The Suns and Mavs, the Mavs and Suns. The regular season is just a prequel to the playoffs but that still doesn't stop debate. While Dallas and Phoenix continue to roll off wins and winning streaks, the debate over which team is better is being discussed heavily. There is a lot of back and forth and in all reality, until a series is played, it is very subjective. I thought I would take a crack at it after both discussing and hearing both sides of the equation on slamonline.com.

Now, the perception among both teams is that the Suns are the high octane team that leads the league in all scoring categories. The Mavs can score but there is also the feel among the general public that they also play great defense now under Avery Johnson. The Suns can score and the Mavs are better defensively but that also doesn't mean that Phoenix isn't playing any defense either. John Hollinger always discusses pace factor when discussing offense and also the effect that has on the defense in turn.

Avery has slowed the Mavs down offensively and created a team predicated on isolations more than anything else. These isolations center around Dirk but Jason Terry and Josh Howard do very well in this set. The Mavs are long and athletic and disruptive on defense. This centers around Josh Howard, Devin Harris and Erik Dampier. They are all great weak-side defenders but I don't really see anyone on the team that is a stopper ala a Trenton Hassell. The Mavs also have a solid bench when Jerry Stackhouse is healthy. If he is injured, which he is often, the likes of Devean "kick out" George likely don't strike fear in anyone's heart.

The Suns are run and gun all the way but this also does not mean they can't play in the half court. With Amare back, along with Boris and Steve, the team is more than capable of creating in a playoff type atmosphere. Most people view Raja Bell as the true defensive player on the Suns but he has actually been struggling this year. Shawn has been great as a weak-side defender as always and has played very well as an on the ball defender considering he is matched up against any player at almost any time. Kurt remains one of the best low post defenders in the league and Amare has become a great weak-side defender. That's right, Amare. The bench isn't extremely deep but goes eight deep with the 6th man of the year thus far Barbosa and a greatly improving James Jones.

The way I see it, the Mavs are the same strong team they were last year that is built in more of a traditional playoff style. They play the half court game on offense and try to make things as difficult as possible on offense. The Suns still play uptempo but with several key additions back, can easily slide into a half court system. The defense is right there with Dallas and the real key to victory in a seven game series relies on Amare's knees. I believe Nash will be healthy but if Amare can even play at the same level he is at now, will be a force getting rebounds, blocking shots and getting to the free throw line. People can't credit him being back enough. Without him, the Mavs are the clear cut champs but otherwise, I like the Suns and feel they turn the corner this year. Time will tell...

We're getting deeper into the season and the pretenders that looked like contenders look like pretenders again and the contenders that looked like pretenders are back to looking like contenders. Of course most basketball journalists are discussing mid-season awards as well as All-Star selections all over the place. Once again Steve Nash's name is either at the top or right next to it in all MVP discussions. Once again though, people seemingly undervalue him and throw out wild accusations like he is only getting the award because he's white. I thought in this post I could provide a little clarity on what I've been lucky enough to see over the course of the last two and a half years.

In an age where the score first point guard has become the standard, players like Nash have been a revelation. It's a thing of beauty to watch a true point guard orchestrate the tempo of a game. Mike D'Antoni has a great system in place but Steve truly is the engine that is the driving force behind it. Players simply have to get out on the break and find an opening and they know that they have a great chance of seeing the ball. Steve has proven this time and time again with teams that he's led leading the league in scoring for five consecutive years.

The thing that truly seperates him from other point guards in the league currently and many on the all-time greats list, is his ability to score. While Nash is an outstanding passer, he has a knack for knowing when to pick up the scoring slack. To see a point guard shoot for over 50% from the floor, 40% from the three point line and 90% from the free throw line, is simply amazing. He kills other teams with the long range game, the mid-range game, floaters, left and right handed layups and a variety of other moves. He's currently at 20 points per game but he could easily average 25 if he wanted.

So when people complain that other players are better choices for the MVP award, remember that we are seeing one of the all-time best point guards leading one of the all-time best offenses. Detractors can point to the fact that he doesn't play defense, which is more due to a lack of lateral quickness than effort. He's outstanding in so many other areas and every great player had a flaw. People who point to race are simply grasping at straws. Watch him play for just a couple of consecutive games and tell me Steve Nash doesn't play the game the right way.