Yes, believe it or not, winning an NBA championship can be as simple as the fantasy teams made in video game! Here are the five components that separated the NBA champion Boston Celtics from the 2004 Lakers, whose "fantasy team" of all-stars choked in the NBA Finals.

Kosta Koufos, Ante Tomic, and Tadija Dragicevic. That's a mouthful. I sure am glad I'm not a play-by-play announcer. I can just copy-and-post at will. Any suggestions on nicknames for trio? Leave them in the comments!

The spectacular Stephen A. Smith unfortunately won't be returning to the main set for this year's NBA Draft. Take a look back at some of his recent NBA Draft predictions, and you'll see why he's on the sideline interviewing players instead. The real question: Will the Cheese Doodles hecklers return?

The Boston Celtics already have a large number of bandwagon fans, but if your team has already been eliminated and you need a new team to rally behind, here's 34 reasons to cheer for the Celtics. Not recommended for Pistons fans.

"My biggest success so far, aside from the trophies or awards, is to see the happy faces of players when they play. The passion for the game, meeting great people, seeing others who believe in my work. Kids approach me and thank me because I gave them a opportunity to play. In Africa, poor kids can forget about the bad life conditions while playing basketball. That's the real success because, at the end, we win and lose — but when this game started, it was all about fun ."

Derek Fisher has announced that he will be released from the Jazz, leaving the $20 million on his contract so that he can spend time with his child as they work to settle the medical issues that the Fisher family struggled with over the past several months.

Fisher is not retiring. However, he doesn't plan to play this upcoming season.

Well, the NBA offseason can get pretty slow, but William Wesley keeps things interesting. Aside from being stalked by Henry Abbott and others, William Wesley is also one of the most powerful figures in sports. Wesley has a connection with almost everybody, yet nobody knows much about him...

Okay, maybe not, but at least it's affordable.

Few avid fans would have expected the Utah Jazz to open the season 12-1, but after the team's dismantling of the Lakers on the rebounds, the Jazz have extended their franchise-record start.

Also, Gonzaga upsets UNC before losing to Butler in the NIT championship game, and ANOTHER STUPID RULE in the NBA.

Stud of the high school class of 2007, OJ Mayo, chose USC to play his year of college ball before becoming a top NBA draft pick. Also, #3 Kansas is upset by Oral Roberts and Shaquille O'Neal is missing a muscle.

I suppose they are always under the spotlight in New York City, but the team is now involved it two 'new' controversies. Lakers coach Phil Jackson complains that the $18.5 million paid to Larry Brown isn't nearly as bad as the money former Clippers' coaches never received.

Also, the team complains about Bruce Bowen...

The NBA players' union is planning to take action against the stupid rise in technical fouls. Billy Hunter hopes to defend the players under standard labor practices. "Try to seek some relief, at least to have the issue either heard or at least elevated so that it gets a lot more public attention than it's currently getting."

Sure, the Miami Heat didn't exactly start last season strong before winning the championship, but should they have been able to come out a little stronger against the Bulls (who lost to the Magic the next night)?

I'm going to assume that Shaq, Gary Payton, and Alonzo Mourning have won their final championships. Dwyane Wade has years ahead of him, but the Heat are going to have to pull things together. If they lose by 42 in their first game against a team that is good but not elite, they're going to have a tough time after 82 games.

Kobe Bryant is struggling to return after surgery on his knee. Is #24's career beginning to slow down as the era of LeBron and Dwyane takes the front stage?

Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter, and Kobe are all becoming high-flyers of the past as the new face of the league develops.

Thoughts?

Shaquille O'Neal has listed his three chosen players to help replace him as the dominant player in the league. Also, the Sonics sale is finalized, training camp cuts are made, and David Stern protects the new ball.