NBA ROCK

Yeah, I know - where’ve you been, Waleed?

 

The reality of these NBA playoffs is that they started the 2nd round before the end of the 1st round and I simply didn’t anticipate it. Anyways, so far the teams we knew would win, have and it didn’t matter that some of them had it easy getting to the next round and others had to bite tooth and nail to get there. In the end, and the only mentality allowed, is that they’re there… and it’s time to get back to work.

 

That means me, too.

 

Moving on. Round 2. Fight.

 

 

Eastern Conference

1 Boston Celtics vs. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers

There’s no question that the Celtics ought to be fortunate for their first round lessons. On one hand, they were clearly the best team in the East this season and in a lot of ways, the best team in the entire league, as well. But I, like everybody else, overlooked their weaknesses and the fact they didn’t win a single game away from Boston is a cause for concern because while the Hawks played their hearts out and are a very talented young team, the Cavs are considerably tougher and unlike the Hawks, the Cavs have a guy like Lebron… who can murder the Celtics single handedly. The Green Machine will have to do a much better job on the road if they hope to win this series because, again, unlike the Hawks, the Cavs can win on the road and obviously are gonna have to do that at least once to move on. I still don’t really like Lebron’s supporting cast so much but Wally showed some great shooting the other day and Gibson looks to have gotten back on track, Ben Wallace has quietly had a solid defensive postseason and you just never know with a team that was just representing the Eastern Conference a year ago. Still, I think the Celtics have learned an important lesson from the Hawks… by overlooking the Hawks, they didn’t notice that every team in the NBA can win on any given night if they get hot and the Cavs certainly can do that; look for the Celtics to shore up their defensive holes on the road and stay strong in the face of the Cleveland crowd cheering their team on. I like the Cavs a lot and I think Lebron is the best player not name Kobe in the world but it may not be enough if the Celtics stay focused… if the Celtics fumble their composure, the Cavs will make them pay in ways the Hawks could not.

This one’s going the distance

Celtics in 7

 

 

2 Detroit Pistons vs. 3 Orlando Magic

Now that was a scare for all of about two games when the Pistons, as usual, played flat, uninspired, sloppy basketball out of arrogance, let Philly into the picture, gave them false hope and then crushed them relentlessly for the final two games to leave no doubt: the 2 seed was moving on. The problem with Detroit will always be the potential for this sort of thing to happen… sure they’re seasoned playoff veterans and a core group that has been together through some memorable playoff runs but you can’t just turn it on and off and while it worked against Philly, it will not work against Orlando and certainly not against whomever they see moving forward assuming they do… move forward. In their way will be an Orlando Magic team that is a lot more dangerous now that they’ve accumulated the confidence of getting past Toronto in the first round and getting a decent amount of rest. Dwight Howard is drawing comparisons to Wilt and young Shaq and that can’t be a good thing for the Pistons who don’t score as much as Orlando nor do they Rebound the ball as well as Orlando. Howard alone averages something like 18 boards a game in the playoffs right now and Rasheed Wallace currently leads the Pistons with 6 and a half a game.The only two factors going against Orlando, obviously, will be their lack of playoff experience and their mediocore defense…. Something Detroit is dominant in. The Magic’s big three, Howard, Turkoglu (most improved player of the year), Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson are all very good players and will all have to be so against the Piston core of Billups, Rip Hamilton, Wallace and Tayshaun Prince.

 

The bottom line will be playoff grit. The Magic can beat anybody in the East on any given night… they certainly have the talent to do so. However, the Pistons have been here many times, before. The real question is whether that cocky, assumptive play sneaks back into the Pistons and they allow the Magic do take advantage. If the Pistons stay on point, the Magic will be pressed to overcome. Chauncey Billups, as the point guard and the court general, needs to stay hungry and stay sharp (and he’s the one most guilty of getting complacent) in order for the Pistons to move on. Otherwise the defense, the experience and the skill will be enough.

Pistons outright swept the Magic in 4 last postseason and while I think the Magic will get at least one game this year, they will not be moving on. I like the Magic, don’t get me wrong… I think that the combination of Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu is a fine crew but the Pistons seem to have finally flipped the switch (hahah they swear there isn’t one) and are finally playing Piston Basketball. What we saw in Game 1 is what we should expect from here on out… some of these games will be tight but Detroit’s Defense is always going to have the final word when all is said and done. It isn’t going to be a sweep like last year’s series but this one won’t go past 6.

Pistons in 6

 

Western Conference

1 Los Angeles Lakers vs. 4 Utah Jazz

Well, I’ve never really been a Laker fan. I liked the Lakers when I was young because I thought the world of Magic Johnson and my Dad was a huge Kareem Abdul Jabbar fan but I was one of those BEAT LA types during the Bulls rise to power (I loved one MJ more than the other, though haha) and then eventually again during the Kings’ failed run at a championship. However, it is exceedingly difficult as a denizen of southern California and a fan of good NBA basketball to ignore the fact that the Lakers are a great team. Plus, I’m a Warriors fan and I like to keep my loyalties, at least, within the state of California… and now, apparently Kobe Bryant is about to win his first MVP award (it really is about time…). The Lakers already jumped on the Jazz, 1-love, and it’s only going to get worse for Utah who, while a very solid and talented Sloan-coached team, can not and probably will not contend with the Lakers. Kobe dropped 24 in the 1^st half to push the Jazz into the hardwood and then actually took his foot off the gas pedal and fed his team in the 2^nd half en route to a solid, comfortable 11 point victory. I say that there’ll be more of the same to come. The maddening part of this for the Jazz will be how relentless the Lakers are going to be on the scoring end… even if you were to put somebody on Kobe, you’re leaving a bunch of pretty decent players open to kill you. The problem for Utah is that they don’t have a guy for Kobe… The Nuggets hoped Kenyon Martin could be the guy and that didn’t prove to do anything and now the Jazz, despite a great defensive team overall, can’t hope that Kirilenko or Brewer or Williams can effectively contain the explosive and saavy Kobe. On the other end of the court, the pick n roll that Utah abused Houston with is borderline punchless against Phil Jackson. The one area where Utah will abuse the Lakers is on the glass where the Jazz are a better rebounding team as seen when Mehmet Okur nearly nabbed 20 boards to go with his 21 points on Sunday. The Jazz, between Okur, Kirilenko and Boozer, can grab enough offensive rebounds to get plenty of second chance points. That is ultimately where the Jazz can turn the tide on the Lakers but that is, still, a slim chance. Don’t mean to sound like I’m gushing on the Lakers because the Jazz are still a great team and are going to still give the Lakers some trouble… if they can turn the tide and keep Kobe in check (not likely), they can ride momentum into the next round.

However, it is pretty unlikely…

Lakers in 6

 

2 New Orleans Hornets vs. 3 San Antonio Spurs

Cp3 vs. Tony Parker. That, there, will be the matchup to watch. The Hornets handled the Mavs with great ease, for the most part, as a result of Chris Paul’s amazing play in the 1^st round. In fact, Cp3 put up some pretty gaudy stats and set some nutty records in putting up 30 points and 15 assists in both of his FIRST playoff games of his career. When the Mavs won a game, they did so because they contained him and he performed poorly. Then he came back in the clincher and spent two halves running a clinic on the terribly run Mavericks (basketball is won a the point… trading Devin Harris for Jason Kidd was a horrible mistake at this point) by distributing the ball well in the 1^st half getting everybody else involved and then going off in the 2^nd half en route to a monster stat line. On the flipside of the matchup, you’ve got Tony Parker who is as lightning quick and just as capable of taking his Team for a ride. However, we’re talking about two completely different types of point guards. For one, Tony Parker does not pass first while Cp3 is a more traditional playmaker. Cp3’s jumpshot is going to cause problems for Tony Parker but Parker’s shot won’t scare cp3 at all. While Parker has Duncan in the post, Cp3 has a couple of options in David West and Tyson Chandler giving an inside edge to the Hornets on the scoring end. On the defensive end, Kurt Thomas is a great low post defender and the stable of big men they got down there in San Antonio with Oberto and Elson and Horry should be enough to consistently throw big bodies at the big Hornets. The Hornets handled the Mavs and the Spurs handled the Suns. The Suns series kinda threw me off the same way that it threw a lot of others off. We were expecting that Shaq trade to give the Suns more inside grit and more options in lineup tinkering but what it accomplished instead was that it allowed a pick n roll system like San Antonio’s to expose Nash for the lackluster defender that he is and Shaq for the old, 360 pound man that he is. This will not work against the Hornets and coach pop knows that, of course. The Suns are a disaster and a team that is headed for some serious offseason changes… the trade was clearing a last ditch effort to save a franchise that has been good but not good enough for the past half a decade. The hornets are not that team. They were, for most of the season, the top team in the West and throw everybody from Paul to West to Peja to Pargo to Bonzi at you and are well coached by Byron Scott and play solid basketball. This will be a great series and I am telling you right now…

 

This one is going to the Hornets. The turnaround in New Orleans is clearly as a result of CP3’s great play but this is the team to beat in the West. The Next round will be Lakers and Hornets and will be fun as hell to watch.The Hornets really are the team to beat in this series and unless Tim Duncan gets untracked and Tony Parker manages to find ways to keep up with CP3, the Hornets behind the strong play of Paul, West, and Peja will move on to face the Lakers in the next round.

Hornets in 6

This entry was posted on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 7:47 pm and is filed under Playoffs 2008. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, if you wish to do so.