, the Lakers bench was very effective. Jodie Meeks scored a team-high 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting (5-for-7 on 3-pointers), Wesley Johnson chipped in with 16 points, four rebounds and two blocks, and Jordan Farmar added 11 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

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

Dwight Howard heads to Houston after one season in L.A. (GETTY IMAGES

For someone who likes playing the role of superhero, Dwight Howard has gotten real good at being a villain. LeBron James and Kobe Bryant now have company at the top when it comes to polarizing figures in the league.

We can never refer to Howard as Superman ever again because Superman would have never left Metropolis for Houston.

Since announcing on Twitter that he’s leaving the L.A. Lakers and sign with the Houston Rockets, Howard has been bombarded with criticism from Lakers fans and former NBA players. Fans now playfully refer to him as Dwight Coward. Charles Barkley believes he lacks mental toughness, and Shaquille O’Neal says he couldn’t handle the bright lights of the big city so he bolted for the “little” city of Houston.

The cold, hard truth of the matter is this: Howard did not deserve the attention. He’s nowhere near the caliber of a LeBron or Kobe or Kevin Durant. Tim Grover — who trained Michael Jordan and Dwyane Wade — calls Howard a “cooler,” someone who is uncomfortable in a leadership role.

Drama seems to follow Howard wherever he goes, starting in Orlando and ending in L.A. His flip-flopping and indecisiveness overshadowed what he did on the court. All the posturing and constant waffling got real annoying. And the fact that he’s referred to as the best center in the NBA is an incredible indictment on the state of big men in the Association. Howard pales in comparison to other great big men who played against him and before him.

Howard has averaged more than 20 points just four times in nine seasons, and his best scoring season was 22.9. And in his one and only season with the Lakers, Howard averaged just 17 points per game. O’Neal averaged more than 20 points for 14 straight seasons, and won the scoring title twice (1995 and 2000). Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon averaged more than 20 points for 13 straight seasons, and David Robinson’s scoring average never dipped below 23 during his first seven years.

O’Neal has said that in order to be considered a true dominant big man in the NBA, you need to average 28 (points) and 15 (rebounds). Shaq backs up his claim because he pulled off the feat in 2000 and 2001, averaging 30 and 15 during the postseason in leading the Lakers to back-to-back titles.

Howard has never won a title and has never come close to winning a scoring title. He has led the league in rebounding five times and has been named defensive player of the year three times. But he’s a liability on offense because he lacks post moves and can’t hit free throws.

“Dwight Howard picks up two offensive fouls a game because he doesn’t know how to post up,” Barkley said.

Despite his limitations on offense, Howard insisted that the offense should run through him. That was his main beef with Lakers head coach Mike D’Antoni.

Howard desperately wanted more touches in the post and felt that D’Antoni never fully appreciated his talent. But when Kobe went down in April with an Achilles tear and Pau Gasol was out with a foot injury, Howard had an opportunity to show what he can do as the lead guy and whiffed. He could have backed up his talk against the San Antonio Spurs in the first round, but he was too busy engaging in hand-to-hand combat in the paint with Matt Bonner. He whined the whole time and quit on the Lakers, who got swept by the Spurs in embarrassing fashion.

Shaq was absolute right about Howard. Dwight chose to play in Houston because it was the “safe” move for him. He’ll beloved in Houston and James Harden won’t push him as hard as Kobe did. Howard can clown around in Houston and get away it. The spotlight in Houston won’t be as hot as L.A.

It was sad to see a great franchise like the Lakers basically had to beg Howard to stay in L.A., putting up billboards and massaging his ego. The Lakers are better off without Howard. The Dwightmare is over.

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

Thunder star Russell Westbrook was reportedly irate with Rockets guard Patrick Beverley for the questionable play he made during Game 2. (GETTY IMAGES)

Houston guard Patrick Beverley just became public enemy No. 1 in Oklahoma City for an unnecessary play he made during Game 2 of the Thunder-Rockets series that resulted in a potentially playoff-damaging injury to Russell Westbrook.

The Thunder’s second-leading scorer and the sixth-best scorer in the NBA will have surgery to repair cartilage in his right knee and be out indefinitely. General manager Sam Presti won’t speculate on the timeline for his return until after the procedure was done.

This is devastating news for the Thunder, who are the top-seeded team in the Western Conference and favored to return to the NBA Finals. But without Westbrook, arguably the most dynamic player in the game, Oklahoma City’s title hopes are thrown out the window. It came as a surprise to the Thunder when the team arrived at the practice facility Friday that Westbrook, who hasn’t missed a game dating back to high school, would be out.

The injury occurred with six minutes left in the second quarter of Game 2 when Westbrook crossed halfcourt and just when he was about to call timeout Beverley, a feisty guard who plays with a little bit of an edge, lunged at the ball and his hip struck Westbrook’s right knee. Westbrook knew right away there was something wrong, as he slammed the scorer’s table in frustration and stared at the Rockets bench looking for Beverley.

Beverley called Westbrook’s injury “unfortunate” and claims he had no intention to hurt the Oklahoma City guard.

“Anyone who knows me knows I don’t go out there and try to hurt anybody,” Beverley told USA Today. “I play at one speed and that’s fast. I was just trying to make a play on the ball before they called a timeout and it’s just unfortunate.”

Beverley can defend his actions all day long, but it doesn’t let him off the hook. The play was totally unnecessary and absolutely dirty. Westbrook told Yahoo! Sports writer Adrian Wojnarowski that he was “irate” with Beverley, and he has every right to be upset. Beverley just cost him his season, and changed the entire complexion of the NBA playoffs.

If you watch the video closely Beverley lunged right at Westbrook’s knees, which is a big no-no in any sport. You could say that Beverley was simply playing hard, and it was one of those plays that has happened hundreds of times. A player walks the ball across halfcourt, goes near the bench, then calls timeout. But in this case, Beverley went a little too far.

Charles Barkley called it a “dirty” move and totally uncalled for, and Barkley was absolutely right. Beverley is a young player who was definitely trying to get under Westbrook’s skin. He wanted to show Westbrook that he wasn’t going to back down, and he was willing to do just about anything to get an edge and get Westbrook’s attention. But Beverley overstepped his bounds when he went too low and took out Westbrook’s legs.

What goes around, comes around. Beverley better watch his back the rest of this series.

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

Want proof? How about the end-to-end speed he flashed in the first round of the playoffs against the Houston Rockets. Twice!

At the start of the game, Westbrook grabbed a rebound at the 11:21 mark and took off like a world-class sprinter. By the time he got to the rim on the other end for a layup the time on the game clock showed 11:17. If you do the math, that’s four seconds.

For an encore Westbrook pulled off another four-second layup in the third quarter. With 5.6 seconds and the Thunder leading the Rockets by double digits, Westbrook took an inbound pass from Kevin Durant near the free throw line and three quick dribbles later he was at the rim for a layup, blowing past Patrick Beverley in the backcourt and juking Chandler Parsons in the frontcourt. It took Westbrook a mind-boggling four seconds to score the buzzer beater. And he made it look easy.

Westbrook is without a doubt one of the best athletes in the world, and Hall-of-Famer Charles Barkley says he could probably play in the NFL if he wanted to or compete in the Olympics in track and field. Mike D’Antoni authored a book “Seven Seconds or Less” when he was the coach of the Phoenix Suns. Imagine Westbrook in D’Antoni’s offense in Phoenix? D’Antoni would have had to change the title to “Four Seconds or Less.”

Watch Westbrook fly down the court in this highlight video:

Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant need to be at their absolute best for Oklahoma City to advance past the first round because former teammate James Harden will be highly motivated. (GETTY IMAGES)

The Western Conference is like an episode of “The Avengers.” It was action packed all season, and you had to be there at the end to get the full story.

Oklahoma City and San Antonio are the top two seeds, but both enter the playoffs with some question marks. The Spurs hobble into the postseason with a gimpy Tony Parker and gimpy Manu Ginobili. Parker was enjoying a MVP-type season before ankle and leg injuries derailed his season. Ginobili has been in and out of the lineup all season and he just returned from his hamstring injury. Then, in a very un-Spurs-like move, the team released veteran forward Stephen Jackson a week the before the playoffs start.

The Thunder have stayed relatively healthy all season, but they’re facing a different challenge this postseason. Anything less than a trip to the NBA Finals will be considered a failure in Oklahoma City, and the pressure falls squarely on the shoulders of four people: Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Scott Brooks, and Sam Presti.

For Oklahoma City to win the title, Durant and Westbrook need to be great. They can’t be just OK. Also, Brooks will have to figure out a way to clean up the Thunder’s issues on defense, and Presti is praying that the James Harden gamble won’t blow up in his face.

Here’s how the West playoffs will unfold:

FIRST ROUND
(1) OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER VS. (8) HOUSTON ROCKETS
This is the worst possible first-round matchup for the Thunder. The Rockets can match the Thunder shot for shot and, oh by the way, Houston has James Harden. Remember him, Thunder fans. Harden will be extra motivated to be his old pals Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and what a boon would it be for Harden to knock off his former team out of the playoffs. This series could easily go seven games and it’s a good thing the Rockets don’t play defense because that’s about the only saving grace for OKC. Prediction: Thunder in 7

(2) SAN ANTONIO SPURS VS. (7) LOS ANGELES LAKERS
For the first time in the recent history of this epic showdown between the West powers, the Spurs won’t have to deal with Kobe Bryant in the series. That’s good news in San Antonio because Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are both hurting. It evens up the playing field. The first two games of the series will tell a lot if this matchup will go the distance. If the Spurs jump out to a 2-0 lead, then the Lakers could go home early. But if the Lakers somehow earn a split in San Antonio, then the Spurs better prepare for a long series. Magic Johnson has already predicted a Lakers win over the Spurs. That’s bad news for the Lakers because Magic has never been good at making forecasts. Prediction: Spurs in 5

(3) DENVER NUGGETS VS. (6) GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
Talk about your track-meet series! The Warriors love to play fast, but the Nuggets play faster. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson love to rain threes, but the Nuggets love to score points in the paint. Injuries to key players will play a huge factor in this matchup. Golden State has no shot if center Andrew Bogut doesn’t play. But if Kenneth Faried’s bum ankle keeps him out, then this series is up for grabs. Both are excellent home teams with superb home crowds. Denver has been nearly unbeatable at the Pepsi Center, and that should be enough to advance. Prediction: Nuggets in 6

(4) LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS VS. (5) MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
In a rematch of last year’s epic seven-game series, the Grizzlies trot out a new lineup to try to exact revenge on the team that sent them home a year ago. The Grizzlies believe they have a better team entering the playoffs because volume shooter Rudy Gay is now in Toronto, and Zach Randolph is now the No. 1 option. The Clippers will try to push the tempo, while the Griz will try to slow it down and pound it inside to Randolph and Marc Gasol. The key matchup lies at the point where Mike Conley goes head-to-head with All-Star guard Chris Paul. Whichever point guard plays better will see their team advance. Prediction: Clippers in 7

Houston Rockets guard Jeremy Lin celebrates one of his five 3-pointers during a 140-109 win over the Golden State Warriors. (GETTY IMAGES)

The Houston fans knew the Rockets were on the verge of history against Golden State on Tuesday night, needing one more 3-pointer to set an NBA record. They chanted “One more three! One more three!” during the final moments.

Warriors coach Mark Jackson, however, wasn’t going to let that happen.

Houston tied the record with 3:39 left in the fourth when Donatas Motiejunas buried a triple from the corner, much to the delight of the Rockets bench that had starters James Harden and Jeremy Lin cheering on the reserves to break the record.

So, Jackson ordered his Warriors to stop the three parade by intentionally fouling any Houston player who got the ball. The Rockets settled for tying an NBA record and set a franchise mark with 23 3-pointers in a 140-109 win over the Warriors. Houston matched the single-game record for 3s set by Orlando in a win over Sacramento on Jan. 13, 2009.

The Warriors got a ton of heat from Rockets fans for raining on their 3-ball fun, but Jackson was unapologetic afterwards.

“We’re not gonna lay down. I’m an old-school basketball player, I’m an old-school coach,” Jackson told the media. “You can’t appreciate that that’s on you. You gonna try to get the record we’re gonna stop you. There’s a way to do it that’s all. And I expect nothing less if I was on the other side.”

Kevin McHale, another old-school player with an old-school mentality, appeared to engage in a very heated conversation with Jackson at midcourt after the Warriors’ Draymond Green committed a hard foul on Patrick Beverley as he tried to shoot a three. Green and Morris were ejected. But McHale quickly defused any animosity toward Jackson during his postgame press conference, telling reporters he had no issue with Jackson’s end-game strategy.

“I didn’t even know we had a chance to break the record until late in the game,” McHale said. “We shoot a lot of threes, that’s what we do. Mark didn’t want it to happen so they fouled. I have no problem with that. Mark has to coach his team.”

Here’s a question to the Golden State Warriors: Why did they allow 23 3-pointers in the first place? They could have stopped this madness much sooner by challenger Lin (5-for-8 on threes), Harden (4-for5), Chandler Parsons (4-for-8), and Marcus Morris (3-for-6) and run them off the 3-point line. Instead, Jackson and the Warriors waited until the final four minutes of the game to do something about it.

Looks like the Warriors’ defense needs some work to do.

Oklahoma City star forward Kevin Durant goes up against Miami Heat MVP LeBron James on Christmas Day. (GETTY IMAGES)

Last June the Oklahoma City Thunder watched the Miami Heat celebrate an NBA championship. Six months later, the Thunder met the Heat again.

The marquee matchup between LeBron James and Kevin Durant lived up to the hype. James, the reigning regular season and Finals MVP, nearly had a triple-double as he finished with 29 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Dwyane Wade backed up James with 21 points, as the Heat survived a frantic finish to beat the Thunder 103-97 on Tuesday.

”Felt a little bit like a different month,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told The Associated Press. ”Regardless of what your script is coming into the game, when you play this team, it’s not going to go according to script. They’re too good.”

But on this night, much like last June, the Heat were better.

Durant dropped a game-high 33 points and Westbrook netted 21 for Oklahoma City, but both Thunder stars missed potential game-tying 3-point attempts in the final seconds. Westbrook thought he was fouled on his 3-point attempt and slammed the scorers’ table in frustration when no foul was called.

”It was a great game. I can’t complain,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. ”We could have done a better job of not turning the ball over in the first half. All in all, it was a great game to play and a great game to coach. Unfortunately, we didn’t come out with the win.”

Here are the rest of the Christmas Day results:

L.A. LAKERS 100, NEW YORK KNICKS 94
Playing in his record 15th Christmas Day game, Kobe Bryant engineered a second-half comeback to lead the Lakers to their fifth straight win and 2-0 since Steve Nash returned to the starting lineup. Bryant scored 34 points in his NBA-record 15th Christmas Day game and Metta World Peace added 20 points and seven rebounds while defending Carmelo Anthony, whose 34 points led the Knicks.

Bryant, the league’s leading scorer, has topped 30 or more points in nine straight games.

”If you’re going to play on Christmas, it’s always better to win. Makes it all worthwhile,” Bryant told AP. ”It’s so early in the season to have turned a corner. We have everybody in the lineup and we’re starting to see how we want to play.”

The Lakers improved to 14-14 – 9-9 under new coach Mike D’Antoni – and upped their holiday record to 21-18, including 13-9 at home. They returned to .500 for the first time since they were 8-8 on Nov. 30.

L.A. CLIPPERS 112, DENVER NUGGETS 100
The Clippers remain the hottest team in the NBA, pushing their winning streak to 14 straight which is a franchise record. Jamal Crawford and Matt Barnes had 22 and 20 points, respectively, to spearhead a strong game from the Clippers bench.

Chris Paul had 14 points, eight assists, and three steals while Blake Griffin finished with 13 points, six rebounds, and six assists in just 25 minutes of action. The Clippers blew the game open with a 42-point outburst in the second quarter that propelled L.A. to a 67-48 halftime advantage.

HOUSTON ROCKETS 120, CHICAGO BULLS 97
Omer Asik returned to the United Center and had a double-double with 20 points and 18 rebounds.

”Omer is a big-time player in the middle,” Rockets coach Kevin McHale told AP. ”Tonight he was blocking shots, getting rebounds, and outletting the ball for us. He’s got a big body and sets wide picks for us. This was a very good game for him.”

James Harden scored 26 points and Jeremy Lin added 20 points and 11 assists for Houston, which had all five starters score in double figures. Chandler Parsons scored 23 points and Marcus Morris had 10. Houston has won six of seven.

BOSTON CELTICS 93, BROOKLYN NETS 76
The last time Celtics guard Rajon Rondo played against the Nets, he got into it with forward Kris Humphries and was thrown out of the game to stop his double-digit assist streak. It was redemption for Rondo on Christmas as he scored 19 points in his first full game against the Nets this season to help orchestrate a very impressive road win for Boston.

Rookie Jared Sullinger tied a career high with 16 points and Jeff Green had 15 for the Celtics, who was challenged by their head coach Doc Rivers after their “soft” performance in the previous meeting with Brooklyn. Gerald Wallace and Brook Lopez each scored 15 for the Nets, who have lost four of five. The Nets’ high-priced backcourt of Deron Williams (10 points) and Joe Johnson (12 points) were a combined 7-for-21 from the field.