Opening the “New Post” box, I sort of got the feeling that this would be the shortest post ever, besides the Patriots winning the Super Bowl error/post. On the first hand, I’m really not in one of those 1500-2000 word posts where I reorganize or fix a league. On the more important hand, nothing is really happening. We’re two days away from the biggest college basketball game of the season (of course, I speak of the big Albany at Canisius game). The NBA Trade Deadline came and went today. One semi-big trade happened. The Cleveland Cavaliers come away with Ben Wallace, Delonte West, Joe Smith, and Wally Szczerbiak. The Chicago Bulls with Drew Gooden and Larry Hughes (sorry Skip Bayless). Finally, the Not-So SuperSonics come away with the prospect of not winning any more games this year and Donyell Marshall, who, I believe, is 59 years old at this point.

I do not hide the fact that I, like every sound-minded fan of the Celtics, am in love with Delonte West. He can shoot the 3. He can defend on pure hustle. AND he can run an offense. He was being completely underused in Seattle, where he should have been on the court with Jeff Green and Kevin Durant, playing an uptempo style. Now, D should get the chance to be a part of this starting lineup: West, Wally, LeBron James, Ben Wallace, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas, with Daniel Gibson, Anderson Varejao and veteran Eric Snow off the bench. I really like this lineup. Wallace is on the downside of his career, but, really, with LeBron, he’s not going to have to score a point. As long as he can defend Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh and Kevin Garnett, the Cavs will likely return to the finals.

From the Bulls standpoint, this trade is worthless. I don’t see the point of adding Drew Gooden, I think he’s terrible overrated. Larry Hughes does no good, other than push Ben Gordon back on the depth chart, unless they want to go REEEEEALLY small.

For the Sonics…expiring contracts are only good if you are going to be able to bring in free agents and no one is going to want to play for a team with an owner that is going to move his team to the sticks. If I’m Kevin Durant, I hate my life right now, despite being a future star.

So, the NBA Trade Deadline is gone. The 3 biggest winners are:

3. Hawks
2. Cleveland
1. Lakers

I’m still on the Hawks bandwagon, post-Bibby trade. Things will gel. Yes, they’re struggling right now, but things will begin to gel.

Cleveland, see above.

The Lakers may not lose another game this season. I’m only being slightly hyperbolic.

The biggest loser of the trade deadline is the Grizzlies, who have no idea what they’re doing. They were going to be good. They’re now going nowhere fast.

Chris Paul is the MVP of the NBA. Not Kobe. Not KG. Not Bron Bron. Not anyone, but CP3. He’s taken a mostly mediocre team and made them, and don’t scoff, the best team in the NBA and, still (well, with the Lakers) my favorite to win the NBA Title. This Year! I can’t beat this point hard enough. Look at what Chris Paul is doing with what he’s doing it with. Byron Scott is his coach! Not Phil Jackson! Byron Scott! If he didn’t play in a media blackhole and instead played in New York or LA, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.

Game O’ The Night: I wish I could say Tennessee @ Memphis, but it’s not Saturday. It’s a garbage slate tonight. If you can stay up, there’s a compelling Pac-10 game being broadcast nationally. Oregon @ USC at 11 P.M. I’ve mentioned previously that I think USC is much better than they probably are and a potential Elite 8 sleeper. I also think Oregon is much better than their playing. OJ Mayo needs to bounce back from a horrid performance Sunday against UCLA. For tonight, bounce back or not, I’m calling upset. Oregon really needs this win. They get is 84-77 in a typically good Pac-10 Thursday night tilt.