NBA Playoffs Predictions

In My Humble Opinion
1

The NBA Playoffs – the best damn sports show period. Well… the Western Conference anyway. The Leastern doesn’t really count now, does it?

It’s no secret that I’m a huge Mavericks fan. They are a fun team to watch, and recently finished their best regular season ever. But the playoffs are a different picture altogether. The first round is always great, if for no other reason than the sheer number of games played in a short time, and this year the format is expanded to 7 games. Everyone gives everything they’ve got all night, and the only real downside is the way the game slows down and becomes more physical. Regardless, it is gonna be exciting, though it’s too bad Jordan didn’t make it for that added media circus touch the East could use.

Here’s my predictions for the playoffs, so if you are interested in making money, bet on the exact opposite :smiley:

1st Round

#1 San Antonio Spurs / #8 Phoenix Suns

SA 4-1. The Spurs are hot at the right time, and can bring it with anybody in the league. Phoenix has played them well, but this is the playoffs. Tim Duncan is one of the best players in the game, and Tony Parker is going to be awesome when he grows up. Gino is as explosive as dynamite, yet he may find things a bit tighter in the 2nd season. If the Mavs get knocked out, I’ll be pulling for the Spurs.

#2 Sacramento Kings / #7 Utah Jazz

SAC 4-2. Karl Stockton might play till he’s 50, and Sloan ought to win Coach of the Year. However, Sacramento is just too good to lose this series. Peja has the sweetest outside shot, and I think Christie is underrated as a combination of a tough defender and a dead-eye shooter. They have skill at every position, and it just might be their year.

#3 Dallas Mavs / #6 Portland Jailblazers

MAVS 4-3 Portland has spanked the Mavs once this year and once last year, but I don’t think they can do it consistently enough over 7 games. Pippen is really the X-factor, and if he is completely healthy, then Portland might squeek by. Conversely, if Finley can recapture his form, then the Mavs have the edge. But they have to get something out of the inside game from Raef and Shawn. Not too much, but they can’t disappear like they have from time to time during the season. Nowitzki is the offensive heart of the team, but I want Nash taking any last-second shots.

#4 Minnesota Timberwolves / #5 Los Angeles Fakers

LA 4-2. The Lakers have played well since the All-Star break, and will continue doing so in the playoffs. Shaq was a lot more human when his toe was hurting and he was out of shape, but he is rolling now. He still gets away with too much physical play, but he also takes a pounding. Kevin Garnett should be the MVP, cause you can’t keep giving it to Shaq, especially when he obviously didn’t really care about the regular season.

2nd Round

San Antonio vs. LA
SA 4-3. The Spurs swept the Lakers this year, but that won’t mean much when these two tee it up. If The Admiral can suck it up for one final heroic series, the Lakers will finally go down. Thank goodness… I’m tired of them winning it. The NBA will be more interesting if the Lakers actually lose and inject some sorely missing drama and rivalry.

Dallas vs. Sac
SAC 4-3. Dallas has the homecourt advantage, even though they hold the 3 seed, due to a better record. It won’t matter in the end, but it should make for another exciting 2nd round matchup similar to last year. Lots of skill on display on both teams, but the Kings are slightly better and more experienced. A couple of lucky bounces or bad calls could swing this series the other way, but those things usually even out over the course of 7 games.

Finals

San Antonio vs. Sac
SAC 4-3. Thought I’ll be rooting for the nearby Spurs, I can’t shake the feeling that it will be the King’s year. I think the Spurs will be drained from their epic struggle with the Lakers, and Sac won’t be nearly as tired after their less grinding games with the Mavs. Sac is deeper, and it should pay dividends in the Finals. Could be a clash of conflicting styles, and the winner will be the one successful at playing to their strengths, that being uptempo for Sac, while a more halfcourt brand of ball for the Spurs. The NBA will hate the fact both are small market clubs, but I couldn’t give a damn. I’ll only be sad when it’s over, no matter who won.

Eastern Playoffs

Who cares?!! They’re gonna get stomped by the winner from the West. Nevertheless, I’ll be pulling for the Pistons, only because of Corliss, and if the Mavs could somehow find their way into the finals, they would smoke Detroit.

There you have it. Make your own predictions if you are brave enough, and bonus points if you even bother with the East. The NBA should seed both conferences together to setup a better NBA Finals, and one more thing … GO MAVS !!!

2

lakers…nuff said

3

I predict the referees’ blown calls will cause me to turn off the television in disgust about the 3rd playoff game I watch

Go Spurs

4

The Lakers will take it again and it will be easier than everyone expects. The Kings will choke before they even get to the Lakers.

Haj

5

The Kings are going to either

a- Crush the Lakers so hard it’s goign to leave everyone stunned,

or

b- Fight a hard match, and loose at the last moment. Or win. I don’t know, a lot of it depends on ref calls, as usual.

The Kings have been working on getting free throws down, something that cost them dearly last year.

And there is such a deep need to seriously crush the Lakers… folks that aren’t privy to it can’t possibly understand how bad this is.

6

I’m going with Sac (hopefully) or SA out of the west.
I’ll go with Indy out of the east.

Whatever happens happens, as long as the Lakers die, I’ll be celebrating in the streets.

7

Tristan, I grew up watching the Celtics beat my Lakers year after year after year so I know how you feel…but you better get used to it…Weber gags at the critcal moment while Kobe wants the ball in his hands

Haj, I’d meet you on State street somewhere to watch the lakers crush the queens but I have to stay anonymous. Paranoia and all that.

8

The first round is best of 5.

The Spurs come out of the West.

The East politely declines to show up to the “Finals”.

9

As long as he doesn’t call a timeout we’ll be fine.

Kobe is a great player, but he’s overrated. Replace him with Iverson, TMac, etc and they would be where still be 3 times champs. Now take Shaq away, and the Lakers aren’t that much better then the teams Iverson and TMac are on now, a bunch of mediocre role players with a superstar.

10

If you replaced Kobe with Iverson, the Lakers would implode because Iverson is a selfish, self-centered me first I want to ake 80 shots a game gangsta who would never fit in the Lakers triangle offense.

How is Kobe overrated?

He has 3 more rings then Iverson or MacGrady, doesn’t he?

He’s a better defensive player then either of them, and his offensive numbers are better.

The Lakers will 4-peat.

11

Sorry Dumbguy, but you are being a Dumb Guy :smiley: The first round used to be a 5 game series, but it was changed this year to a best of 7. More TV money, of course.

About the Kobe discussion, I agree that he is a great player, but I think it was obvious from the way the Lakers started the season who is MVP on that team. You couldn’t replace Kobe with Iverson, because they play completely different positions, but TMac or even Finley would work.

I honestly think it would be a bad thing for the NBA if the Laker’s win again. Besides the fact that it negates any rivalry, but I also think it will dampen fan enthusiasm for the regular season, since Shaq obviously doesn’t care about it. Season ticket sales will be affected, as will regular season TV ratings. If the Lakers don’t play hard during the regular season, and they keep winning the playoffs, why bother tuning in till then?

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So not only do we live in the same city, we are about the same age. You’re less anonymous than you were 'cause you just gave up where you live. That’s where it started with me…

Actually, that’s where it ended with me too. I choose to stay in stealth mode as well. I don’t blame you a bit. We can root together in spirit.

Haj

13

Detroit will win it all if Wallace is back in full force.

Dallas will win it if he’s not.

14

Mahaloth, I hope you are right and it is a Dallas / Detroit final. Or even Dallas / Boston. We always dominate those two teams, because they cannot match up with Dirk. Hell, for that matter, Dallas would beat anyone from the East, with their only problem team being the Pacers. But as much as I would love it to happen, objectively I have to conclude that Dallas coming out of the West is a pipe dream. If the refs keep calling flagrant fouls like they have so far today, that might help Dallas by keeping the play less physical. However, I believe Dallas is really 2 years and maybe 1 strong 4/5 position player away from winning it all.

But ya never know… I didn’t think Houston could do it in 95, but *damn * it was sweet when they did.

15

I know what you mean. I really like Dallas and Detroit, since they play as a team.

I doubt Detroit will really win it, though they may next year. As long as Memphis doesn’t have the number one pick, we get their pick through a trade. We may get Carmello or Lebron, depending on who goes first.

If we get the, we could get the added offense we need to win it all.

16

The champion will be - just like every year - whickever team the NBA directs the referees to allow to win.

I’m sorry, but that Lakers-Kings series was utterly disgraceful.

17

Wow, Mahaloth, so you guys will get Carmello if Memphis gets the #2 pick? He might be a very good NBA player in a couple of years. That could really help your team.

Good luck against TMac. He’s awesome but Detroit should win the series.

RickJay, never attribute to conspiracy what can be explained by incompetence.

18

Iverson shot more times than Kobe this year by a whopping sixteen shots over 82 games, and he played more minutes than Kobe by 84 minutes. In other words, in terms of shots per 48 minutes, we have- Kobe 27.15, #2 in the NBA; and Iverson 26.72, #3 in the NBA. In other words, Kobe shoots more than Iverson. So I don’t get the “I want to take 80 shots” comment, not to mention the “gangsta” stuff. Kobe is the self-titled “Thug Poet,” isn’t he? How is that even relevant to a basketball discussion, anyway? As far as self-centered, have you ever seen or heard Kobe talk? I lived in Philly while Kobe was going to school in the suburbs outside of town, I saw him play, I met him (and was dunked on by him) at a high school game- trust me, while it can’t be quantified, he’s an egomaniac. Look up some Kobe quotes and look up some Iverson quotes- at the very least, the two are equally prideful.

There is the matter of a Shaquille O’Neal, my friend. You want to talk hardware, let’s talk MVP awards. And how’d the Lakers fare this year while Shaq was out with his foot injury? Worse than the Sixers did.

None of them are spectacular defenders, in my opinion, but Iverson does cause some havoc by disrupting passing lanes. Regardless, I’ll concede both of these points- I think Kobe’s the best all around player in the league, absolutely. The main point that I think you missed is that it’s much more difficult to be a T-Mac or an Iverson and be counted on to produce on a nightly basis just to keep your team above water and in the playoffs than it is to be Kobe, perform a few spectacular moves, and post numbers, yet all the while depend on the big fella to draw the defense and keep them honest. As World Eater said before, Kobe and the Lakers, without Shaq, ARE a pretty mediocre team with a bonafide star. To put Kobe’s numbers and winning percentage on par with some of the other stars mentioned is pretty unfair to the other guys, knowing as we do that Kobe has a force on his team that is unmatched by anyone else in the league. Don’t you think the Sixers, who beat the Lakers in game one of the 2001 Finals, could have seriously challenged the Lakers if they had Tim Duncan, or Garnett, or Webber? A superstar on a team with no other superstars cannot be compared to a superstar playing with another superstar.

I went on way too long about this, and I clearly need a more important cause to champion, but here’s the bottom line: I think the Lakers will four-peat, but don’t imply that it’s because Kobe’s somehow less selfish than guys who offend your tastes. Not when you know it’s because they’ve got a dominant post presence and a guy with a superb floor game.

Oh, I don’t want to ignore the OP- I like the Lakers to sweep the (Sixers, Nets, Pacers, pick one.) When push comes to shove, the Lakers have the mindset of the champions, and they get the treatment of champions. To beat them, you’ve got to be clearly superior and thump’em, or they’ll get the breaks/calls. That’s my opinion.

19

Yeah, right. It was a conspiracy. :rolleyes:

If Kobe doesn’t get food poisoning, the series doesn’t even get to a Game 6 or 7. The Lakers were the better team.

Haj

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By the way, did anybody see that Spurs - Suns game today? Man, I’m pulling for the Spurs, but those banked-in 3-pointers were freakin’ awesome!

good game, Dirk!