NBA in total disarray as season nears

The season, compressed to begin with, is supposed to tip off in 14 days, and the league is just nowhere near ready to go. The Hornets don’t even have half a team, and their front office can’t fill the roster without approval from David Stern. Boston is waiting to see if it can snare David West before the Pacers step into the chaos void with their cap space. The Rockets had plans A, B, C and (knowing GM Daryl Morey) D linked to the three-team Chris Paul trade that fell apart Thursday and again late Saturday for reasons no one really understands even now. Nene waits, and his team, the Nuggets, waits to fill several empty roster spots. The Lakers could be an entirely different operation in 24 hours.

This is madness, and the idea of starting games — actual NBA games that count in the standings and the championship race — feels increasingly ludicrous. But here we are, and there appear to have been no discussions about changing plans at this late stage.

In any case, the Lakers are already an entirely different operation, having stunned the almost numb NBA world late Saturday by pulling out of the Paul talks and sending Lamar Odom, their third- or fourth-best player depending on Andrew Bynum’s health ... NBPF