The Dallas Mavericks acquired Lamar Odom from the Los Angeles Lakers, which will have ripple effects throughout the NBA as teams try to finalize rosters in this chaotic period following the NBA lockout. Above you see a photo of Odom battling Dirk Nowitzski last year in the NBA playoffs. Instead of working to get revenge for the Lakers, Odom will now be a crucial part of the Dallas effort to return to the NBA finals.

This trade signals the end of the bizarre saga surrounding the Chris Paul trade that was rejected by David Stern. That controversial decision has rocked the NBA, and now we’ll be hearing about it over and over again as New Orleans tries to unload Paul to another team. The Lakers decided to back out of the talks rather than submit a new trade from Chris Paul to the league, and in dealing Odom put an abrupt end to that scenario. Meanwhile, the Lakers now seem to be focusing their attention on acquiring Dwight Howard in a deal that would involve Andrew Bynum.

As for the Mavericks, this trade for Odom became possible when they decided to work a deal with the New York Knicks when it became clear they would be losing center Tyson Chandler to the Knicks. That gave the Mavs an $11 million trade exception which they then used to acquire Odom. Odom made it clear he didn’t want to leave LA, but the powers that be clearly decided to go in another direction.

Dallas has more moves to make as it reworks in roster in the wake of losing Chandler. Chandler was a very important piece of their championship puzzle, but he’s the kind of player that can be replaced. Dallas is now one of the teams that might get a shot at landing Dwight Howard as the Orlando Magic have permitted them along with the Lakers and the New Jersey Nets. There’s also buzz out there that Vince Carter will land in Dallas as well. Carter can still score, but he’s not the kind of player one thinks of to help a championship team. Maybe he’ll be better in a reduced role.

The Dwight Howard sweepstakes will be the next big story that will have ripple effects around the league. We’ll see how serious Dallas is in that contest.

Kevin Pelton of ESPN says not so fast. (Insider subscription required, unfortunately.)

Should Howard make it clear that he wants to leave Orlando when his contract expires, the Lakers will be a logical trade destination because of the bright lights of L.A. and their ability to offer Andrew Bynum to the Magic. In the long run, making Howard the latest superstar center to wear Forum blue and gold would be a way for the Lakers to prepare for a future in which Kobe Bryant is no longer the team’s go-to player. Still, the transition would be painful in the short term, depending on what the Lakers had to deal in such a scenario.

Behind Bynum, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, post depth has long been a weakness for the Lakers. To get Howard, they’d likely have to surrender two of their three stalwarts. The Lakers have been able to survive for stretches without Bynum by playing Gasol and Odom heavy minutes, but that has taken its toll over time and going with just two reliable big men for an entire season would be difficult.

There’s a saying… don’t cut off your nose to spite your face. And that’s exactly what the Lakers would be doing if they did not seize the opportunity to trade for Dwight Howard, whether it costs some combination of Bynum, Gasol or Odom or not.

Howard represents a life after Kobe for the Lakers and giving up front court depth is a small price to play for that long-term positioning. Bynum would almost surely be involved in any potential deal for Howard, so the question is whether or not it’s worth giving up Gasol or Odom to get the Magic to bite. To me, that’s a no-brainer. Make the deal and then sign someone like Kurt Thomas to backup your big men.

Depth on the front line is hard to come by but so are bona fide franchise centers. Do the deal.

ESPN recently ran a piece where it asked TrueHoop bloggers whether or not Orlando, New Jersey, New Orleans and Phoenix should trade their star players this offseason. I thought I’d chime in with my own thoughts:

Dwight Howard

This has to be a gut call from GM Otis Smith — he knows Howard better than any member of the media and if he believes his superstar wants to stay, then he should do everything in his power to make it happen. Only I don’t know how he gets the Magic back in the fold as a true contender given the available pieces he has to move. There has been one personnel mistake after another since Orlando’s appearance in the 2009 Finals. Just like Chris Bosh and LeBron James, the writing is on the wall, isn’t it? Dwight Howard is leaving, and if Smith can acquire someone with the upside of Andrew Bynum in the process, that might be the Magic’s best bet to jump start the rebuilding process.

Deron Williams

Of course the Nets should hold onto Williams. He’s a franchise point guard and with Brook Lopez in tow and a load of cap space, the soon-to-be Brooklyn Whatevers are poised to make a big jump in the standings. Mikhail Prokhorov’s management team has done a nice job thus far, though I have no idea why they gave Travis Outlaw $7 million a year. Without that albatross of a contract, the Nets would be even better position to make a splash in free agency and surround Williams with the wings that he needs to be successful.

Chris Paul

This is a unique situation, what with the NBA owning the Hornets and all. One of ESPN’s bloggers said the “fair” thing to do is let CP3 walk, but that’s not the best move for the franchise. I think they should offer Paul for Russell Westbrook straight up. That may not be the first step on the road to a championship, but it’s probably the best deal the Hornets will get. Plus, no one will look at Westbrook funny when he takes 30 shots and turns the ball over six times per game. (Or how about Paul for Eric Gordon? New Orleans needs a good young star to build around.) Bottom line? I don’t think there’s much of a chance of Paul re-upping after the season, so New Orleans should get as much in return as possible while they still can.

Steve Nash

Forget all this talk about Nash retiring a Sun. That can’t be what’s most important to him. He must want to taste the Conference Finals again, so Phoenix should trade him to a playoff team that can offer draft picks and/or a good young player in return. What’s the point in letting Nash’s career die a slow death on a team that’s going nowhere? Stop being selfish, Phoenix Suns. Free Steve Nash.

Over the past few weeks, I’ve tackled the MVP race, triple-dozens, point guard characteristics and three-point shooters, and now it’s time to take a look at rebounding.

To be eligible, a player has to meet the following criteria:

1. He must appear in at least 50 games.
2. He must play in at least 24.0 minutes a game.

I took the top 30 players in terms of Total Rebounding Rate (the number of rebounds a player gets as a percentage of total available rebounds available while he’s on the floor) and plotted Offensive Rebounding Rate (ORR%) against Defensive Rebounding Rate (DRR%).

Here is the list of eligible players (in alphabetical order): Andrew Bogut, Carlos Boozer, Kwame Brown (yes, Kwame Brown), Marcus Camby, Tyson Chandler, DeMarcus Cousins, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Pau Gasol, Marcin Gortat, Blake Griffin, Chuck Hayes, Roy Hibbert, J.J. Hickson, Nene Hilario, Al Horford, Dwight Howard, Kris Humphries, Serge Ibaka, Josh Smith, Al Jefferson, Amir Johnson, DeAndre Jordan, David Lee, Kevin Love, JaVale McGee, Greg Monroe, Lamar Odom, Emeka Okafor and Zach Randolph.

Below is the chart. As always, click on it to see a bigger version.

A few takeaways:

– The best place to be on the graph is the top-right. Despite Camby being a little better in both stats, I’d say that Kevin Love deserves the best rebounder in the league title given the amount of minutes he plays and the scoring burden he’s asked to carry. This is part of the reason why I included him in my short list of franchise players.

– Kevin Garnett really gets on the defensive glass (#5 in DRR% amongst eligible players), but he doesn’t get on the offensive glass very well. In fact, guards Dwyane Wade and Russell Westbrook both beat KG in ORR%.

– Marcin Gortat was only player in the Top 30 in TRR% that was traded this season and he’s the closest thing that the Suns have had in a franchise center in some time. He’s averaging 13/9 in 29 minutes since joining the Suns, though he only recently got the starting job.

– Best qualified offensive rebounder not on this list? LaMarcus Aldridge (10.2 ORR%). DaJaun Blair (14.7) deserves mention, but he only plays 21.5 minutes a game.

– Best qualified defensive rebounder not on this list? Luis Scola (21.6 DRR%), who is #31 in TRR%, so he just missed the list.

– Just three teams had two players in the Top 30 in TRR%: the Clippers (Griffin, Jordan), the Lakers (Gasol, Odom — Bynum only played 49 games) and the Hawks (Horford, Smith). The Clippers and Lakers are both in the Top 6 in team TRR%, but the Hawks are 21st, which means Horford and Smith aren’t getting a lot of help from the other guys on the team. The three teams not represented in the Top 30 are the Heat (3rd), Sixers (19th) and Knicks (28th). The Heat gang rebound while the Sixers and Knicks clearly struggle on the glass.

– All 30 players are power forwards or centers, which is no surprise. Odom is the only real perimeter player on the list. The top rebounding guard is Landry Fields (#50 in TRR%). Dwyane Wade (#59) and Thabo Sefolosha (#60) are the next highest guards in that statistic. The best rebounding point guard is Russell Westbrook (#91), with Jason Kidd (#92) and Rajon Rondo (#97) close behind.

– I was surprised to see Paul Millsap (#36) miss the list, but that probably has to do with Al Jefferson. It’s tough to rebound really well when you play a lot of minutes alongside another really good rebounder.

When I originally debuted this list almost two years ago, I took some (surprisingly angry) flack for not settling on a 10th player and for ranking a few guys too high.

The idea for the list sprung from a conversation that I regularly have with a buddy when we are tipping back a few adult beverages: If you could have one current NBA player to build your franchise around, with the goal of winning a NBA title in the next five years – who would it be?

Here’s who I had almost two years ago:

10. Dirk Nowitzki, Carmelo Anthony, Carlos Boozer, Chris Bosh, Kevin Garnett, Joe Johnson, Paul Pierce, Tim Duncan and Tony Parker (A reader named “all” was very upset that I couldn’t pick a #10 guy. He’s probably still upset about it.)
9. Derrick Rose
8. Brandon Roy
7. Deron Williams
6. Chris Paul
5. Kevin Durant
4. Dwight Howard
3. Kobe Bryant
2. Dwyane Wade
1. LeBron James

I took some heat for including Rose, but obviously he has panned out very well and is likely to win the league MVP this season. Roy’s knees have killed his stock. The other seven picks look pretty solid.

So let’s take another stab at this. Remember, we’re trying to win a title in the next five years, so youth and health is paramount.

Honorable Mention: Carmelo Anthony (defense), Amare Stoudemire (defense, age, knees), Pau Gasol (age), Tyreke Evans (regressing) Tim Duncan (age), Dirk Nowitzki (age), Paul Pierce (age), Rajon Rondo (moody, in a funk since Kendrick Perkins trade) and Kevin Garnett (age).

NOT QUITE WORTH MAX MONEY…YET

12. John Wall (20 years-old)
All right, I’m projecting a little bit here, but it worked with Derrick Rose and I think Wall has a chance to be in the same league. Check out his month-by-month stats over the course of his rookie season:

So he burst into the league with a good October and November, but struggled a bit over the next two months as teams had a chance to game plan for him. Then in February and March, he’s able to counter that and get back to his early-season numbers. Great sign.

He’s an outstanding playmaker (9.1+ assists in 2-of-5 months) and is lightning quick. His rookie numbers are very similar to Rose’s, only he’s averaging 2.4 more assists per game. He’d likely be the Rookie of the Year if Blake Griffin hadn’t blown out his knee last season. In three or four years he might be vying for best point guard in the league honors.

11. Russell Westbrook (22)
I like Westbrook a lot, but his turnovers (3.9 per game) worry me for a third-year point guard. His assist-to-turnover ratio has actually decreased by 12% since last season, and that shows a lack of progress. Other than a sketchy (yet improving) outside jumper, he’s a great all-around player and his stats are comparable to Derrick Rose’s:

One’s an MVP favorite and the other isn’t even in the conversation. Go figure.

WORTH MAX MONEY, BUT KEEP THOSE FINGERS CROSSED

10. Kobe Bryant (32)
Sorry Laker fans, I had to drop him several spots on this list after that 6-for-24 outing in Game 7 of the Finals. The Lakers still won the game, but it wasn’t because of Kobe. Plus, he’s not even practicing these days, so it would be tough to build a team around him if they can’t build chemistry. Still, he is Kobe Bryant.

9. Kevin Love (22)
What’s not to love about Love? He’s averaging 20-15 and is shooting 42% from 3PT and 85% from the free throw line. His defensive numbers at 82games are a little worrisome (-6.2 net defense?), but the by position PER (24.6 vs. opponents’ 15.7) is very favorable.

8. Blake Griffin (22)
He’s not the long-range shooter that Love is, but he’s averaging 22-12 and is a better playmaker (3.7 apg). His defensive numbers (-1.3 net defense) look better as well. I’m just worried that he’s going to kill himself with one of those acrobatic dunks that he’s become famous for.

THE BONA FIDE ‘FRANCHISE PLAYERS’

7. Dwyane Wade (29)
He’s getting a little long in the tooth for this particular list, but he still has three or four years of dominating play left in him. My only issue with his game is that he takes too many threes (2.7 per game) given his accuracy (31% this year).

6. Deron Williams (26)
5. Chris Paul (25)
I’m still going to give CP3 the edge despite the sore knee since he didn’t clash with a Hall of Fame coach like Williams did. I still think the Nets got a great deal in the trade and that Deron Williams is definitely a franchise point guard, but right now I lean Paul.

4. Dwight Howard (25)
Let’s see, he’s averaging 23-14 with 2.4 blocks, and is shooting 60% from the field. Plus, he’s just 25 years-old and is a bona fide center in a league that doesn’t have very many. He already has one Finals appearance under his belt, but he’s going to need a great perimeter player to take the load off.

3. LeBron James (26)
I dropped him one spot because of “The Decision” (I don’t need the drama) and another spot because he has been very unclutch in big moments the last few years. If I’m going to pay max money, I need a guy who is going to give max production, especially in those last few possessions in the game (his solid clutch stats notwithstanding).

2. Kevin Durant (22)
Yes, I’d take “No Drama” Durant ahead of LeBron because he’s my kind of superstar: quiet and unassuming. He leads by example and he’s arguably the best scorer in the league. After all, the team with the most points usually wins.

1. Derrick Rose (22)
Rose is the front-runner for the league’s MVP award after (possibly) leading the Bulls to a #1-seed in the East despite having to deal with the absence of Joakim Noah and/or Carlos Boozer for long stretches this season. His three-point shooting (34%) is now respectable, which makes him nearly impossible to guard. He’s not a classic pass-first point guard, but drops enough dimes (7.8 per game) to keep his teammates happy. It looks like it may be his year.

So those are my Top 12 — who are yours?

About this time every year, the MVP discussion really heats up. This season, it seems like it’s a two-man race between LeBron James and Derrick Rose, but I think there are a few other players that deserve consideration.

Using the same methodology that I used for my All-Star picks, let’s narrow down the league MVP candidates and see who should be on the short list.

I like to use the NBA’s Efficiency statistic, which rolls points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, turnovers, missed shots and missed free throws into one number for comparison purposes. It’s not perfect, but no statistic is. I take a player’s per game efficiency (adjusted for team pace, because a player should not be penalized because his team plays at a slow pace) and multiply by his team’s winning percentage to calculate his Adjusted Efficiency. This is a number that takes both performance and team success into account.

Let’s take a look…

Keep in mind that EFF is tilted in favor of big men, because rebounds are more common than assists and it’s easier to shoot when you’re closer to the basket. Case in point — Pau Gasol. I don’t think anyone considers him an MVP candidate this year.

LeBron still leads the way with a healthy margin, but he does have the #6 player on his team (Dwyane Wade) which offsets the win percentage a little bit. If anything, the Heat should have more wins that they do, so that’s not going to work in LeBron’s favor when the votes are cast.

Dwight Howard and Dirk Nowitzki have solid win percentages despite not having a sidekick in the Top 20. That’s pretty impressive. Derrick Rose has two sidekicks (Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer), but they only played 76 games combined.

To me, this should be a four- or five-man race: LeBron, Howard, Rose, Nowitzki and perhaps Kobe Bryant, who should be in the conversation just about every season. I don’t think the Heat have lived up to (unreasonable?) expectations, so I doubt LeBron is going to win his third-straight MVP after turning into a villain and coming up small in the clutch over the last few weeks. Rose has had to deal with injuries to both Boozer and Noah and has led the Bulls to a much improved record this season. He’s also arguably the best point guard in the league, no offense to Chris Paul or Deron Williams. Chicago is a team on the rise and voters tend to favor that over a team that probably isn’t going anywhere (Orlando, Dallas).

So while a case could be made for LeBron, Howard, Nowitzki and Kobe, Rose will probably win it in the end, and deservedly so.

When asked about the Hawks possibly signing Shaq to match up with the Magic, Dwight Howard had this to say to the Atlanta Journal Constitution…

“That’s only four games out of the season. You have to look long term and what’s best for your team. Cleveland got Shaq to match up with the Magic. They also got Antawn Jamison to match up with the Magic. But they didn’t even play the Magic. They played Boston [and lost]. You match up for the league, not just one team.”

The Cavs were eliminated by the Magic in the playoffs the year before, so it’s understandable why they would want to improve their roster with a possible rematch in mind. The Celtics looked like they were getting old very quickly, so they weren’t deemed the threat that the Magic were. That was obviously a big mistake.

I’m interested to find out why the Cavs weren’t able to acquire Amare Stoudemire. He was available for almost two years during the span when the Cavs were retooling their roster and would have seemingly been a very nice fit in the pick-and-roll with LeBron. Hopefully someday Danny Ferry will speak out on the subject because his word is about the only one I trust in this whole mess.