Rumors, moves, injuries and newsmakers...

Half a season after the KG trade, Minny and Boston meet; With Gordon out, Hinrich and Noah step up; Is Webber headed back to the Warriors?; Calderon continues to be a super-starter; Is Frank on the hot seat in Jersey?; Kaman should be an All-Star; Could Nash be MVP again?; and more...

HALF-MEASURES 
Over the summer the NBA's biggest power-shift happened in two cities: Boston and Minnesota. The awful Celtics traded most of their young prospects to the middling Timberwolves for Kevin Garnett. So with the NBA season now exactly half over, who won the deal?

The early returns: after half a season, the Celtics now have the NBA's best record (at 33-7) while the T-Wolves have the league's worst record (7-34). Of course, Minny didn't expect to win a lot of games early on with their new roster full of kids. But they probably didn't expect to be so bad, just as much as the Celts didn't likely expect to immediately become the NBA's best team.

On Friday in Boston the two teams meet for their first regular-season contest since the big trade. And while the Celtics are obvious favorites, they have been surprisingly vulnerable lately, losing four of their past eight. Meanwhile the T-Wolves have won two in a row, and their young core will surely be out to show their old team what they gave up on. Could Minny's ex-Celts pull off the season's biggest upset?

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BULLS 
Is Kirk Hinrich turning the corner? It was just one game, but Wednesday's outing has to be reassuring for the Bulls and their fans. Their top playmaker has been both awful and injured this season, but Wednesday he hit an impressive 14 of 21 shots from the field against the Pacers to finish with 38 points to go along with 10 assists, seven boards, and two steals in Chicago's 108-95 win. Also notable for Chicago: rookie big-man Joakim Noah posted a solid 14 points, 15 boards, and three steals off the bench while Ben Gordon sat out with a sore wrist.

CAVALIERS 
A forgettable season for Aleksandar Pavlovic just got worse. The Cavs' starting shooting guard will reportedly miss up to two months because of a sprained left foot, an injury he suffered Wednesday against the Wizards. Pavlovic (also known as Sasha) had recently been playing his way out of a season-long slump, but was still averaging only 7.3 points per game. With him out expect Daniel Gibson to play a bigger role for the Cavs.

CLIPPERS 
There haven't been too many highlights for the Clips this season, but one of them has definitely been Chris Kaman. The underrated center has emerged as a league elite, and if he is passed over for February's All-Star game then it will be a travesty. Kaman is currently third in the NBA in rebounds (14 per game) and third in blocks (3.1) whle also averaging an impressive 17.4 points per game. Wednesday he dropped 20 points and 21 boards on the Kings to lead the Clippers to a 111-85 victory.

HAWKS 
Cases could be made for several players as the NBA's best, from LeBron James to Steve Nash to Tim Duncan. But from a purely statistical standpoint, few players in the league do as much on the court as Josh Smith. Case in point: Wednesday's outing against the Nuggets. Smith was simply everywhere on the court and the result was his first career triple-double: 22 points, 12 boards, and 10 assists. But Smith also had a whopping five blocks and three steals in the 107-100 loss, providing one of the most dominant performances of the season so far.

NETS 
Is Lawrence Frank on the hot seat? The Nets' head coach has come under fire in New Jersey lately with his team on a six-game skid and sitting at 18-23 after half a season. But it looks like Frank has a supporter in his team's point guard, which goes a long way. Jason Kidd recently told the New York Daily News that Frank is still getting through to the team, and that the problem is the players aren't performing. They currently sit third in the Atlantic division.

NUGGETS 
It would appear the Nuggets will have two All-Star starters this season. On Thursday several sources reported that Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony will both be All-Star starters for the West at this year's All-Star Game, Feb.17 in New Orleans. Iverson reportedly made a late push in voting to be named the West's starting point guard. The Nuggets currently lead the Northwest Division with a 25-16 record, and Iverson (27 points per game) and Anthony (25.5) are respectively third and fourth in the NBA's scoring race.

RAPTORS 
It looks like Jose Calderon is a good bet to stick as the Raptors' lead point guard. The Spanish ball-handler has been the NBA's most efficient point guard this season with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 5.44. His superb play has been helping Toronto stay above .500, and recently head coach Sam Mitchell told Toronto reporters that Calderon may stay the team's starter even when the injured T.J. Ford returns. Wednesday Calderon led the Raptors to a 114-112 win over Boston, posting 24 points, 13 assists, three steals, and just four turnovers in 39 minutes.

SPURS 
It's said that it only takes three great players to win an NBA title, but that's not true; it also takes a solid supporting cast for that superstar core. And the Spurs are finding that out lately, as Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, and Tony Parker struggle to get consistent help. Small forward Bruce Bowen has struggled mightily lately, and center Fabricio Oberto was recently benched in favor of combo guard Brent Barry. Expect the Spurs to go with a similar small-ball approach until they can shake their inconsistent play of late.

SUNS 
Could Steve Nash be headed for a third NBA MVP award? The season is only half over, but the Suns' star point guard is once again proving to be an unstoppable force on the court. Phoenix is currently the only team in the superior West with 30 wins, and lately Nash is truly dominating. He leads the NBA in assists per game (12.1), and is hitting 90 percent from the free-throw line and 47 percent from behind the arc. Just as impressively, lately he is also scoring; with 21 points Wednesday, Captain Canada is averaging 29 points per game over his past two outings.

WARRIORS 
Is Chris Webber on the verge of becoming a Warrior? The Sacramento Bee reports Golden State head coach Don Nelson has recently been twice seen eating at Webber's Sacramento restaurant, Center Court with C-Webb. Webber has been rumored to be interested in returning to the NBA soon, and the Warriors might be a nice fit. That said, it would be ironic if he did return to the team; back in 1994 Webber forced a trade out of Golden State following a huge spat with Nellie, just as the team was on the verge of great things.