We should have seen something like this coming.

After the Houston Rockets caught fire and are on a 12-game winning streak, we should have known it was too good to be true. Houston fans know the recent history with injuries to the team.

Reports out of Houston today say that Yao Ming is out for the season. What does that mean? Basically, the Rockets are in deep trouble. Everything was clicking with Yao and Tracy McGrady. They looked to be one of the top teams in the Western Conference, and could have been a force in the playoffs.

Without Yao, the question is whether the Rockets can compete with San Antonio, Dallas and even Phoenix. I don't see it happening.

Is Jason Kidd the answer for the Dallas Mavericks?

That question will not be answered until the playoffs, but him joining the team can't hurt. Sure analyst are saying the Mavericks will miss Harris' defense, but Kidd will add energy the team has lacked.

I still think the Spurs are going to be the team to beat, but the Mavs will be right there with them. I'm just waiting to see a classic 7-game series between the two Texas teams.

Who do you see as the best NBA team right now?

After sleeping on it and thinking about it non-stop on Sunday, I have to speak out on the NBA slam dunk contest on Saturday night.

First it was a great showcase of NBA talent, but it was also a sham.

It was a dunk by Dwight Howard that has me questioning the results. Howard took a bounce pass from just within the free-throw stripe and flew with a Superman cape toward the basket. Where he went wrong was that he didn't even dunk the ball.

He threw it through the rim because he wasn't going to be able to dunk the ball. Simply going from the name of the event, "slam dunk contest", you would think he wouldn't get any points. Instead he got a perfect score of 50.

Gerald Green got robbed in my opinion after having the most creative dunk of the night. He sat a cupcake on the rim, blew it out in midair and then slammed the ball through the rim.

I'm not looking for anything big to happen to overturn this decision. I'm just calling on Congress to investigate.  After all, how will we be able explain to the children what a legitimate dunk is.

Aside from bringing Steve Nash back to Dallas, the best thing the Mavericks could do right now is keep working on a deal for Jason Kidd.

Yesterday the deal looked like it was going to happen, but then George nixed it. Dallas needs to infuse Kidd's talent into the team that is hitting a bit of a wall. With Jason Terry and Dirk, Kidd would be able to turn a team that already is one of the best offenses into the best.

With Kidd, the Mavs would add experience and skill. And would probably add a NBA championship.

Being a single guy, this is supposed to be the loneliest and saddest week of the year for me. After all, while couples are out celebrating Valentine's Day, I'll be at work and then in my luxury apartment all alone.

But luckily for me, the world of sports has saved me again this year. While this week could have been devastating for my poor soul, I was granted a special day where I can celebrate. On Wednesday, Lubbock mayor David Miller has declared that it is Pat Knight Day.

It's a celebration of Pat taking over for his father Bob Knight at Texas Tech as the head basketball coach and will be enough to get me through the lover's week.

After all, who can't be cheered up by celebrating a son's coronation into a job that his dad gave him. I know I can rally around him. And while Pat is 0-2 in his first two games leading the Red Raiders, I'm sure that he will be a great success. The Red Raiders could even make it to the NIT this year.

My plans for Wednesday are to find local basketball officials and yell at them. Then I'll throw as many chairs as I can before I get arrested. It's all out of respect for Pat's dad Bob since Pat hasn't inspired me to do anything. Hopefully for Tech, he's inspiring his players.

While having Pat Knight Day is ridiculous, at least it's a bright spot for me in this Hallmark created week.

What are your plans for Pat Knight Day?

The deal is done. Now we'll see the results.

Shaq has been dealt from the free-falling Miami Heat to the Western Conference's leading team, the Phoenix Suns.

The Suns sent Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Heat for the movie star, rapper, and aging basketball force. Shaq has averaged over 25 points per game in his career, but is in the latter stages of it.

Do you think this is a good trade for the Suns? How about for the Heat. Marion may not be the best defensive player in the league, but he is one of the best dunkers in league history. This trade could lead the Suns to the title, or it could just slow them down.

There's nothing more exciting in professional sports than a big trade. That's what's happening right now in the NBA, with two of the biggest names being mentioned.

The biggest is the possible trade of Shaq to Phoenix. He's being offered for Shawn Marion and would add a defensive presence that the Suns haven't had in a number of years. At his age, Shaq would have a hard time running with Nash and Stoudemire, but with good health I think he could make them a feared team in the playoffs.

Kidd, on the other hand, would help anyone and everyone. He's been mentioned as to going to Dallas and the Lakers, but nothing is for sure.

If you were glued to the seven hours of pregame talk before the Super Bowl, you missed the Dallas Mavericks taking on the Detroit Pistons in an afternoon game.

On second thought, you didn't miss anything. The Mavs lost 90-67 and looked even worse than the score indicates.

“We didn’t have too much of a rhythm on offense,” Dallas' Jason Terry after Sunday's game. “Credit their defense, I guess.”

The Mavericks (31-15) are still in third place in the Western Conference, but looked like a non-playoff caliber team on Sunday. Phoenix is currently in first in the West with a 33-14 mark, while the New Orleans Hornets are shocking everyone with a second place showing at 32-14.

The Mavericks are a lot like the Spurs in the fact that their season's story will be told in the playoffs. If they keep playing this way though, it will be one and done again.