Each week, ESPN analyst Dr. Jack Ramsay delves into his mailbag and answers questions from users. Here is his latest installment. Send your e-mails by clicking on the file to the right!

	Detroit's Ben Wallace leads the NBA in rebounding and blocked shots.

Why is it that only forwards and centers get Defensive Player of the Year considerations? Just because the guy can rebound and take up space and block shots doesn't mean he is the best defensive player in the league. Why don't guards ever get considered? Who is the best defensive guard in the NBA?
Jay
Detroit, Mich.

Dear Jay,
The reason that centers often are rated the NBA's best defenders is that a dominant, shot-blocking, rebounding center has such a profound impact on the game. In the 19 years that the award has been given, centers have won it 11 times including the last five in a row. But both guards and forwards have won it in the past. Sidney Moncrief (a two-guard for Milwaukee) won it the first two years the award was issued. Michael Jordan, Gary Payton and Alvin Robertson (San Antonio) all won it once. Dennis Rodman won it twice. Kobe Bryant is the best two-guard defender and Derek Fisher is the best defender at the point. This year, it looks like Detroit's Ben Wallace, another center, will get this honor ... and deservedly so.

After seeing Juan Dixon play in the NCAA Tournement, I can't understand why anyone would place him in the second round of the NBA draft. Don't you think he has star potential?
Travis Koutsoubos
Boca Raton, Fla.

Dear Travis,
Juan Dixon will go in the first round of the NBA draft ... count on it. He'll be a solid two-guard in the NBA. He's an excellent shooter and a wiry, tough defender. He's also one who comes up big when his team needs him. His performance in the Final Four games solidified his position in the upcoming draft.

Hey Doc, do you think Michael Jordan should retire? And why?
Porfirio Diaz
Mission, Texas

Dear Porfirio,
Michael will do what he thinks is best for himself and his team. He's had a great impact on the Washington franchise. He showed he could still play with the best players in the NBA, and that he could make the Wizards a considerably better team -- a challenger for a playoff spot. Unfortunately, at 39 years of age, his body struggled with the rigorous schedule and his knees rebelled. I expect that, after surgery on his left knee, he will get into a slower-paced rehab and then determine whether or not he should play again next season. Michael wants to play, and if he feels the surgeries he will have had on both knees will enable him to play at his best level, that's what he'll do. But if he finds that after that rehab period, he can't play at his best, he'll retire. So et's leave it for Michael to decide. He'll do the right thing.

	Mourning

With the Heat now eliminated from the postseason, where do they go from here? Would Pat Riley ever consider blowing up the team and trading Alonzo Mourning to a contender (i.e., Dallas) as well as other key components? In my opinion, Zo deserves to win a ring more than any other player (other than Stockton and Malone) playing today.
Matt Hobbs
Gold Coast, Australia

Dear Matt,
It's hard to predict what will happen with the Heat. Clearly this isn't what Pat Riley had in mind at the beginning of the season. I expect Riley will stay on as coach of the team and try to fine-tune the roster. It will be hard for him to bring about productive trades -- given the salaries, ages and performance levels of most of his players this season. I wouldn't expect him to give up Alonzo Mourning under any circumstance. Zo, after a slow beginning, played near his usual NBA standard in the second half of the season. Hopefully, his kidney problems will continue to lessen. Riley has great admiration for Mourning. I'd love to see Alonzo win a ring, too. He came to Miami for that purpose, but he'll probably finish his career there.

I think that the Celtics are going to be a force in the playoffs this year, but for them to be a legitimate threat to win the championship, which player do you think needs to step it up? Or what part of the game does the team as a whole need to kick up a notch?
Matt Dionne
Goffstown, N.H.

Dear Matt,
The Celts have had a great season. Coach Jim O'Brien and his staff deserve a lot of credit for making a competitive team out of a roster in which Paul Pierce and Antoine Walker have to carry the load every game. The East is so wide open that almost any of the playoff teams have a legitimate chance of reaching the NBA Finals. If the Celts get matched with teams that will run with them and aren't dominating rebounders, they have a chance to be the East's representative in the Finals. Their two greatest weaknesses are rebounding and field-goal percentage. Since they don't have a volume rebounder of their own, the rebounding responsibility falls on every player's shoulders. The team shooting percentage will improve with a better quality of shots taken. Sometimes, the Celtics give the impression that taking a 3-pointer is their main objective on offense. They are a good trey-shooting team, but they also need a balanced attack and the patience to create the best shot they can get.

With Vlade coming to the end of his career, how can the Kings address their upcoming need for a center without trading away too much of the nucleus? Especially with the lack of dominant centers in the league and the Kings' winning ways (low draft position)? Even though Vlade will be around a couple more years, I feel he is such a smart player and could really offer a lot to a young center if they picked up someone now. Is there any chance of the Kings landing the Kandi Man or Marc Jackson?
Jon Arthur
Sacramento, Calif.

Dear Jon,
There are 28 NBA teams that would like to have a better center. The Kings aren't bad at that position with Vlade Divac and Scot Pollard. In fact they're better than most. At 38, Vlade is in the closing phase of a nice NBA career, but I think he'll have a couple of more productive years. Pollard is a good backup, but not a starting center on a contending team. General manager Geoff Petrie and his staff do an excellent job of finding talent -- especially in Europe -- and I'm sure that securing a big man is high on their need-to-do list. Marc Jackson isn't a center and has been disappointing in Minnesota. The Clippers should re-sign Olowokandi, who's had a breakthrough season, but you can never tell what owner Donald Sterling will do. The Kandi Man would be a great pick-up for any of those 28 teams.

	Bryant

What aspects of Kobe Bryant's game need to improve to get closer to the level of MJ? I tend to feel that he tires as the season goes along. His field goal percentage and free throw percentage slide downward in the last 20 games of each season. I'm sure MJ wasn't like that. MJ was better at concentrating after getting fouled and then converting the three-point play. Overall, I think MJ was physically stronger (probably mentally, too). Sacrilegious as this may sound, is there any aspect of Kobe's game that you feel is better than MJ's?
Bob Havin
Los Angeles, Calif.

Dear Bob,
Kobe is the nearest thing to Michael Jordan at his prime ... and Tracy McGrady is a very close second. Kobe has a lot of MJ's game right now. He needs to improve on his 3-point accuracy and his ability to get the shot he wants -- rather than what the defense gives him. That's an important factor when teams focus their defense on a single player. I rarely saw Michael take a pressure shot that didn't seem high percentage for him. Sometimes Kobe gets so jammed by defenders that he can't get that kind of shot, but he shoots it anyway ... and makes some of them. But, under those circumstances, there are teammates open to whom he should pass the ball. Michael is very good at that. Kobe defends on a level with MJ and, if not as competitive, is almost there. And, he may be a bit better than Michael at squeezing through defenders to get all the way to the hoop.

Please help me settle a score. Do you think Pippen deserved to be named one of the 50 greatest players? Some would say he just rode on Jordan's coattail and that the Bulls players of that era were so interchangeable that any decent small forward could of done just as good of job as he did. So did he bring something unique to the table or was he just on the right team at the right time?
Craig Carley
Tampa, Fla.

Dear Craig,
Scottie Pippen was in the right place at the right time. So were John Paxson, Bill Cartwright, Luke Longley, Steve Kerr and a lot of others. But Scottie became a great player at Chicago, while the rest were members of great teams. Scottie was the best defender in basketball during that period and typically was the team's second-best scorer. He also led the Bulls in assists and was a six-to-seven-rebound-a-game contributor. He was at his best when teamed with Michael Jordan, but that shouldn't negate his career. I think he belonged among the Top 50.

The issue is the looming free agency for the Clippers' Olowokandi, Maggette, Brand, Odom and McInnis. All are integral parts of the Clippers. History shows that "Donald" will let them walk. Yet he is under the salary cap and he is enjoying greater revenues than ever before. Any thoughts?
Charles Lomas
Pusan, Korea

Dear Charles,
Owner Donald Sterling is an enigma, so it's hard to predict just what he'll do regarding his free-agent players. You're right about his history with good players -- they all end up with other teams. The Clippers didn't make the playoffs, but they took a big stride forward this season. It would be a shame to see that group disband. Sterling has the final say in these matters and should sign all of the players you mention -- unless there are trades available that would improve the Clippers. Signing Michael Olowokandi is a must. He has emerged as a formidable NBA center ... and those are very hard to find.

What can the 76ers do to fix the lack of consistency they have shown on the defensive end?
Ray Polanco
Oakland, Calif.

Dear Ray,
The Sixers need only to get all of their players healthy, but I'm not sure it will happen. Although Aaron McKie is back and playing well, the team still needs both Allen Iverson and Derrick Coleman back in action and playing at their best levels. Coleman, with chronic knee problems, is the bigger question mark. We all know that A.I. will be back with his usual abandon. If all are physically well, the Sixers could still get to the NBA Finals. There's nothing wrong with the Sixers' defense. They are among the league leaders in points and field goal percentage allowed -- and have been all season.