1)San Antonio Spurs vs. 8)Memphis Grizzlies
So apparently the Grizzlies wanted this matchup, resting key pieces Tony Douglas and Zach Randolph in a matchup with the Trailblazers that could have helped them jump both Portland and New Orleans for the six seed and a date with the Mavs, which is the best matchup for any underdog in the west. So instead, they play the Spurs. As in multiple championship winning Spurs. Risky strategy.
Spurs coach Greg Popovich altered his rotations and pace of play for the regular season to get his one seed, presumably to keep veterans Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobli, and Tony Parker fresh for the playoffs. Other than a hiccup with Manu getting injured in the game vs. the Lakers, this worked beautifully. But what a hiccup.
Manu is the third best shooting guard in the league, losing out only to D-Wade and Kobe. He is listed as doubtful for game one. If he doesn’t make it back for game two, this could get ugly. I have to give the Memphis frontcourt a slight advantage here, no matter how many rings Timmy D has. The Big Fundamental is getting on up there, and Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph have been playing very well.
Of course, the Grizz is missing dynamic scorer Rudy Gay and his nearly twenty points a game, so they are still going to need great play from Mike Conley and OJ Mayo to make this a fight.
Bottom line? Pop is one of the best coaches ever to grace the league with his presence. Choosing to meet him in the first round is foolhardy at best, suicidal at worst. This could go to six, maybe, but hey, at least the Grizz finally win a playoff game!
Prediction: Spurs in five.
2)Los Angeles Lakers vs. 7)New Orleans Hornets
Lets get this out of the way: I hate Kobe Bryant. This is due to a combination of me loving Lebron, and a certain overzealous Lakers fan I know. But dear sweet Lord, is he good. Remember the scene at the end of Anchorman where Wes Mantooth pulls Ron out of the bear pit? “I hate you with every fiber of my being, but man, do I respect you.” That’s me and Kobe. Except I doubt I’ll have to pull him out of a bear pit any time soon.
But my personal feeling aside, this will be a slaughter. The Hornets were a very good basketball team during the season, with Emeka Okafor fueling a stout defense and still-the-best-point-guard Chris Paul dishing assists to anyone with a pulse. A good offense, however, needs more than a point guard, it needs a scorer, and the Hornets resident scorer, David West, injured himself nailing a buzzer beater (to force overtime, no less) several weeks ago against the Jazz.
Meanwhile, Kobe, Pau, and Ron loom, hell bent on defending a ring. I could gush about Kobe’s indomitable will, Phil’s unmatchable intellect, of the fact that Andrew Bynum is healthy, but if you have watched 10 minutes of ESPN in the last week, you already know all of that. This team has a tendency not to lose in playoff series’, to say the least.
Chris Paul will need a prayer to win a game. He’ll need nothing less than Divine Intervention to win the series.
Prediction: Lakers in four.
3)Dallas Mavericks vs. 6)Portland Trailblazers
Poor Dirk Nowitzky. His team acquires Tyson Chandler and brings back Caron Butler to add to Jason Terry, Jason Kidd, and himself. Caron Butler performs well. Chandler becomes a force, transforming the defense of the team. Then Dirk goes down. As he comes back, Butler is hit with a season ending injury. And now a team that was a trendy early season pick to reach the Finals is being looked at as ripe for an upset,
Enter the Blazers. The team that absolutely refuses to die. Left with the reality that Brandon Roy will never be the game-changer he once was, and Greg Oden isn’t walking through the door anytime soon, Portland did what it does best: adapt.
Andre Miller, Gerald Wallace, and LaMarcus Aldridge combine with Nicolas Batum, Rudy Fernandez, Marcus Camby, and whatever Roy has left to make a hell of a scary basketball team. This is exactly the matchup they wanted. This is exactly the matchup Dallas didn’t want.
Of course, Dallas will not just give it to them. Dirk wants a ring. More than that, he doesn’t want to get upset in the first round, an upsetting trend. He knows something will force Cuban to take drastic measures if this team underperforms again. Still, if there is an upset to be had in first round of this years play offs, this is it.
So, in summary, Dirk is hungry, but can’t catch a break. Portland has proven they don’t need one. Here’s where I look stupid.
Prediction: Trailblazers in seven.
4)Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 5)Denver Nuggets
So you trade your best player, and the team actually gets better you say? How does that happen? Simple. You have George Karl. Honestly though, with ‘Melo gone, and the stellar collection of role players no longer held hostage, Karl was free to coach a team to 16-6 since the beginning of March.
The team is playing wonderful, with Nene and JR Smith as the leading men, as far as there are any. Nene is having an amazingly efficient season, shooting .651 from the field, and JR Smith is shooting .410 from three entering the season.
And then there is the Thunder, this year’s trade deadline winner after snagging defensive big man specialist Kendrick Perkins. The acquisition turns the Thunder into a downright scary defensive team, with Serge Ibaka now granted more freedom to block and alter shots all over the floor as a more free-roamer type then he has been. Not to mention we have all seen what Durant can do on the defensive end.
Speaking of the league’s leading scorer, the Nugget’s will need to find some way to curb his 27.7 points a game. Their best hope? Daring Russell Westbrook to beat them. While Westbrook’s athleticism serves him well in getting to the hole, and his shooting averages are up, his decision making has seemed a little suspect recently.
This definitely should be the most fun series out west, but when the dust settles, the Thunder roll.
Prediction: Thunder in six.
No comments:
Post a Comment