With the playoffs just around the corner, we discuss the 5 big storylines heading into the postseason. What to watch and how the season will shake out down the stretch. Lebron & Luka's growing chemistry, Jimmy Butler & Steph, Jokic and Nuggets up & down, and can we REALLLLY trust the Thunder? Bonus: we debate who had a worse season, 76ers or the Dallas Mavericks.

The NBA Playoffs are approaching. How will the Western Conference be won? Shai and Thunder are the prohibitive favorites. But are they really? What about Luka, Lebron, and the Lakers. AD and the new look Mavs? The 3 time MVP Jokic and Nuggets? And of course, Steph, Jimmy, and Draymond in Golden State? We break down the contenders in the Western Conference and outline the path through the West for each team.

We recap one of the most exciting, eventful, and utterly insane trade deadlines. We grade the wild Lakers & Mavs trade that sent Luka to LA and AD to Dallas. We also grade the trade that brought De'aaron Fox from Sacramento to San Antonio to team up with Wemby and the Spurs. Finally, we examined the drama-filled saga that resulted in Jimmy Butler teaming up with Steph Curry and the Warriors.

Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder once again to improve to 3-1 vs OKC on the season and 7-3 over their last 10 matchups. They won without Luka Doncic, Dereck Lively, Klay Thompson, Naji Marshall, and Jaden Hardy, while OKC was missing Chet and Hartenstein.

For all the talk about how good the Thunder are, is it possible that the Mavs are just a better team than OKC? We discuss.

The Dallas Mavericks are negotiating life without Luka Doncic. Where do they stand, how will they manage, and are they still a top team in the West? Do they need to make a big trade? And the Lakers finally made a move. JJ Redick and the Los Angeles Lakers traded for D'Angelo Russell for Dorian Finney Smith. What does this mean for the Lakers and the Western Conference?

Wemby exploded in the Spurs Christmas day loss to the Knicks in MSG. Is Wemby already a top 5, top 10 player in the league? Luka Doncic goes down with a calf injury and Mavs are preparing for an extended absence. Can they overcome his absence? Celtics are 3-4 over last 7, including a loss to the 76ers on Christmas day. What does that mean, if anything? And Lebron and Steph provided us with another thriller but Austin Reaves stole the show.

There's been a lot of talk about Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks offense. Luka is a generational offensive weapon that Kidd has leaned on heavily in the past. But Luka's usage and touches are down to start the season. Is this the right decision? We do a deep dive on this topic and bring the data to back it up.

Also, we preview the NBA Cup final between Giannis and the Bucks and Shai and the Thunder.

Miami is reportedly willing to trade Jimmy Butler and Jimmy Buckets is willing to play for the Houston Rockets, Golden State Warriors, and the Dallas Mavericks. We discuss each of these potential trades.

We also talk about the purple and yellow elephant in the room: The Warriors have tried to trade for LeBron before. Lebron played with Steph and Kerr on Team USA, and Draymond is a close friend. Should the Warriors try to trade for LeBron? We discuss.