Q: At what point do I kill myself over the Oden/Durant thing? Do I wait for Durant's first MVP? Or his finals MVP? Or Oden's first game back where he looks great for two minutes before picking up three fouls and hitting the bench?
-- Kellen, Portland
SG: You can't seriously consider it unless he passes Jordan for titles and MVPs. That reminds me, I have a few gambling tips for the 2010-11 NBA season (you know, if gambling were legal).
The layups? Blake Griffin for Rookie of the Year (2-to-1 odds; only way he loses is if he gets hurt) and Durant for the scoring title (2-to-1 odds; that's like stealing). For a long shot bet, I like Kevin Love for the rebounding title (12-to-1 odds; he's the only rebounder on that Minnesota team and has a 13 RPG season in him). For the MVP? I like Durant (5-2 odds) because he's going to have a monster year for a potential 60-win team; he's a feel-good vote (remember, writers are saps); and most importantly, the King James backlash has crested to the point that Miami needs to win 70-plus and LeBron needs to average 30 and a triple-double to get enough begrudging votes.
That's the single weirdest subplot of the NBA season: A back-to-back MVP hitting his prime switched to a better team and somehow lost 99 percent of his "best player alive" momentum. How can LeBron James -- someone whose first seven seasons ranked alongside Wilt, Bird, Magic, Oscar, Michael and Kareem as one of the greatest starts ever to an NBA career -- suddenly be underrated? It's insane. There's a decent chance he might rip through the league like a tsunami this season.