Every NBA team moves some of their parts during a season, but the Wizards seem to be doing a lot of that right now, whether it was intentional or not.

Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers and Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder top the Western Conference, while Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic and LeBron James of the Miami Heat lead the Eastern Conference after the second returns of 2011 NBA All-Star Balloting.

Best known for his thick, bristly beard, James Harden has begun to give generous returns on the investment made by the Thunder when they selected the Arizona State product third overall in the 2009 NBA draft.

Last week’s mega-deal pairing that involved the Orlando Magic, Phoenix Suns and Washington Wizards featured two teams in clear positions: the Magic were looking to re-tool with an eye towards an NBA title, while the Wizards were looking to continue their rebuild around John Wall and move past the Gilbert Arenas era. You could debate the success of either club in achieving their objective, but at least their focus was clear. The same cannot be said for the puzzling Phoenix Suns, who seem to be stuck in a holding pattern, unwilling to make the necessary financial commitment to contend but also reluctant to give up on the last remnants of a club that has reached three Western Conference Finals in the last six years.

After spending five games in the NBA D-League with the Maine Red Claws, Sherron Collins returned to the Charlotte Bobcats and was given the challenge of trying to guard one of the most talented point guards in the NBA in Russell Westbrook.

It turns out a flu has been the only thing to be able to slow Odom down this season as the points and rebounds he contributed during the win against Toronto are a far cry from the 16.0 points and 9.9 rebounds he is averaging so far this season.

Gilbert Arenas talked with the media in Atlanta about his emotions after he found out he was traded to Orlando, adjusting to his new teammates and adjusting his game to playing with Dwight Howard.

The Wizards are finding an identity, and it has been fueled by ball control. The team has not given up more turnovers than their opponent since Dec. 8, six games ago. It culminated Monday night as Charlotte gave up 29 turnovers to Washington’s 14, for a difference of 16 points in the Wizards’ favor.

Unless you were under a rock this weekend (or a horrific snow storm) you probably heard about the drastic changes the Orlando Magic made to their roster. Any time a team undergoes a makeover it takes time to adjust. This will prove to be an even bigger challenge for the Magic as their landmark trades happened to go down right before a six game in nine day stretch.

Kobe Bryant chatted about the role the teams bench had in the win against Toronto, DeMar DeRozan’s 19 point scoring outburst in the third quarter and the strong play of Lamar Odom so far this season.