Michael AngusWild Wild West
April 18th 2008 03:42
The Western Conference playoff matchups are set, and I for one cannot control my excitement. It’s like Christmas when I was a knee high to a grasshopper! Don’t get me wrong, the other conference excites me too, but it’s nothing compared to the Wild West this year.
(1) Lakers v. (8) Nuggets- Intriguing matchup that I could see going at least 6 games. Denver, like LA, is deep and gets scoring and energy from a lot of guys. I haven’t heard a final word of when Bynum will be ready, so I’m a little hesitant on expecting LA’s front line to fully dominate. Camby has been a force, Martin has had his moments and Kleiza and Najera give you instant energy and shooting. Gasol , Turiaf, Walton and current starting power forward Lamar Odom will have to focus on the glass. But who am I kidding? The stars will decide this series and my bet is on Kobe, Pau and Lamar. Denver can’t play defense (Stephen A. Smith’s choice to win the championship at the beginning of the season). LA can. LA in 6.
(2) Hornets v. (7) Mavs- The Mavs beat the Hornets on the last day of the regular season so they could basically battle it out with them during the first round. I wouldn’t put it past Dallas to “upset” the Hornets, but I like the Hornets offensive balance more. Quite frankly, Dallas was foolish to trade Harris for Kidd. Paul will wear down the much older veteran and control this series. The only aspect of the Hornets team bothering me, and probably much of Hornet Nation too, is the bench inconsistency. Having said that, the Mav’s bench usually blows anyways, so I’m going to call it a wash, however, Stackhouse, obviously past his prime, can still explode for a big game any given night. It’s going to be fun anyways. Hornets in 7.
(3) Spurs v. (6) Suns- The defending champs will be given all they can handle, yet I’m not concerned at all about this series. It’s too bad because Nash’s hopes for a title are slowly slipping away, not to mention Shaq and Grant Hill aren’t young studs anymore either. Stoudemire and Barbosa will need to have unbelievable performances for the Suns to pull the upset (it would be one in this case). Both of these teams have extensive playoff experienced players with fiery, wily role players to round out the rotation. But continuity wins out in this series. Spurs in 5.
(4) Utah v. (5) Rockets- Well the Rockets have home court, but that’s about all they have going for themselves. No Yao, no chance. Utah is dominant at home, has a great duo, and is much deeper and athletic at almost every position, thus giving the “Not Sure Basketball” edge to the Jazz. Better luck next year T-Mac. Utah in 5.
It’s hard for any lower seeds to upset higher seeds in the NBA. Unlike the NHL, the better teams just plain win in the NBA playoffs. Er… tell that to Dallas.
Thinking about the future…
I’d like the NBA to consider a new and improved playoff system. Under my system ( this is probably not original), the teams with the top 16 records make the playoffs no matter what conference affiliation, and get seeded according to their record (best first, worst last). Of course then the conference/division situations would have to be tweaked, along with team’s schedules and such, but it would be worth it. The playoffs would be like a NCAA region, with 1 v. 16… 2 v. 15... etc. The top 8 seeds (records) would get home court. It would be better than the current system. With the new system is place, the Hawks and Sixers would be out, the Blazers and Warriors in. The Warriors would be the 12th seed!
(1) Lakers v. (8) Nuggets- Intriguing matchup that I could see going at least 6 games. Denver, like LA, is deep and gets scoring and energy from a lot of guys. I haven’t heard a final word of when Bynum will be ready, so I’m a little hesitant on expecting LA’s front line to fully dominate. Camby has been a force, Martin has had his moments and Kleiza and Najera give you instant energy and shooting. Gasol , Turiaf, Walton and current starting power forward Lamar Odom will have to focus on the glass. But who am I kidding? The stars will decide this series and my bet is on Kobe, Pau and Lamar. Denver can’t play defense (Stephen A. Smith’s choice to win the championship at the beginning of the season). LA can. LA in 6.
(2) Hornets v. (7) Mavs- The Mavs beat the Hornets on the last day of the regular season so they could basically battle it out with them during the first round. I wouldn’t put it past Dallas to “upset” the Hornets, but I like the Hornets offensive balance more. Quite frankly, Dallas was foolish to trade Harris for Kidd. Paul will wear down the much older veteran and control this series. The only aspect of the Hornets team bothering me, and probably much of Hornet Nation too, is the bench inconsistency. Having said that, the Mav’s bench usually blows anyways, so I’m going to call it a wash, however, Stackhouse, obviously past his prime, can still explode for a big game any given night. It’s going to be fun anyways. Hornets in 7.
(4) Utah v. (5) Rockets- Well the Rockets have home court, but that’s about all they have going for themselves. No Yao, no chance. Utah is dominant at home, has a great duo, and is much deeper and athletic at almost every position, thus giving the “Not Sure Basketball” edge to the Jazz. Better luck next year T-Mac. Utah in 5.
It’s hard for any lower seeds to upset higher seeds in the NBA. Unlike the NHL, the better teams just plain win in the NBA playoffs. Er… tell that to Dallas.
Thinking about the future…
I’d like the NBA to consider a new and improved playoff system. Under my system ( this is probably not original), the teams with the top 16 records make the playoffs no matter what conference affiliation, and get seeded according to their record (best first, worst last). Of course then the conference/division situations would have to be tweaked, along with team’s schedules and such, but it would be worth it. The playoffs would be like a NCAA region, with 1 v. 16… 2 v. 15... etc. The top 8 seeds (records) would get home court. It would be better than the current system. With the new system is place, the Hawks and Sixers would be out, the Blazers and Warriors in. The Warriors would be the 12th seed!
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