Our NBA analyst looks at the first-round match-ups for the playoffs and predicts who will each series.
There is nothing like playoff basketball. With all due respect to the NCAA tournament, you can catch lightning in a bottle on one night and in one game, a top team can be taken down by a Cinderella squad. Not so in the NBA playoffs. You have to beat a team down by securing four wins in a period of two weeks. When a team wins a series, its no fluke, they are the better team.
With that being said, playoff intensity is unbelievable and there is nothing like the top players in the game trying to win the NBA title. So let's get to the predictions:
East
Cleveland (1) vs. Detroit (8)
My, how the mighty have fallen as there was no 50-win season for the Pistons this year and heck, they didn't even crack 40 in the win column. Joe Dumars trade to acquire Allen Iverson backfired as the team's chemistry suffered and for the first time in six seasons, Detroit looks like they will be watching the playoffs from the couch after the first round. Cleveland is poised and ready for a run at the title. Detroit will be lucky to win a game but we'll give the proud veteran crew one win at home so they don't suffer the indignity of being swept out of the playoffs under their championship banners.
Cleveland wins in 5 games.
Boston (2) vs. Chicago (7)
All of a sudden this series will be closer than many thought thanks to the likelihood that Kevin Garnett doesn't take the floor at all during the series. You just know KG's knee damage was more serious than first acknowledged by the Celtics brass. Anytime there is a non-contact injury where deceleration is involved, it just spells trouble. Chicago is still depending on a rookie point man and a perimeter team to get the job done and that will eventually lead to its demise but not before putting a scare into the Celtics. Boston's Paul Pierce is still an All-NBA performer and he will have enough help from Ray Allen. There is no Garnett but the Celtics league leading defense will still be enough to win this series for them.
Boston wins in 6 games.
Orlando (3) vs. Philadelphia (6)
Even though there are questions about some players' health in Orlando, the Magic have the ace in the hole in Dwight Howard. In this series, he will be too much inside for Philadelphia. If Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis are even somewhat healthy, this should be a quick one for the Magic so they can get some rest to try and get past Boston in the next round. The Sixers limp into the playoffs having lost six straight before defeating the Cavaliers, without LeBron James on the final night of the season. Without a strong inside presence, namely Elton Brand, this is the same Philly squad that went down in the first round to Detroit last year at this time. The Magic ended the regular season tied with Boston and Cleveland for the best road record in the east.
Orlando wins in 5 games.
Atlanta (4) vs. Miami (5)
This will be the closest first-round series in the East. Miami's Dwayne Wade can win a series on his own. He is that good a talent right now. But Atlanta's defense is underrated as they are a top-ten team in opponent's field-goal percentage. Mike Woodson must feel like Rodney Dangerfield getting no respect as it is always being rumoured that he is on the hot seat in Atlanta. The Hawks received a glimpse of what success could be like last year by pushing the eventual champs to seven games in a first-round loss to Boston and that will serve them well in this match-up. As good as Wade is, the supporting cast will let him down in the playoff spotlight. It will be a long hard fought series.
Atlanta wins in 7 games.
West
(1) Los Angeles vs. (8) Utah
Utah is one of the sleepers, a sexy pick to cause problems and make some noise in the playoffs. You know what, forget it!! The Jazz sealed its fate with a poor road record this season. While they were 33-8 at the Energy Solutions Arena, they had a poorer road record than every other playoff team except Chicago. Jerry Sloan has gone on record, perhaps to motivate his team, saying that he doesn't like the team's chances in the first round against the Lakers. You know what Jerry, neither do I. The Jazz will hang in for a while but with Andrew Bynum back, the Lakers are too big along the front line for any other team in the west and the entire NBA for that matter.
Lakers win in 6 games.
(2) Denver vs. (7) New Orleans
This is the year the Nuggets and Carmelo Anthony finally get out of the first round. The addition of Chauncey Billups has made this team a contender. Now Denver has to show they are not just built for the regular season but can handle business in the playoffs. The Nuggets are an underrated defensive team, leading the Western Conference in defensive field-goal percentage. There seemed to have been something missing all season in Crescent City and maybe it was just the weight of expectations weighing on the Hornets all season. Don't blame Chris Paul as he had better numbers in some categories than he did last year. The Nuggets are too good to be beat by one player.
Denver wins in 6 games.
(3) San Antonio vs. (6) Dallas
The loss of Manu Ginobili is a hole that is too big for the Spurs to fill. Too bad for the Spurs that he's injured again in the post season. It would have been interesting to have San Antonio healthy with its veteran experience in the post season but missing Ginobili will ultimately be their undoing. Dallas has improved all season and may have too much depth for the Spurs at this point in the season. In these eyes, this series has upset written all over it.
Dallas wins in 6 games.
(4) Portland vs. (5) Houston
How ironic would it be for the Rockets to win the series and get out of the first round without Tracy McGrady? Well this is the year it just might happen. The Rockets, although a bit thin on experience at a key spot, point guard, have enough decision makers that they may be able to get by and they have played well, like a true team, without McGrady. While Portland is very good, and Nate McMillan has done a terrific job, they are still very inexperienced when it comes to the post season and the NBA is a league where on-the-job training usually leads to learning accompanied by losses. It will be a close series where the Rockets experience gets them over the top.
Houston wins in 7 games.
NBA Finals
The league will have a ratings bonanza as the Finals will feature the two biggest stars in the NBA on its biggest stage. Kobe and LeBron, the Lakers and the Cavaliers, and while the Cavs will have home-court advantage, remember, their only loss, with LeBron in the lineup at home was to the Lakers. As mentioned above, the Lakers are too big, strong and mobile up front for any other team in the NBA. Add to that, the groundswell of support for James in the MVP balloting and you will have an extra-highly motivated Kobe Bryant by the time we hit Father's Day in June. Bryant will gladly let James have the MVP trophy for the regular season while he clutches the Larry O'Brien hardware at the end of the playoffs.
Lakers win the NBA title in 6 games.
