The season started this week and once again it's soooo difficult to figure out where all my favorite players were traded. From the first week of play, it looks like the Spurs and Pistons are still the teams to beat. The Heat remind me of the Lakers of 5 years ago who suddenly have a Yankeelike payroll with so many seasoned veterans.

The Wizards should be average to mediocre this year IMO. I'm very upset they let Larry Hughes, Juan Dixon, Steve Blake, and Kwame Brown walk away, but hopefully newcomers Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins will give some support to Jamison and Arenas.

Also, a HUGE change off the court is the new NBA dress code for players, forcing them to dress "nicely," no headphones, no sunglasses indoors, and jewelry must be covered.

I guess I should update this a little. The Wizards are having another playoff bound season under the leadership of Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison. The addition of Caron Butler is finally beginning to pay off with his newfound chemistry with Arenas and Jamison. With the great leadership of Gilbert Arenas, I can easily see the Wizards again advancing to the 2nd round of the playoffs if they can manage the 4-6 seed.

The Pistons, Spurs, and Mavs seem to be the teams to beat this year and are an echelon higher than every other team. I think the Suns could be VERY good if Amare Stoudemire comes back and is healthy.

Also, as the USA is selecting their next Olympic team I hope they make the right decisions. I already think they made a mistake by choosing Coach K from Duke as their Head Coach.