PLAYOFFS PROOF THAT ALL STARS RULE

Let's stop fooling ourselves.

The NBA playoffs is not about the team. It's about the superstars and All-Stars who play the game. And chances are, the more All Stars you have, the longer yo play in April.

Take a look at this list of past, present, should-have-been and will be All Stars...

Lakers - Kobe, Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol
Jazz - Deron Williams, Memo Okur, Calros Boozer
Spurs - Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, TonyParker, Michael Finley
Hornets - Chris Paul, Peja Stojakovic, David West
Celtics - KG, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, Sam Cassell
Cavs- LBJ, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Wally Szcerbiak, Ben Wallace
Pistons - Chanucey Billups, Rip Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace, Tayshaun Prince
Magic - Dwight Howard, Hedo Turkoglu, Rashard Lewis

Teams that were eliminated had their share of All Stars but in less dazzling form or less in quantity, teams like Atlanta (Josh Smith and Joe Johnson), Houston (McGrady), Denver (Carmelo, Iverson, Camby) even Dallas (Nowitzki, Howard amd Kidd).

And how about those who didn't have any All-Stars like Chicago, Memphis and Minnesota?

Which just goes to show that basketball is, slowly but surely, becoming a superstar's game.

ALL JAZZED UP!

It really shouldn't have come as such a surprise.

After all, the mighty Lakers with this year's MVP won Game 1 by just 10 pts and Game 2 by 11points, unlike the blowouts from the first round.

Also, this team boasted of a defensive ace, an All Star caliber point guard, and 2 All Star big men. No to mention a 3 point threat from the bench and a solid bench.

So why are we still surprise that the Jazz won Game 3 in their own home court?

After all, unlike the first two games, Carlos Boozer got his game going right from the very first quarter. Deron Williams was both dominant and unselfish and Memo Okur rained threes down on the suddenly flustered Lakers.

But even the Jazz's new found offensive potency failed to knock out the Lakers immediately. Led by MVP Kobe Bryant, the Lakers fought back to within 3 in the last 2 minutes. Then Boozer hit consecutive baskets, Lakers failed to score on their possessions and the Jazz faithful were brought back to life.

What does this mean? Only that the Lakers will have to play an extra game before moving on to the Conference Finals. The Jazz, like the Hornets, are a team learning about what it takes to win in the playoffs.

But for now, it's gonna be Lakers ball.