Stephon Marbury figures the East should run, run, run.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Stephon Marbury lifted his eyebrows, squinted his eyes and delivered a knowing nod. He hadn't come to his first All-Star Game to deliver a concession speech. When the game starts, Alonzo Mourning and Grant Hill will be sitting in suits on his bench. The world will be waiting for a slaughter, the powerful West punishing the putrid East. He sees something else, Allen Iverson and him on the floor. He sees Spree, and Tracy McGrady, and Ray Allen. Yes, Marbury sees speed, blurring speed.

"I don't see any difference at all between (the talent)," Marbury insisted.

"They're big. We're running."

This is it, isn't it. The West is big, the East is running. Move the NBA All-Star Game out of the MCI Center, down the street, over the hill and onto the bent rims of a playground. East vs. West, shirt and skins. Who would you want? The West, of course. Who wants the East?

Perhaps, this is the best we can do for All-Star intrigue with Michael, Magic and Larry distant memories. The West can lose Shaquille O'Neal and yet, everyone is so sure they're going to toy with the East, parade its power out of the regular season and right into the MCI Center. They started the season at a deep disadvantage, lost two starters to season-ending injuries and reason overrides the optimism of Marbury.

"If it was keepaway, I'd love our chances," Eastern Conference coach Larry Brown said.

Nobody has to think twice in the NBA Finals. Easily, they'll take the West. The 76ers can break free, continue, fight to the Finals and it won't matter with the winner waiting in the West. The Kings? The Lakers? The Blazers? The Sixers will be the underdogs. Before the season, Jeff Van Gundy insisted the Knicks, should they get to the Finals, would be the longest shots in NBA history. Come spring, nothing will change: The West will tower, the East will run.

"We're big and they're small, but that's not going to make a difference when you see the stars who are out there," Western Conference coach Rick Adelman said. "It's not any easier just because the West has a lot of the best teams. That doesn't translate to the All-Star game."

Well, maybe it does a little. Strange how this turned around, isn't it? Used to be just the opposite. All the size, all the power worked for the Knicks, the Heat, the Magic. Suddenly, it shifted to the West. Shaq signed with the Lakers. The Spurs drafted Tim Duncan to join David Robinson. The Wizards traded Chris Webber to Sacramento. Antonio McDyess found his way back to Denver. Karl Malone stayed amazingly ageless with the Jazz.

And so, the East comes into today the most devastating underdogs in All-Star history. Sometimes, it's easy to forget in these games: The guards hate passing the ball inside and this is the best chance the East has here. Kobe won't pass the ball to Shaq in the regular season, so you think he's going to give it to Duncan in All-Star game? Please.

The East is going to need something, understand. Toronto's Antonio Davis? Miami's Anthony Mason? All right, all right: So, they aren't exactly destined for Springfield, Mass. But you can see them banging bodies, getting rough with those Western towers, and maybe, just maybe, holding this game close for Iverson and Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter to steal in the fourth quarter. Speed kills, but perhaps Larry Brown is right. The East would have a hell of a time in a game of keepaway. They won't get the chance. This is the NBA All-Star game, and when the ball goes in the air at 6:30 tonight, the world won't have to wonder how the East is going to try to stay alive. You heard Starbury, didn't you?

"We're running."

Adrian Wojnarowski, a columnist for the Bergen (N.J.) Record, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com. He can be reached at NJCOL1@aol.com.