The fingerprints of rookie general manager Steve Kerr are all over the Phoenix Suns now, in fact, bubbling over with hot grease that has strangely taken on the shape of 330 pounds worth of Shaquille O'Neal.

Ah yes, the deconstruction of the Suns.

In the wake of their five-game playoff loss to the San Antonio Spurs, the Suns as we knew them are finished ... virtually all the undoing of Kerr as the henchman for owner Robert Sarver. Coach Mike D'Antoni (232-96) is likely through, clashing philosophy with Kerr from Day 1 of this season, the effect of unloading Kurt Thomas in a preposterous trade to start the season, the dealing of Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to Miami for O'Neal, and it all came to a head in a first-round knockout - the only time that has happened in his four-plus seasons as the Suns head coach.

It's easy to point to O'Neal, the Big Cactus, as an even bigger target. He was presumably brought in just for a series like this with the Spurs - to clog the middle defensively and be a problem for Tim Duncan. Well, Duncan averaged 24.8 points, 13.8 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in the series. And point guard Tony Parker treated the lane that O'Neal was supposed to own as his own personal crash pad, averaging 29.6 points and 7.0 assists.

And on the offensive end, The Big Cactus was the Big Target, as Spurs coach Gregg Popovich took advantage of O'Neal's legendary free throw bricks by fouling him continuously to disrupt the Suns whenever they did get on a run. O'Neal may contend he makes them when they count, but are we being presumptuous by saying the 32 he missed in this series meant even more than the 32 he made?

And while Kerr is being portrayed as the villain (how can the incredibly affable and bright Steve Kerr be a villain?), it all really started nearly four years ago.

You see, this whole thing was inevitable as soon as Sarver bought the team from Jerry Colangelo in the summer of 2004 and president/general manager Bryan Colangelo fled to Toronto in March of 2006. They were the guys that brought in D'Antoni, allowed him to build a new model of NBA basketball around the group of Marion, Steve Nash, Joe Johnson and Amare Stoudemire. They tweaked it with defensive additions Thomas and Raja Bell.

They created a new era of "fun-and-gun" basketball, with three consecutive Pacific Division titles, and other teams emulated what they accomplished. It took the NBA back to the 1980's with a new version of Showtime, and rejuvenated flat television ratings for the league.

But Sarver began to break it down with a controversial sign-and-trade of the magnificently talented Johnson to Atlanta that brought Boris Diaw and draft choices. Sure, Johnson claimed he wanted to be the guy, but so did Marion and Stoudemire always complained about shots. That's what coaching and being a general manager are all about. You deal with the egos, but at the end of the day, it's all about performance and they performed at a high level for D'Antoni, the irrefutable NBA Coach of the Year in 2005.

They lost to the Spurs in the conference finals in 2005 and the Mavericks in 2006 ... clearly knocking on the door. And then last season in the semifinals against the Spurs and the series tied 2-2, there was the controversial issue of Stoudemire and Diaw getting suspended from Game 5 for leaving the bench in the Game 4 Suns' win when Robert Horry took a cheap shot at Nash that sent him flying into the scorer's table. It killed the Suns' momentum. They lost Game 5 and Game 6, setting up Kerr to take over the personnel department from D'Antoni and David Griffin.

The handwriting was on the wall at the start of the season when they dumped Thomas - a key figure for interior defense last season - and two first-round draft choices for a conditional second-round pick. It was about the last year of his $8 million contract, so wouldn't that have been invaluable this summer? He was replaced by the much cheaper and less talented Brian Skinner.

The bigger deal came in February, of course, for O'Neal. D'Antoni put on a happy face for the trade, contending he pushed for the deal. And in some ways it helped them run because he added some rebounding. But Shaq didn't help defensively because the big man never steps out on the screen-and-roll, which Parker and Manu Ginobili jumped all over in the series. He didn't help the screen and roll with Nash on the offensive end either. It opened up the game for Stoudemire in a lot of ways, but O'Neal's presence also inhibits others. It always has and always will.

So it pushed D'Antoni into a corner, often confused the brilliance of Nash, and now they're done. We know this love affair between Sarver, a Tucson native, is tied with Kerr, illustrious alum of the Wildcats. And he owns the team. Well, so be it.

With coaches about to play musical benches - beginning with jobs in New York and Chicago as starters - it won't take long for D'Antoni to start anew. It's all a matter of how this is finessed. But with O'Neal 36, Nash 34 and Grant Hill 36 in October, this team has Stoudemire, Diaw and Leandro Barbosa to build around.

The bad news for the fans is the most fun team in the league to watch is history.

The good news for the Suns is Sarver and Kerr have a much longer offseason to figure out what to do next.

On the surface, this was sheer torture for Tracy McGrady and the Houston Rockets.

McGrady was brilliant for three quarters Monday night. Despite lacking All-Star center Yao Ming and resurgent point guard Rafer Alston, they were right there with the Utah Jazz - seeking a split of the first two games on their home floor.

But as is always the case, the Jazz pounded the boards, stayed in their face on defense and tormented them with offensive execution. The result was a 90-84 victory to take a commanding 2-0 series lead back to Salt Lake City for the next two games.

McGrady finished with 23 points, 13 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks, but had just 1 point in the fourth quarter and was clearly dead on his feet down the stretch. He got help in spurts from backup point guard Bobby Jackson and rookie Aaron Brooks. Actually, Jackson's 3-pointer apparently tied the game in the final minute only to have it waved off on a contentious off-the-ball foul called on Luis Scola, with Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko accused of flopping.

And that was the end of that for the Rockets, who now have lost four consecutive playoff games to the Jazz dating to last spring.

Point guard Deron Williams led the Jazz with 22 points, while center Mehmet Okur added 16 points and 16 rebounds. Okur, Kirilenko and Carlos Boozer combined for 31 rebounds to lead the cause in a game so close there were 10 lead changes and 16 ties.

Despite McGrady's efforts (16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists in the first half), the Rockets couldn't establish enough offensive punch to hang on to the lead even when they got it. Jackson finished with 18, Scola had 14 and Brooks added 11, but it was never enough. Even a pair of Shane Battier 3-pointers in the final minute of the third quarter merely served as a temporary tease for the Rockets.

In the end, there was little the Rockets could do and it's only going to get worse now. The Jazz have been vulnerable on the road all year, finishing 17-24. But now the teams head back to Salt Lake, where Utah was an NBA-best 37-4 during the regular season. And with an exhausted and depleted Rockets team, this series looks over.

Sure, Williams has a badly bruised tailbone that took another serious jolt when Brooks flattened him on a screen, forcing him to hobble back to the locker room. Nonetheless, young backup Ronnie Price made big plays - including a clutch 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter - to keep the Jazz in order. And Williams was running the show down the stretch, doing whatever it took to keep the Rockets at bay.

The question now is whether the Rockets have anything left to extend this series beyond the next two games. They were losers in the conference finals to the eventual champion Spurs last spring, and the next two games will show how much the Jazz have matured.

If they complete the sweep, it will speak more of their execution - not of the battered Rockets - and they'll meet the winner of the Lakers-Nuggets series. Meanwhile, the Rockets will just have to take it - drip, drip, drip ...

Quotebook

Jazz guard Deron Williams on winning both games in Houston:

"It's great for us to come out the way we did and not settle for the one victory. We wanted to get both of them, get greedy. We've just got to go back now and take care of business."

The stud

Cavs All-Star forward LeBron James just missed a triple-double in their 116-86 win over the Wizards to take a 2-0 lead in the series. James had 30 points, 12 assists, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks and a steal. In the two games he's averaging 31.0 points, 8.0 assists and 7.5 rebounds.

The dud

Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, also known as Agent Zero or Mighty Mouth depending on your preference, had more turnovers than field goals. Making just 2-of-10 shots, Arenas had just 7 points, 3 assists, 4 fouls and 3 turnovers in just less than 24 minutes. In the first game he had 24 points.

Statbook

The Cavs now have beaten the Wizards in eight consecutive playoff games. ... Cleveland center Zydrunas Ilgauskas has averaged 19 points and 10 rebounds in the two games. ... Wizards All-Star Antawn Jamison went from 23 points and 19 rebounds in Game 1 to 9 points and 9 rebounds in Game 2. As a team they are 60-of-154 (.390) from the field and 9-of-40 (.225) from 3-point range. ... McGrady is 16-of-43 from the field and 1-of-9 from 3-point range in the first two games. ... Battier took seven shots in each of the first two games, making all seven in the first game to finish with 22 points, but hitting just three in Game 2 and totaling 7 points. ... The Rockets are 10-of-41 (.244) from beyond the arc in the series and 34-of-55 (.618) from the free-throw line, while the Jazz are 12-of-27 (.444) from 3-point range and 27-of-40 (.675) from the stripe. Not coincidentally, Yao is their best free-throw shooter and Alston led the team in 3-pointers. Yao is out with a fractured foot, but Alston is a possibility for Game 3, battling a strained groin.

Tuesday

Now we'll find out just how serious the Dallas Mavericks are about regaining their mojo and competing to win the Western Conference. After having fallen apart in the 2006 Finals, and getting upset by eighth-seeded Golden State in 2007, the Mavericks blew a 12-point lead at New Orleans Saturday and seem ill-equipped to come back from a 2-0 deficit.

Tonight in New Orleans, the Mavs must deal with their demons and gain a split.

Also, the Phoenix Suns will try to bounce back from their crushing double-overtime defeat at San Antonio, and the Toronto Raptors must figure out how to deal with the Orlando Magic's monster in the middle, Dwight Howard.

Mavericks (0-1) at Hornets (1-0)

Chris Paul was brilliant in the 104-92 victory, with 35 points, 10 assists and 4 steals to lead the Hornets, who also dominated the interior thanks to the 10 points and 15 rebounds from Tyson Chandler. And after a sluggish start, forward David West had 23 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocks for the Hornets. Dirk Nowitzki scored 31 for the Mavs, but Josh Howard (4-of-16) and Jerry Stackhouse (2-of-9) were a combined 6-of-25 from the field and Jason Terry produced just 6 points.

Suns (0-1) at Spurs (1-0)

Clutch 3-pointers from Michael Finley and Tim Duncan forced the two overtime periods in the remarkable 117-115 victory in Game 1. Duncan had a game for the ages with 40 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks. Manu Ginobili added 24 points for the Spurs, including the game-winning basket on a drive to the glass, and Tony Parker added 26 points and 5 assists. Amare Stoudemire had 33 and 7 rebounds before fouling out for the Suns, with Steve Nash adding 25 points and 13 assists.

Raptors (0-1) at Magic (1-0)

The Magic hit 16-of-20 shots, including 9-of-11 from 3-point range to take a 43-23 lead in the first quarter and never were really challenged on the way to a 114-100 win. Most of the reason was Dwight Howard's intimidating 25 points, 22 rebounds and 5 blocks. Jameer Nelson had 24 points and 7 assists for the Magic, with Hedo Turkoglu adding 21 points and 6 assists. Anthony Parker scored 24 for Toronto and Chris Bosh added 21.

Lost in the wonderment of the spectacular individual performances from veterans Tim Duncan and Pau Gasol and the stunning upset of the Detroit Pistons by the Philadelphia 76ers in the opening weekend of the 2008 NBA playoffs, the other prevailing characteristic was the impact of the 25-and-under stars.

It's tough to get past Duncan's 40 points, 15 rebounds, 5 steals, 3 blocks and shocking 3-pointer in the Spurs' 117-115 double-overtime victory over the Suns. And then there was Gasol's 36 points, 16 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 blocks in the Lakers' 128-114 win over the defenseless Nuggets. Then again, we've seen how special the 32-year-old Duncan can be in the playoffs. Not so for Gasol, basking in the glow of his first playoff win at the age of 26 after an NBA-record 0-12 mark in the postseason for the Grizzlies, who have never won a playoff game.

But another big story of the weekend was Chris Paul's spectacular second half to lead the inexperienced Hornets back from a 12-point deficit at halftime to roll by Dallas 104-92. Paul, just 22 years old, had 35 points, 10 assists and 4 steals - emphatically proving that all the hype about his MVP consideration is well-founded. And his 25-year-old teammate, 7-1 center Tyson Chandler, also continued to lay claim as the top offensive rebounder in the game today, with seven of his game-high 15 boards coming off the offensive glass.

It went to an entirely different level, though, when the Sixers came from 15 down to upset the second-seeded Pistons to pull out a 90-86 win in Detroit. Front and center was 24-year-old swingman Andre Iguodala sinking three of four free throws in the final 11 seconds to clinch the game. But there was also the huge jumper from 21-year-old Louis Williams in the closing minutes and the early impact of starting forward Thaddeus Young, who is the second youngest player in the NBA at 19 years old.

Again, this is just a reminder to the older stars like Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant that the youngsters are fearlessly taking a stand.

Sure, Bryant, Paul and Garnett are the top choices for the MVP balloting. But it's ridiculous to ignore LeBron James, who had 32 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists in the Cavs' 93-86 win over the Wizards to commence the playoff weekend. People forget that LBJ is still only 23. And then there is Dwight Howard, the 22-year-old center of the Magic. We can't ignore the spectacular perimeter shooting of the Magic to start the game (16-of-20 field goals - including 9-of-11 from 3-point range - to score 43 points in the first quarter). However, consider Howard's 25 points, 22 rebounds and 5 blocks - completely dominating the paint. He must be fifth among the MVP ballots.

And they're not the only young'uns to play dominant roles. Deron Williams, 23, had 20 points and 10 assists to lead the Jazz to an 11-point win over the Rockets on Saturday, and Duncan also had point guard Tony Parker pouring in 26 points and doling out 5 assists. As hard as it is to believe considering he has three championship rings, Parker is still only 25.

So is Amare Stoudemire, who had 33 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks before fouling out against the Spurs. Also putting up big numbers in defeat were Carmelo Anthony, with 30 points, and 12 rebounds for the Nuggets; and Chris Bosh with  21 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals in the Raptors loss to the Magic. Bosh is but 24, 'Melo, 22.

And even though the Celtics trounced the Hawks by 23 Sunday and this is the Hawks first playoff appearance this century, keep in mind that Joe Johnson is only 26, Josh Childress 24 and Josh Smith 22, with Marvin Williams and Al Horford just 21.

Granted, we're only eight games into the playoffs, but already youth is being served as we approach May. The big games have only just begun, and you never know how well anyone will react as the noose tightens each game, but before we get to the Finals in June, at least some of the veteran stars will be worn down by the youngsters ... and maybe even knocked out.