I love Steve Kerr. I love the Phoenix Suns. I love Amare Stoudemire. I love Danny Ferry, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the players who Ferry reportedly offered to the Suns for Stoudemire.

Now that we've gotten all that cleared up, I have just one thing to say: DON'T DO IT!

Don't trade Stoudemire if you're the Suns. Don't deal Wally Szczerbiak, J.J. Hickson, Anderson Varejao, Moondog the mascot, or whoever else you're supposedly shipping to Phoenix for Stoudemire if you're the Cavs.

Let's start with the Suns.

If you really want to gut the team, why start with the youngest, most athletic part of your nucleus? If you want to rebuild, save money, and so on and so on, why START with Stoudemire? He's the guy around whom you should build. If you want to start over, why not start by unloading Steve Nash or Shaquille O'Neal or Grant Hill -- or all three of them? Nash, Shaq and Hill are all swell fellas, but they're also in their mid-30s (which is the equivalent of being in your mid-70s in NBA years). I mean, wouldn't you rather have Stoudemire in 2012 than those three combined?

Anyway, more on the Suns in a minute. Now let's talk about the Cavs.

Unlike the Suns, they are soaring. They're 40-11 and their coach, Mike Brown, is leading the Eastern Conference All-Stars. As of today, the Cavs are one of the league's three best teams, a team that could be on its way to bringing Cleveland its first championship in something like 418 years. Not really, but it sure seems like it.

So why would Ferry want to mess with success?

OK, maybe he thinks the current group STILL isn't good enough to win a title. And maybe it's not. Maybe he's worried about the Cavs' 1-4 record against the L.A. Lakers, Boston and Orlando this season. Maybe he thinks Stoudemire would put this year's Cavs over the top -- that Stoudemire's size, athleticism and low-post scoring is the only thing the Cavs are lacking. Maybe so.

But Ferry should also consider what's happened to the Suns.

Last season, Kerr traded Shawn Marion for O'Neal. Kerr took a chance, making a big move for a big man who's accomplished big things.

At the time, I praised Kerr. The Suns needed to do something, anything to get past San Antonio in the playoffs, I wrote. Marion seemed somewhat disgruntled and the Suns were undersized. Kerr's move was gutsy -- and it was time for the Suns to take a risk.

Obviously, it hasn't worked yet. The Suns are still good (why does everyone seem to forget that?), they just aren't as good as they were before the trade for O'Neal. They are no longer considered Finals material.

Still, if I'm Kerr, I'd make that trade again. Truth is, the Suns weren't likely to win a title with Marion, either. That team had gotten as far as it could. Kerr has no reason to regret that trade, and if you're one of those unreasonable Suns fans you should leave him alone and get a life.

But these Cavs are different than those Suns. There's no proof they can't win a championship as is. They've come a long way in a short amount of time, this being their first full season with Mo Williams, Delonte West, Ben Wallace and Szczerbiak. Trading for Stoudemire right now could ruin their chemistry, could make it so that the Cavs are starting over -- again. A big trade wouldn't guarantee that the Cavs would be better. They would just be different.

All Ferry needs to do to understand that is talk to his friend who is running the Suns.

MORE TRADE TALK

* I know I just rambled on about a possible Cavs-Suns deal (that was first reported by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports), but I would be surprised if anything actually came of it. Usually, the trades that take place aren‘t usually the ones everyone's talking about beforehand -- as NBA GMs have a way of using reporters to set up smokescreens. It's pretty funny, actually.

* And please don't misunderstand. I wouldn't be dead set against the Cavs acquiring Stoudemire and I'm not trying to say there's no way it would work. It might. But it would be a risk, and asking whether or not the Cavs need to take a risk isn't unreasonable. Stoudemire would be great in Cleveland, no doubt. But the timing may not be right, that's all.

* The one rumored deal I WOULD make: New Jersey's Vince Carter to the Spurs for Bruce Bowen, Fabricio Oberto, Roger Mason and rookie George Hill, as first reported by Dave D'Alessandro of the Newark-Star Ledger.

* The Spurs are much like last season's Suns; they could use one more guy to put them back into serious contention. As it stands, it is hard to see them getting past the Lakers in a seven-game series. Carter has been a pro's pro this season with a young Nets team. He's not only leading and setting up his teammates, he's showing he can still take over when necessary.

* According to reports, the Nets would waive Bowen and Oberto, and keep Mason and Hill.

* Either way, I would love to see Carter in a Spurs uniform. With Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, Carter would have an excellent shot at his first title.

* Back to the Cavs. They are also said to be interested in the L.A. Clippers' Marcus Camby, who may or may not be available (how's that for an inside scoop?). There's also the possibility that Joe Smith could rejoin them if Oklahoma City decides to trade him, or waive him outright.

* Back to Carter. According to The Sporting News' Sean Deveney, "The Rockets -- trying to rescue a disappointing season -- are interested in Carter, too, and would send Ron Artest's expiring contract to New Jersey."

* And what about the Jermaine O'Neal-Shawn Marion trade? I like this deal (a lot) for Toronto. O'Neal's a great guy, but let's face it, he has Jell-O brand gelatin for knees and just isn't the same player he used to be. He and Raptors star Chris Bosh didn't mesh in the low post. O'Neal should fit much better alongside Dwyane Wade in Miami. The same goes for Marion with Bosh.

* Bosh's thoughts on the whole O'Neal experiment: "Short-lived," he told reporters at the All-Star media session.

* A poll on RealGM.com asked, "Which team won the O'Neal-for-Marion trade?" I voted for the Raptors and interestingly, the result of the poll was just about dead-even -- with the Raptors receiving 51 percent of the vote.

ALL-STAR STUFF

* I have to laugh when NBA fans and media talk about not caring for the All-Star game. I mean, you can't expect it to be like a REAL game. It's for fun, people. Relax.

* Then again, I guarantee you Kobe Bryant wants to WIN. Some guys just hate to lose in any setting (Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, etc.) and Kobe is one of those guys. Don't think so? Try watching him in the fourth quarter this weekend.

* Although I must admit that I'm with Dr. J when it comes to the dunk contest. In a story in the Indianapolis Star, Julius Erving said the contest is now more about "playing to the crowd," comparing today's dunkers to team mascots who use props. "I think that's unfair that the slam dunkers, as talented as they are, have to resort to that to get favor from the judges or the crowd."

* Erving continued, "I'd rather see no props allowed; maybe a teammate because I think playing against opposition brings out the best dunks. I think my best dunks were when somebody was trying to block my shot. If you want props as far as resistance, OK. But chairs and ladders and trampolines? That's turning it too much into a sideshow."

* Anyone else notice that the East has no international players on the team? Meanwhile, the West has four -- Yao Ming (Houston), Tony Parker (France), Dirk Nowitzki (Germany) and Pau Gasol (Spain).

* In the most important development from All-Star weekend, Allen Iverson has mowed his cornrows. First Richard Hamilton and Carmelo Anthony, and now The Answer?! What is the world coming to?

TWO READER E-MAILS

* Andrew Davis (Tampa, Fla.) wrote: "You need to write more about Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. They may be a year or two away from the Finals, but I wouldn't want to play them in the playoffs this season, even without Jameer Nelson!"

Dear Andrew, amen. Howard has surpassed Tim Duncan, Shaq and everyone else in the low post and deserves serious consideration for this season's league MVP. This team will win a title someday. That said, there will be plenty of time for me to write more about the Magic, and I definitely will.

* Alexis Robertson (Colorado Springs, Colo.) wrote, "Why do you seem to despise (Cavs owner) Dan Gilbert so much? He seems like a pretty good owner to me, but he's the one guy you always seem to (write negative things) about."

Dear Alexis, say what? I think Gilbert is one of the best owners in all of sports. He spends freely and he really wants to win. For once, it's not ALWAYS about the bottom dollar.

Granted, I haven't cared for the all the noise, fire, smoke and whatnot in Quicken Loans Arena, but guess what? It's Gilbert's team. He can do what he wants with it -- and most fans don‘t seem to mind. Just because I don't like something as petty as blasts coming out of the scoreboard doesn't mean I don't respect Gilbert as an owner. Believe me, as a Clevelander, I sure wish he owned the poor Browns.

SON OF BASKETBALL

Each week in the newsletter, I have decided to write a snippet about my 4-year old son Brady -- who is now beginning to understand a little bit about what I do for a living, as well as about the game we love. I'm a single dad and he's my only child, so when we're together, we're ALWAYS together. In that time, I've found he brings up basketball nearly once a day. Bizarre maybe, but not really all that surprising.

For instance, he is in his first season playing pee wee hockey. Yes, Brady can ice skate and I can't.

And it usually takes a good 10 minutes to get him in his hockey gear. There are skates, pads, gloves, a helmet, an entire uniform. Anyone who's ever tried to get a 4-year old to stand still long enough just to put on a t-shirt and pair of shorts can probably imagine what an entire hockey outfit must be like.

One day before practice, Brady's grandmother went through this painstaking process and was leading him to the ice. He stopped her.

"Grandma, hockey isn't my favorite sport, you know?" he said. "I like basketball more."

Information, she said, she wished she had known 20 minutes earlier. But score one for the kid nonetheless.

SEE ME ON TV (NATIONALLY)

Anyone with cable access in Ohio can catch me on the "Wine & Gold Zone" each Monday night from 8-9 p.m. on SportsTime Ohio (the channel that broadcasts Cleveland Indians games).

Popular Cleveland sportscaster Mark "Munch" Bishop and I talk Cavs/NBA and take your calls and e-mails.

Also, anyone anywhere with DirectTV can watch on channel 662.

Finally, NBA fans in the Northwest can hear me on the Portland Trail Blazers radio network Monday at 7 p.m. Pacific.

And that, folks, should wrap up this week's installment of Amico Shamelessly Promotes Himself.

Sam Amico is the editor of Pro Basketball News and can be reached at amico@probasketballnews.com.