What if the NBA went to the 'bracket format' like the NCAA?

With the NBA playoffs just over a month away the matchups are starting to fall into place with copious amounts of attention being paid to who is seeded where. From the top of the standings to calculate what city the path to the finals will go through (Cleveland in the East and LA in the West) to the bottom of the table on who has the best odds to win the John Wall sweepstakes (Nets), and what are the 1-8 seeds in each conference to see if there are any good early matchups worth watching. And that’s what got me to thinking, it’s pretty much the general census of sports fans in the US that March Madness produces is the most fair, uncontroversial, no-excuses, champion we have in sports. The only downside I hear is sometimes it’s frustrating to watch players miss so many open jumpers or turn the ball over with so much on the line, etc. So what if the NBA went to a brackets format instead of dividing by conference? For you purist we can still keep the best-of-7 format and only keep the same number of playoff teams (16) but in a year where the sub .500 gets you in the East but your bags are already packed for the summer in the West, or if the power is tilted in one side or the other it may make sense. Now before you close the browser, just look at what the matchups this year would be and tell me they’re not better than what we’re going to get….
1/16 – Cleveland vs. Miami – Lebron vs. DWayde in the first round, I’m tuning into this matchup to watch two Olympians and future HOF go at it. Even if the Heat get swept out it still would be great watch them both play 48 minutes because the games actually matter.
2/15 – Lakers vs. Charlotte – See, not such an easy first round for LA, as the Bobcats have already beaten the Lakers this year. Jordan’s young crew trying to take out the defending champions and keep Kobe form getting closer and Phil form saying that Kobe is as good or better than he is.
3/14 – Magic vs. Grizzlies – Another good series with some of the best young talent the league has to offer in Gay, Mayo, and Howard. Although it may be a 4-1, the game would be tight and entertaining, and in the old format the Griz are not even in the post season.
4/13 – Dallas vs. Milwaukee – Dirk vs. Bogut in the battle of the Euro dominant centers, Kidd vs. Jennings as the crafty vet tries to take the rookie sensation to school. Not to mention the two hottest teams in basketball over the last 12 games.
5/12 – Denver vs. Portland – Talk about a great first round matchup! This would be up and down with, once again, marquis players in Brandon Roy and Carmello. This series could easily go 6 or 7 as both are dominant on their home floor. Stealing a road win would be crucial.
6/11 – Utah vs. San Antonio – It wouldn’t be Malone, Stockton, Robinson, and Duncan, but still a classic West matchup of two of the more storied franchises over the past decade with plenty of stars left to put on a show.
7/10 – Boston vs. Phoenix – oh yea, how good would this series be?? The up-n-down style of the Suns against the Celtic D? Rhondo v. Nash, KG vs. Stoudamire? Nice. Oh, and the best part? The winner would draw the 2/15 winner so everyone would get a chance to see the ‘rubber match’ between LA/Boston where that will not happen otherwise.
8/9 – Atlanta/Ok City – A battle between the NBA future best, displaying the best in young talent the league has to offer as the youngest teams in the league battle in what would certainly be a 7-game, and probably go down to who had the ball last in game 7.
See, not bad, I’m just sayin’ there would be plenty of great matchups en route to a possible Kobe/LeBron final. Something to think about if you’re having a tough time muddling through the first round. Would you like to see the format change to a one-bracket system? Let us know your thoughts here and in any of the quick links.
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Don’t just hand the West over to LA just yet

As someone responsible for posting the standings every day of the NBA season, I realize like any statistician that LA and Cleveland have held the best record in their respective conferences for literally the entire season with the exception of the 2 ½ weeks. Not since the Laker/Celtics rivalries of the 80’s has that been the case. Perhaps it’s because of that dominance that a Cleveland/Lakers, LeBron/Kobe, Best in the East vs. Best in the West has been the forgone conclusion of every prognosticator and pundit form Atlantic to Pacific. However, a couple of things to consider before you purchase your NBA Finals tickets, (oh yes I forgot they’re already sold out though the end of the playoffs in LA) well, if you could buy them. Firstly, the Laker team that hoisted a banner last year went into the playoffs riding a strong winning streak, in fact they had the second best record after the All-Star break. This team continues to struggle on the road and is just playing .500 ball outside of Staples since their last 16 (although they are tied for second best road record) and they have only 3 of their next 11 in the friendly confines of the Staples Center. Secondly, “Da Bench Mob” is not what it was last year. True LO should be the favorite for 6th man of the year, but beyond him it has been very inconsistent and the guards (Farmar, Brown) turn the ball over way too much. Additionally, they don’t put teams away like last year’s team did, missing way too many free throw that cost them valuable energy on the starter’s legs because of the added minutes. Lastly, will they have the same desire as last year now that the monkey is off Kobe’s back? Oh yes, then there is that matter of the Mavericks and Nuggets whom have BOTH beaten LA at Staples already this year. Although they sit 5 games back of LA, Dallas is the hottest team in the NBA, winners of 9 straight. The Maverick acquisition of ex-Laker Caron Butler has made an immediate impact and they are actually starting to play a little bit of D in Dallas. The Nuggets are not going to sneak up on anyone this year, as they are clearly seen as one of the top 4 teams in the league and are very tough to beat at home. It’s no secret they’re not afraid of the Lakers and in fact would relish an opportunity to extract revenge for last year. They are also within striking distance at only 5.5 back. So despite the fans, league president, advertising network, and sporting enthusiast, who wand to see a dream puppet matchup, you may want to hold off on those pre-sale tickets because there are a couple of teams that might bring some rain to California where it rarely does, and hasn’t since June of last year. Who has the best shot of knocking LA out of the Western Conference Finals? Let us know here and in any of the quick links.

Have the Cavs tinkered one too many times?

When the trade for Antwan Jamison was made most fans immediately penciled in the Cavs into the Eastern Conference Finals, but the team that had won 13 straight has now lost 3 in a row to drop their record to 43-14 in a virtual tie with LA for the best record as they are even in the loss column. The advantage the Cavs have is that they own the tie-breaker due to their sweep of the Lakers this season. Even though they’re the coaches of the previous two NBA Champions, PJ and Doc have chimed in about the Danny Ferry’s tactics (and ethics), which as a GM let’s you know you’re doing something right, as they seem bitter out of jealousy that they weren’t able to be as creative at the trade deadline. It seems to be public knowledge that LA wanted Kirk Hinrich but couldn’t put enough in the pot to lure the Bulls into a trade. The rub is if the Cavs are not able to get Z back after 30 days then they’ll have quite the void in the middle as their ‘twin towers’ were the perfect countermeasure to LA’s Gasol/Bynum tandem. After getting punked twice last year by LA the Cavs turned the table and have taken the Lakers out twice, gaining the edge in home court and sending a message in the process that if they meet in the finals, they’re going to be the favorites. So why did the Cavs mess with a formula for success? Well if the NBA is a game of matchups and runs then it’s quite clear that the Cavs have some serious matchup problems with the Orlando magic that still need to be addressed as the in addition to practically sweeping them out of the playoffs last year, the Magic have come back even stronger with the addition of Vince Carter who has found the fountain of youth in the Sunshine State. Perhaps the Cavs think their toughest work might just be getting out of the East? Meanwhile I’m still not sure what the C’s were thinking by going and getting “Kryptonite”. I mean “Rupaul” Rhondo is as quick as they come and always brings it in big games, as once again he almost messed around last week and went for a triple double on LA. But House is the guy off the bench that brings that 3-point element that just kills teams that have their second unit in (ie; LA in 08 finals). So now they have two mites that can run defenders ragged but neither can check any of the premiere point guards in the league without help-side and once you start doing that then offenses like the triangle really kill you. Cleveland never beat a healthy Boston to get to ECF and the C’s finally had their ‘big 3’ on the floor with some new complements but once again a formula that worked well is being tinkered with and I’m not sure why. So the Cavs get the crafty vet at the potential cost of a big man, the C’s get more speed but give up shooting, the Magic made their move in the pre-season, and LA “check raises” with what they think is a winning hand again. The playoffs will tell who has made the best ‘pre trade deadline’ moves, and the rest will have all summer to ponder what went wrong if they didn’t. Who do you think is in the best position to advance to the finals? Let us know here and in any of the quick links.

Last minute trades may make things more interesting but won't change the outcome

It’s only fitting that the Lakers and Celtics step into the ring for round two on the day of the NBA trade deadline. As one of the NBA’s elite 4 teams both the LA and Boston are the targets of strategist on how to counter their dominance and the balance of power. Along with Cleveland and Orlando they’re the targets of GMs throughout the league who aim to make the moves that will knock them from their perch. Marc Cuban and his band of Mavericks have been the petulant child in the West for the last 6 years and want their piece of the pie. Their latest move added Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood a scorer and another 7-footer to complement Dampier in order counter the size of the Lakers down low, but judging by their first two games since the trade it may take some time for the new team to gel. In the east the Cavs added a crafty vet in Antwan Jamison and young point guard Sebastian Telfair, but give up Z in the trade, the jury is still out on what chess moves the Cavs are trying to make here as the size of Shaq and Z is what gave the Lakers problems in their two meetings this season (both won by Cleveland) so adding the 6-9 Jamison helps against the slashing team of Orlando, which presents huge match up problems for the Cavs and upset them last year, but hinders against the size of LA if the dream matchup of Kobe/LBJ comes to fruition in the Finals. Still on the board is Amare Stoudemire who in all likelihood will be heading across the country to Miami by the time lunch is over Thursday, now that Cleveland has emptied their holster. That deal won’t get the Heat far this year but they’ll still have some serious cash in the till and if they strike gold in the 2010 free agent derby then they could be back in contention for a ring sooner than later. The team that is most happy to see him on in the sunshine state rather than the heartland is LA who really would have had a tall order to contend with King James, Stoudemire, and the 3-point shooters, as teams with that good inside-out game present problems for the slow-n-go triangle Lakers. Rest assured we haven’t heard the last of the deal making and this may be outdated by the end of business tomorrow, but in the meantime the NBA cocktail was certainly shaken up but it hasn’t stirred the end result of an LA/Cleveland final. Do you think either of the moves will change the outcome of the season? Let us know here and in any of the quick links.