Still the champs until proven otherwise.  The Lakers made a few acquisitions to help beef up some holes, but they also added some age.  If the Lakers are healthy, they are still the best team in the NBA.  Keeping that lineup healthy will be a challenge though.

With Wade starting to make his way back to 100 percent, it looks like we will not have to wait long to see the stars align again in South Beach.  You have to know ESPN is somehow involved in getting Wade healthy, their NBA coverage is toast without the Big Three.

The Magic return all the important pieces from last season’s squad that railed off eight straight wins to start the playoffs.  Dwight also spent some of the offseason training with Hakeem Olajuwon.  The Magic have a team can take them back to the Finals, but they will need to establish dominance in their state first.

Nothing like a couple of vets to increase the average age on one of the league’s oldest teams, but Doc Rivers has been written off before.  Many writers and critics had all but forgotten the Celtics after limping through the second half of the season.  But when healthy, the Celtics could beat anyone in the NBA.

This season’s sexy pick is with Kevin Durant and the Thunder.  After pushing the Lakers to six games, Oklahoma City enters the 2010-2011 season without the element of surprise.  No longer able to sneak up on opponents, the Thunder may find themselves getting better competition out of their opponents.  How they react will determine how far they can go.

The Spurs found a young nucleus to build for the future around Hill and Blair last season, now if they can get a few more good seasons out of their aging core they could post a very real threat in the West.

Phoenix Suns

Phoenix will miss Amar’e this season, but they won’t be out of contention without him.  As long as Nash is healthy, the late season emergence of Robin Lopez should help fill in gaps in the paint.  Bringing in Hedo does not give the Suns enough firepower to keep up with the Lakers, but it could come close.

When healthy, the Mavericks are a very deep team with the talent to compete with the best teams in the West.  However, chances are they will be streaky during the regular season but still finish in the top four and lose a first or second round playoff series.  There is just very little about this team that says “Title Contender.”

Upgrades to an already impressive late-season team a year ago have some critics tagging the Bucks as sleeper division winners.  After his first season of enduring the full NBA schedule, Jennings will be better prepared to keep his legs all year long.  Throw in Corey Maggette, an improved Carlos Delfino, and defensive specialist Scott Skiles should lead this team right back to the playoffs in 2011.

I am not completely sold that the Jazz have come close to replacing Carlos Boozer with Al Jefferson, but if there is any situation for Big Al to thrive it has to be under Jerry Sloan at Utah.  No longer being counted on as the primary/only offensive option, Jefferson will have more freedom around the basket.  Something he has not had since entering the league.

The Atlanta Hawks have gradually progressed over the last couple years by keeping their core unit intact.  After experiencing their first 50+ win season in quite some time, they spent a good amount of money to keep Joe Johnson and the crew together.  Now seeing if they can continue to improve is the challenge.

Injuries have kept this relatively young team from truly fulfilling the “up and coming” mantra.  But another year gives the Blazers another opportunity to try and make a dent in the Western Conference.  Until they do, they will be another talented team falling just short of rising to an elite level.

The Rockets did not have much time to try and get in a new rhythm after reconstructing the roster at the trade deadline, so it will be interesting to see how they have meshed after a year of training camp.  Yao will be playing, but on a time limit.  It may take a while for him to figure out how to maximize his production in that time.

Denver enters the season as one of the most uncertain teams in the NBA.  “Uncertain” because it is not at all probable that their roster will look the same at the All Star break.  They still have the playoff caliber talent, but the future is too fuzzy to put too much confidence in the Nuggets.

Memphis spent a lot of money bringing Rudy Gay back to Memphis to keep last year’s breakout core together.  After a disappointing finish to the season, the Grizzlies will now have playoffs or bust on the mind.  Anything else is a disappointment after the offseason spending.

Charlotte Bobcats

The Bobcats waved goodbye to Raymond Felton, and are putting the future of their offense in the hands of D.J. Augustin…for now.  Larry Brown has been notorious for midseason trades, and so far it has worked out for the Bobcats.  They will still be strong on defense, but lack the offensive direction right now to keep up with high-scoring opponents.

No the Knicks did not land LeBron or Carmelo. but they did improve their squad in a way that will fit Mike D’Antoni’s system.  Reuniting with Amar’e and bringing in point guard Raymond Felton are instant upgrades for the Knicks.  Look for triple digits on a regular basis in Madison Square Garden.

While many are asking if Gilbert Arenas and first overall pick John Wall can co-exist, others are wondering if they need to.  Gilbert has obviously given up on his time in Washington, so the Wiz might as well work on getting Wall and Hinrich in sync.  The Wiz are much better, but so is the East.

Chris Paul is finally healthy and should benefit from having super athletic wings Trevor Ariza and Marcus Thornton to run what could be a very fun Hornets team.  The Hornets are face to face with losing their franchise player, we’ll see if they make any more moves to try and keep CP3 in New Orleans.

The Clippers look to have assembled one of their better teams on paper in recent years.  Unfortunately, history says that Vinny Del Negro-coached teams that look good on paper tend to aim for their foot for stretches during the season.  But if Griffin stays healthy, they at least have a Rookie of the Year frontrunner.

With Curry out with an ankle injury and new coach Keith Smart, it could be a rough start to the season for the Warriors.  Newcomer David Lee will provide a reliable presence down low that has been lacking in recent years, but the Warriors will struggle to close games out once again.

With Darren Collison coming over from New Orleans, the Pacers have the starting point guard they have been searching for.  Collison is by no means a game changer, but it is reason for a little more hope in Indy.  Last season’s lottery pick Tyler Hansbrough has apparently overcome vertigo, so maybe he’ll have a breakout season. Maybe.

Philadelphia 76ers

Doug Collins has a lot of resources and high expectations with this young Sixers squad.  Unfortunately, a lot of unproven talent will not have much time to gel before getting lost in the Eastern Conference shuffle.  Unless Andre Iguodala explodes offensively or Elton Brand bounces back from another disappointing year, it is hard to find a lot of scoring on the 76ers roster.

After missing on John Wall and LeBron James, the new look Nets are trotting out an awfully disappointing squad for the 2010-2011 season.  Avery Johnson will do his best to repair his relationship with Devin Harris and build around the young point guard and last season’s breakout from Brook Lopez.

The Sacramento Kings have a lot of athleticism and could potentially have two straight Rookie of the Year award winners.  That will not be enough to win 40 games though, in fact the Kings could struggle win 30.  But fans of the game will enjoy watching Evans and Cousins develop into the players they will become.

Cleveland’s time as a championship contender has come and gone.  Yet for some reason team owner Dan Gilbert has not decided to blow up and rebuild yet.  That will leave a season of pain for Cleveland fans who have to count on Mo Williams and Antawn Jamison for primary offensive production.

The unbalanced team of untapped/overused potential will likely wander through the 2010-2011 season the same way they did a year ago.  Greg Monroe will benefit from getting to play behind a revived Ben Wallace for a season, but one injury to Big Ben could force more minutes out of the Georgetown big man than coach John Kuester would like.

They said goodbye to Bosh and Turkoglu, and now according to the Raptors’ spending, the future is in the hands of Amir Johnson.  That is not a situation that Toronto fans, or anyone for that matter, wants to be in right now.

The T-Wolves said goodbye to arguably their best player in Al Jefferson, and only picked up Martell Webster, Luke Ridnour, and Michael Beasley.  [shudders]