On the weekend of the Masters, sports talk was dominated by Tiger Woods and Kobe Bryant. Tiger, of course, for his efforts (and penalty) on the golf course, while Kobe tried to will the Lakers to the playoffs. Unfortunately, for NBA fans and Laker fans especially, Kobe’s achilles couldn’t bear the weight of the franchise. He went down against the Golden State Warriors with a ruptured achilles tendon. This injury typically requires 6-9 months of rehab.

Can a 34 year old, who has logged 17 NBA seasons, come back from this injury? Probably. Definitely, in the case of Kobe Bryant. He’s one of the most fierce competitors the game has ever seen. I’m sure he’ll attack his rehab with the same passion and energy that he uses to attack defenders. That’s not the question though. The real question is whether or not Kobe can come back to his old form? If so, expect him back to terrorize the league again next year. If not, we may have seen the last of Kobe Bryant as an elite basketball player.

What does that mean for the Lakers? First of all, they are going to try and secure the 8th and final playoff spot without him. Hopes of making a deep run this year have taken a serious hit. Time for Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol to step up for this team, but don’t hold your breath in hopes of a playoff series win. Without Kobe, this Lakers team is just not deep enough to knock off the #1 seed (either San Antonio or Oklahoma City). Going forward, the Lakers are going to have to figure out what their offense will look like without relying on #24.

Let me start by saying that I’m thrilled football is back. No doubt it has the largest following of all North American sports. However, with all of the activity this summer, I am also looking forward to the return of the NBA. The NBA draft saw the New Orleans Hornets grab two big names in the top 10 picks, with Anthony Davis and Austin Rivers becoming the cornerstones of the franchise. The Boston Celtics look to remain relevant by compensating for the loss of Ray Allen to the rival Miami Heat, with the addition of Jason Terry, Jared Sullinger, and Fab Melo. We were treated to some NBA players in the summer Olympics, which helped tide me over until the start of the season.

In addition, the defending champion Miami Heat look to be improved, and they are going to need it in order to fend off serious challenges from the Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, and Brooklyn Nets (yes, the Nets). The Lakers scooped up Steve Nash to run the point, and traded for big man Dwight Howard to continue the long trend of superstar centers for the Lakers. The Nets not only moved to Brooklyn, but they also added Joe Johnson, and re-signed Deron Williams, Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace. They are now touting their “Core 4″ to match up against any other team in the league. Finally, Linsanity has packed his things and signed with the Houston Rockets, who hope to ride Jeremy Lin’s popularity and ability to the playoffs and into contention for a NBA title.

One more month until preseason begins. New gear for 2012-2013 will be available soon, so check back and get your new NBA jerseys, tees, hats and hoodies in advance of what promises to be an exciting NBA season.

Just a few months ago, the NFL ended their lockout. The end of the lockout signaled the start of a protracted training camp and a shortened free agency period. The free agency period was a fast and furious signing frenzy with stars switching teams and players scrambling to find new homes. Now, the NBA is going through the same thing. While the new deal is not yet ratified, players are allowed to talk to teams now, with Friday December 9th as the first day free agents can sign new contracts.

The defending champion Dallas Mavericks could potentially lose a lot of talent from last year’s roster. Caron Butler is fielding offers from other teams, JJ Barea may be a victim of his NBA Finals success, and big man Tyson Chandler could also be on the move. The Denver Nuggets Nene Hilario is attracting a lot of attention, along with teammate Arron Afflalo. New Orleans Hornets power forward David West rounds out the top tier of free agents.

While there are some nice players eligible for free agency, the entire NBA landscape is really up to two stars that are in the final year of their deals. Chris Paul, the dynamic New Orleans Hornets point guard has long wanted to play with Carmelo Anthony in New York. The finances of a trade to the Knicks will be tricky, because they already have two max contract players with Amar’e Stoudemire already playing next to Melo. Unfortunately for the Knicks, they lack the assets (young talented players) to probably pull off a trade for Chris Paul, so they may end up losing out on another prized free agent (google The Decision of 2010). The other major star in the final deal of his contract and attracting attention from the entire league is Dwight Howard. Dwight Howard is a physical specimen at center for the Orlando Magic. He’s so valuable to his franchise that the Orlando Magic CEO just resigned amid controversy over him begging Dwight not to leave town. Howard is expected to attract trade offers from the Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Chicago Bulls, and the New Jersey Nets, just to name a few teams.

We aren’t sure who’s going where, but we do know that come December 9th, the signings will come from every direction. You can stay up to date on the action or track down gear for your favorite player right here at FansEdge. Visit our NBA Store for all the latest news, info and NBA gear.