If you haven't heard by now, the NBA Playoffs start tomorrow! This is one of the most interesting playoff brackets we've had in a long time. I'm gonna break down the matchups and give you my predictions and thoughts for each one.
East:
(1) Chicago Bulls vs (8) Philadelphia Sixers - Saturday, 1pm on TNT
The Bulls REALLY lucked out here by not having to face The Knicks in the first round because if there was any lower seeded team that could beat The Bulls, it would be The Knicks.
Nonetheless, The Bulls are gonna gain back reigning MVP Derrick Rose and head into the battle against The Sixers. At one point in time, The Sixers were looking impressive with a better win percentage than last season, but then they hit a skid and a had a bad month of March where they lost 9 out of 16 games and began looking like the Sixers of old. Not to mention, they had to Forrest Gump their way into the playoffs and make up a lot of games to get here, but they have their work cut out for them....or do they?
Chicago leads the league in defense while the Sixers barely break the Top 10. But when The Sixers play the Bulls, they get more physical in the paint and are able to score more down low. The Bulls need to exploit one of the Sixers weaknesses: defending the perimeter. They rank 22nd in the league and allow a high percentage of mid-range and perimeter shooting and The Bulls have some shooters. You look at guys like Kyle Korver, Luol Deng, John Lucas III, and the list doesn't stop there.
You factor in all that with the Sixers poor road record, and the atmosphere that will surround Chicago, it's gonna be a long series.
Showstopper Prediction: Chicago Bulls in 5 games.
(2) Miami Heat vs (7) New York Knicks - Saturday, 3:30pm on ABC
Well, and now we come to one of the most interesting games in the playoffs. The New York Knicks and The Miami Heat. Right off the bat, this series won't be as close as most people think. I'm not saying the Knicks will get swept like they did last year, but they got some bad luck with this one.
For starters, Miami holds the best Home Record in the NBA, they got some off-season acquisitions by getting a great defender and perimeter shooter in Shane Battier, but other than that, The Heat are pretty much the same team from last season. The Big 3 have gotten better at floor chemistry and facilitating the ball around for everybody to get shots and their defensive is suffocating when they're at Home. To put it short and sweet, at Home they're nearly unbeatable.
Now, The Knicks were fueled by Linsanity earlier on in the season. Once Lin went down with an injury, Carmelo came back and picked up where Lin left off. Lin will not be returning for the playoffs because he's still injured. But there are several X-Factors within The Knicks. For starters, Tyson Chandler. The man who holds a portion of the responsibilities for bringing Dallas their first ring and a man who should be Defensive player of the year with about 10 RPG. Now we move to the bench where Steve Novak has hit corner 3s for the Knicks for the last month or so and where JR Smith has made his case for 6th man of the year. And then, we bring ourselves to Carmelo Anthony who's been playing extremely well scoring 22 PPG. The Knicks are stacked, but even with all that and even with Amare back in the lineup, they can't match up with Miami.
The Heat have a 40% FG percentage against The Knicks while New York has a 24% percentage scoring in the paint and 32% when it comes to perimeter shooting. Needless to say The Heat have been the Knicks Achilles heel. The Knicks need to get physical with Miami and force them into tough shots while Miami has to play their game and not try anything erratic.
Showstopper Prediction: Miami Heat in 6 games.
(3) Indiana Pacers vs (6) Orlando Magic - Saturday, 7pm on ESPN
If Dwight Howard was playing in this game, then I would say to you, it'd be a bad first round match for the Pacers, but Dwight Howard is not playing in the playoffs. Let me repeat that: DWIGHT HOWARD IS NOT PLAYING IN THE PLAYOFFS!
What used to work for The Magic is that they would feed Howard down low and sometimes use him to draw away the defense and shoot corner 3s and whatever. But now, with Howard out indefinitely, The Magic have to live and die by the 3. They need to depend on guys like Ryan Anderson, JJ Redick and Jason Richardson to sink 3s and provide mismatches if they want to get out of this series with a win.
Without a force like Dwight out there, Tyler Hansbrough, Paul George and Roy Hibbert are going to have their way in the paint. The Pacers are the #3 seed which is surprising in its own right, but they're a dangerous team. I mentioned their forces down low, but Danny Granger and Darren Collison have come into their own and have a 58% FG percentage against the Magic already. Sorry Orlando.
Showstopper Prediction: Indiana Pacers in 6 games.
(4) Boston Celtics vs (5) Atlanta Hawks - Sunday, 7pm on TNT
The Boston Celtics have been gaining momentum as of late, but are still not nearly as good as they were as few years ago. But there is a silver lining in this cloud: the emergence of the Celtics shooters. When they needed guys to step up, they would look to their bench with the shooters they have on the bench, they've been able to fight back and not fall back into obscurity.
The Hawks however have an advantage in that they have Homecourt. Josh Smith is still Josh Smith, but he still doesn't feel like the man like he used to be. It falls onto the shoulders of Joe Johnson and Marvin Williams to carry this team and get everybody involved. Normally, they play well against The Celtics, they have a poor percentage in scoring in the paint and Boston defends the 3 very well.....well, they used to anyway.
Showstopper Prediction: Boston Celtics in 6 games.
West:
(1) San Antonio Spurs vs (8) Utah Jazz) - Sunday, 1pm on ESPN
The Spurs are the #1 seed again and congratulations, but remember last season? You know, when they lost to the Memphis Grizzlies in 7 games? Well, I don't see that happening again. I don't see The Spurs making it to the Finals, but they'll get out of the first round at least. They are quietly one of the top defensive teams in the league and are the #2 ranked scoring team in the league. Tony Parker has been playing at an MVP level, Manu Ginobli is going to be at full health, and we already know how good Tim Duncan is.
The Utah Jazz only advantage is that they get a few home games. The Jazz Forrest Gumped their way into the playoffs by beating The Suns a few days ago. They're going to have to depend on guys like Devin Harris and Al Jefferson to carry the offensive load and be the equivalent to Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer when they were there.
To be honest, this is the least interesting of all the playoff series in my opinion. While The Spurs should win, I wouldn't be surprised if they lose.
Showstopper Prediction: San Antonio Spurs in 5 games.
(2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs (7) Dallas Mavericks - Saturday, 9:30pm on ESPN
The defending NBA Champions taking on the team that A LOT of people have picked to win the NBA Title. Well, The Mavericks have been very quiet during this season and rightfully so. They haven't done anything fantastic since winning the Championship. They let go of Tyson Chandler and JJ Barea, then they get Lamar Odom, and send him to the D-League mid-season. On top of that, they've been laughably inconsistent throughout the season not playing like they won the NBA Championship last season. They're #20 in PPG and #11 in total defensive stats. But against OKC this season, they lacked substance in the paint.
We already know how good OKC is. Kevin Durant is winning the scoring title, might win the MVP, and their Home Crowd is the loudest in the NBA. And if there's one thing that makes OKC dominant is that they can shoot the basketball from the perimeter due to guys like Durant, Westbrook, Harden, Fisher, Sefolosha, Cook, and list may as well continue. They don't need to depend on an inside game, but when they do, they can always go to Perkins inside. Without Chandler there for the Mavs, it'll be less of a challenge down low for The Thunder.
Showstopper Prediction: Oklahoma City Thunder in 6 games.
(3) Los Angeles Lakers vs (6) Denver Nuggets - Sunday, 3:30pm on ABC
The Lakers clearly aren't the same team they were with Phil Jackson, but have still managed to snag the #3 seed in the West. I feel like The Lakers will only go as far as Kobe Bryant takes them. Yeah, Andrew Bynum had some great games when Kobe was out, but who would you depend on more: Kobe or Bynum? Bynum and Pau down low are problems for anybody. Pau Gasol, though. has prove himself to be a little soft and you don't have to look any further than the Clippers game where Griffin dunked on him twice. And now, they lost one of the team's best defenders in Ron Artest....er Metta World Peace. But they still have Kobe and he makes everybody around him better which is what he does best. When he plays well, the whole team will follow suit.
The Nuggets compiled a great season and lead the NBA in PPG surprisingly enough. Aaron Afflalo has really played well for this team, Ty Lawson has really made that leap and become a special PG and they have great talented players in Harrington and Rudy Fernandez. But what could kill Denver is defending against Gasol and Bynum. JaVale McGee still has yet to get a grip on the offense, and who else is going to guard those two guys? They don't have Kenyon Martin anymore. Not to mention Birdman has been subsequently absent the whole season.
But let's be real, they're playing The Lakers.
Showstopper Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers in 5 games.
(4) Memphis Grizzlies vs (5) Los Angeles Clippers - Sunday, 9:30pm on TNT
THIS is the series I'm most interested in seeing for a couple reasons:
1) The Grizzlies nearly went to the Western Conference Finals last season without Rudy Gay. He's back this season and it'll be interesting to see how they play with him back in the lineup.
2) Blake Griffin's playoff debut.
The Clippers right away have an advantage down low as they lead the league in rebounding. It's truly been Lob City with Blake Griffin and Deandre Jordan catching alley-oops from Chris Paul. Speaking of CP3, he originally wanted to go to The Lakers, but he has truly put the Clippers in a complete 360 as they are now a viable threat. Why isn't CP3 mentioned in the MVP category again? I'm pretty sure right behind Steve Nash, he leads the Western Conference in Points and Assists. Who knows where this team would be without CP3?
But getting back to the subject, The Clippers have a dominant force inside and have a PG who can facilitate and create opportunities to set up shots and let's not forget the bench. They were a force with Mr. Big Shot Chauncey, but with gone for the season, they have to look to Caron Butler, Mo Williams, Marcus Camby and others. Along with Blake, a key factor is if Jordan can defend against Marc Gasol which will be a very tough test indeed.
It's no surprise that The Grizzlies have the #4 seed. They shocked everybody last season when they ousted The Spurs and nearly beat The Thunder in seven games. But they have Rudy Gay back now and it'll be interesting seeing how different their team plays. Rudy has always been one that needs the ball in certain situations, but they can't play that way or they WILL lose. They need to play balanced basketball and shoot only when they have to, share the ball and feed the big man Gasol when they have to.
Los Angeles Clippers in 7 games.
So, there you have it, my picks for the first round of the playoffs. 16 Teams. 1 NBA Champion. Let the games begin.
Feel free to Comment.
By: Gerald "Showstopper" Prophete
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