Compiled by Chris Bernucca 

• SIXERS: Dear Sixers, You're a modern medical miracle. When word spreads, physicians all over the world will want to study you. After showing no pulse or heart(beats) of any kind for the first few months of the season, you've suddenly and amazingly come back to life to win four straight. Frankenstein didn't hop off the table that abruptly. And because the NBA Eastern Conference is weaker than an octogenarian with clogged arteries and emphysema, you're just 41/2 games off the pace for the eighth and final playoff spot. It's astounding stuff. You're like the NBA's version of Gary Busey - that you're still alive and breathing defies all logic. Which brings us to the point: What the hell do you think you're doing? John Gonzalez in the Philadelphia Inquirer 

• BOBCATS: If you’re going to rip Michael for wasting the third pick in the 2006 draft on Adam Morrison – and I have and am entitled to because I lobbied in print for Brandon Roy – then you have to credit him for the roster assembled under his watch. You have to credit him for hiring Larry Brown to coach and you have to credit him for participating in or at least agreeing to the trades that brought to Charlotte Stephen Jackson and Boris Diaw (and Tyson Chandler). I don’t know who made the trades. But I can’t fathom Brown or general manager Rod Higgins acquiring a player without their boss’ consent. Michael, then, has not been terrible. Yet he remains a better celebrity than a managing partner of basketball operations. Wonder how effective he’d be if he worked full-time? Tom Sorensen in the Charlotte Observer 

• BUCKS: It's the perfect scenario for the Milwaukee Bucks entering the NBA all-star break. They're facing back-to-back games against struggling teams, meeting the Detroit Pistons at home Tuesday night before heading to New Jersey to play the lowly Nets in the final game before the break. Or is it too perfect? The Bucks (23-26) don't want to squander this chance to close in on the .500 mark and jump into one of the eight playoff positions in the Eastern Conference. Entering Tuesday, the Bucks will be just percentage points behind Miami for the eighth spot and one game behind Charlotte and Chicago (seventh and sixth, respectively). Charles F. Gardner in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 

• CELTICS: One day after criticizing his players for their loss to Orlando, it was Rivers who took out his hammer and played another tune on their fattened heads. The disconnect between the Celtics’ words and deeds has become striking - to the point where he’s tired even of their agreement. Rivers ripped them for a lack of basketball discipline as they collapsed under the weight of their own 11-point halftime lead Sunday, and he seemed skeptical when players acknowledged the transgressions yesterday. Steve Bulpett in the Boston Herald 

• CLIPPERS: First came the applause. Then came the pats on the back. At that point things took a truly silly turn Monday inside the Clippers' practice facility after General Manager Mike Dunleavy informed his team that center Chris Kaman has been selected as an All-Star replacement for injured Portland guard Brandon Roy. Kaman's teammates playfully wrestled him to the floor, a few piling on top. "That wasn't fun," Kaman deadpanned later. Ben Bolch in the Los Angeles Times 

• HEAT: Heat coach Erik Spoelstra and guard Dwyane Wade moved Monday to close the book on any notion the two aren't on the same page amid a five-game losing streak. "I don't have a problem with Coach at all," Wade said after Monday's practice. "Of course, when you're losing, someone is going to look to find a way to make it seem like hell is starting inside Miami. And it's not. Actually, for a five-game losing streak, we've been pretty calm." The patch-the-wounds process Monday came two days after Wade expressed concerns about the offense and whether Spoelstra had enough trust in players to alter the style after Saturday's 95-91 loss at Chicago. Michael Wallace in the Miami Herald 

• KINGS: Omri Casspi swears he doesn't know the mother of the 2-pound, 13-ounce infant who made his Sacramento debut Nov. 3 at 9:30 a.m., and was introduced to the world as … Omri. It's not what you think. The Kings rookie doesn't know the father, either. "A baby named after me!" a grinning Casspi responded a few days ago, shortly after learning of his namesake. "That cracks me up. That's a first. Not even in Israel has this happened. An Israeli couple, right? Amazing. Unbelievable." Ailene Voisin in the Sacramento Bee 

• KNICKS: Nate Robinson has a better chance of winning his slam-dunk crown than he has of starting again at point guard for the Knicks. After the Knicks lost twice over the weekend with Robinson elevated to a starting role, he is going back to the bench Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings at the Garden. "I think Nate is better as an off guard," Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni said Monday after practice in Greenburgh. "He understands that. I think the team functions a little bit better with a true point." Mitch Lawrence in the New York Daily News 

• MAVERICKS: When the colorful owner says "we suck right now" and the coach questions their pride and the circus is coming to town this week, it's not a good time for most of the Mavs to be renewing magazine subscriptions. From all accounts, Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson are heavily engaged in trade talks, as they should be. The first rule of any contender is, when all else fails, go for it. Of course, there are exceptions in general and for the Mavs in particular, such as: Any talk that starts or ends with Roddy Beaubois. When your organization has allowed two of the greatest point guards ever to walk away, the commissioner should step in for the good of the franchise when the name of another promising point guard comes up on shipping documents. Anything that sorely compromises the Mavs' chances in the Great Free-Agent Chase this summer. Kevin Sherrington in the Dallas Morning News 

• NETS: Every time I turn on my computer there's another reporter attaching negative motives to Harris' "surprise" decision. Supposedly the 72-year-old couldn't take the ceaseless losses, couldn't relate to the players, had his fill of backtalk from the backcourt. All of it is unadulterated delirium. Evidently, the authors have Harris confused with Vandeweghe, who players perceive behind his back as a pussycat and unqualified to coach, but that's another story for another day. Peter Vecsey in the New York Post 

• NUGGETS: On a weekend when the Nuggets organization should be popping champagne to celebrate having a large footprint in the All-Star game, and weekend as a whole, there’s going to be a fair amount of nail-biting when coach George Karl’s contract officially becomes a national issue. And while there is very real skepticism among many hardcore Nuggets fans, who foolishly or not wonder if Karl is the right coach to take the team to a title, the rest of the nation is simply going to wonder why he hasn’t been locked into a new deal. Chris Dempsey in the Denver Post 

• RAPTORS: Reggie Evans, the Raptors' designated banger, is expected to make his regular season debut on Wednesday, and what kind of shape is he in? If you've watched him in his only regular-season turn as a Raptor – as a sometimes-manic bench presence – it's been difficult to say. Evans' courtside wardrobe has mostly consisted of two blazers that run a couple of sizes baggier than Bryan Colangelo's tailor might advise. They're Polo brand, one blue, the other beige, both 100 per cent linen. And yes, he has heard the teasing from teammates and Twitterers alike. Linen in winter? "Hey, I ain't here to make a fashion statement. Those are my jackets, so I roll with 'em. They save me money. I don't get fined (for violating the NBA's jacket-required dress code)," Evans said. "I don't like suits. ... I don't have one suit, period. I'm not a suit type of guy." Dave Feschuk in the Toronto Star

• SPURS: Spurs coach Gregg Popovich was understandably less enthralled with the events of Feb. 1, 2008. At the time, he called what Memphis did — swapping an All-Star to the Lakers for a collection of what at the time were seen as spare parts — "beyond comprehension." Popovich's stance on the deal has since softened — "I was just trying to be a wise-ass," he said recently — but its impact on the Western Conference power structure has not. "It changed the whole landscape in the West," Popovich said. Nowhere has that seismic shift been felt more violently than in San Antonio. Months after his arrival, the Gasol-infused Lakers crushed the Spurs' hopes of a championship repeat with a five-game shellacking in the 2008 Western Conference finals. Jeff McDonald in the San Antonio Express News 

• THUNDER: Kevin Durant's teammates will receive a package in the next couple of days. Durant said he purchased gifts, "Beats by Dr. Dre" stereo headphones, for each of his Oklahoma City teammates in appreciation of their help in making him an NBA All-Star this season. "My teammates mean a lot to me, because they helped me get there. They made me into an All-Star this year," Durant said. "They were believing in me, trusting in me. Getting me open, passing the ball to me so I can make shots. "It's important to me to let them know how much I thank them." Geoffrey C. Arnold in the Oregonian 

• TIMBERWOLVES: During a working lunch with Kahn and several members of the Twin Cities media, questions eventually turned to the draft. Kahn said that, with the Wolves' top first round pick (their own), he would be inclined to take the best player available, regardless of position. That led to this fairly obvious question from YHP2C: What happens if the point guard-rich Wolves actually get lucky in the lottery and can take Kentucky freshman point guard John Wall with the No. 1 pick? The Minneapolis Star Tribune 

• WARRIORS: Warriors players thought the team had reached the low point of the season two weeks ago. A quick survey after Monday's loss to Dallas would reveal the nightmare has gotten worse than they ever could have dreamed. The Warriors lost the lead and their best player in less than three minutes in the fourth quarter of a 127-117 loss to Dallas in front of 17,015 at Oracle Arena. Dallas took its first lead of the game (108-106) on a three-point play by Dirk Nowitzki with 6:40 remaining, and two minutes and 52 seconds later, Monta Ellis was writhing on the floor. "I ran as fast as Usain Bolt to foul Jason Terry and stop the game, because I was really worried about my little general," center Ronny Turiaf said. "It's a freak accident with our best player going down, and that is the story of the season." The Warriors said Ellis has a sprained left knee, and an MRI exam is scheduled for today. Rusty Simmons in the San Francisco Chronicle