Top seeds fly above the fray while trenches taking their toll

It appears the Cavs and Lakers are still on a collision course as the Heavyweights have taken few punches in the first round. Cleveland polished the aging Pistons in 4 games that were less intense than the Cavalier practices, solidifying the Pistons place as the ‘Atlanta Braves of the NBA’ with 1 title to show for 6 Easter Finals appearances. Meanwhile the Lakers stumbled in game 3 at Utah as Kobe had his worst shooting game in almost a decade but turned in the exact reciprocal performance in game 4 en route to droppin’ 38 on the Jazz in an easy Laker win and attempt to close them out in game 5 in LA. Series of the playoffs continues to be the C’s and Bulls, where two of the four games have gone into overtime and the “Ticketless” Celtics let the commanding series lead get away from them in game 4 as they could not seem to foul the Bulls before Gordon got off a 3 with :09 to play, and the C’s eventually lost in double OT. The scene shifts back to Boston in a series that has changed momentum three times in four games. If the Celtics can’t stave off the baby Bulls, given that their chances of getting back to the Finals next year diminish with another year of age tacked on the nucleus, they will go down as classic ‘one hit wonders’. Speaking of an aging nucleus, the recent strength of the dollar will not be a welcome site as all of the Spurs return to their respective countries later this week. When the Mavericks finish sending them home there will much discussion on dismantling the old Fiat. We’re still waiting to gauge in the Nuggets worthy of their number two seed as they move on to game four against Nawlins’. A gritty comeback that was more the Hornets going to sleep than Denver taking it from them, but all of the drama of those curtail game 4’s will be on display Tuesday. Thus far, the biggest disappointment has been the Magic who was another last second shot away from an eventual vacation but held on for a critical road win and even the series with Philly at 2. The absence of Nelson is really being felt and teams with good guards will five the Magic huge problems as they attempt to move forward but they have all they can handle right now in the tightest of 3-6 matchups. Due to the potency of the Cavs the forgotten series of the Hawks/Heat has be portrayed as the next doormat for the NBA’s best record, but word to the wise, if Cleveland goes too much into vacation mode as they wait for their next opponent they may get caught with their gloves down in game one, round one.

Playoff Matchups and predictions

The One’s: Despite the providing a formidable test in last year’s playoffs the Jazz will not give the Lakers quite as many problems this year. As Bynum returns as the 4 to cover Bozer, Gasol will play the 5 and come out and play Okur, leaving Ariza to play the 3 or Lamar coming off the bench where Utah has no answer. Oh, we buried the lead, Kobe will score at will. Look for the altitude to count for a game (Lakers 4-1).

The fear in the of the Pistons is their playoff experience and determination but this is not your Daddy’s Pistons. Without Mr. Big Shot, an aging Sheed, and teams figuring out the residue of a bad AI trade, the Pistons may go down as the Atlanta Braves of the NBA as Cleveland hits the playoffs clicking on all cylinders bringing a King and the leagues best home, and overall record with them. Don’t kid yourself (Cavs 4-0).




The TWOS: Ok, KG is a mammoth loss but they still have enough in the arsenal to take out the Bulls and should. The Bulls are very young and athletic, and the addition of a couple of vets will help negate the edge experience but they will fall just short in a 7-game series. Look for the ghost to raise their head’s like they did in the first two rounds last year. (C’s in 7)

Denver is playing some of the best basketball in the NBA right now, fully implementing the addition of Chauncy who has been a welcome addition that just may be the missing link to take them to the second round. On top of that George Karl is on the hot seat and needs to push to the second round or go on permanent vacation. Nawlins’ is not looking as sharp as they have in previous years but CP3 should be able to create and keep games close, but won’t steal one in Denver. (Nuggets in 6)

The THREEs: Hard to believe that the Spurs are the oldest team in the playoffs seems like just yesterday they were the team of the decade. Now they must survive without the services of Ginobli who will miss the rest of the playoffs. Dallas has also come a long way from battling just to make the filed of 16 to coming in as a number six seed. The Mavericks are winners of 7 of their last 10, Dirk shooting better than 55% and averaging 30pts over that span. Dallas is playing its best basketball of the season and with the caveat that they DON’T go to a game 7 in San Antonio, Cuban’s got his team focused and we like the Mavs in only upset in the West. (Mavs in 6)

Orlando needs to hold serve in the first two games because Philly is a tough team to take out at home because of their ‘even athleticism’ where they are more prone to switch picks rather than fight through them. They still have no answer for Superman in the middle and the Magic seem to made the right acquisitions to help negate the loss of Nelson and are also playing their best ball at the right time. (Magic in 6)

The FOURS: The best series of the first round by far should be the Rockets and Blazers. Portland is the youngest team in the field of 16 and go ten deep in the rotation. Moreover they have the defensive stoppers, in Battier and Artest, to slow down Brandon Roy. Houston of course has the great wall of China, but Portland can counter with Prizbilla and Old Man Oden off the bench, but between the two of them they don’t equal Yao. Unfortunately this series may have already been decided when Houston dropped the last game of the season at Dallas and lost home court. How well will the young Blazer bench adapt to the added intensity of the playoffs? It’s a tough one but our pick are the (Blazers in 7).

We don’t know which way to go with the Hawks and the Heat. If D-Wade has his way with the slower ATL guards then this could be over in 5, but Wade has had some of his worst games against the Hawks. Atlanta has the confidence after representing well last year in pushing the Celtics to 7 games and the knowledge they can get back. It may not be enough as the Heat rooks (MB and Super Mario) have shortened the learning curve. (We like the Heat in 7)

It took 82 games but the playoff picture is finally set (without Garnett)

KG out for at least the first round and probably more
Some of the first signs of an injury are more serious than first thought and that an athlete will return closer to the “8” when they say “6-8 weeks” is when it keeps getting pushed back. In the case of KG it was first a week, then ‘only play him a few minutes in this game to get him acclimated’, then ‘no need to play him now, let rest for the playoffs’ etc. etc. now Doc Rivers says “he looked better last week then today”. In short, KG will not be back for the first series or at all during this year’s playoffs and the C’s will have to try and repeat without him. After Boston beat up on the ‘soft belly’ of the Lakers, who lost the services of Andrew Bynum in last year’s NBA finals, they’re going to walk a mile in their sneakers, and it won’t be easy to win on the road in the East. On top of that GM Danny Ainge suffered a mild heart attack and will not be able to attend the first couple of first round games. The C’s weren’t going to beat the Cavs with or without KG, but now they would do well to win their second round series, probably the Magic. At this point last year the strategy of trading ‘the future for the present’ looked like a great idea, now it may be time to pay the piper.


2009 Playoff Parings

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(1) Cleveland (66-16)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(8) Detroit (39-43)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Cavaliers lead 3-1
Nov. 19: at Pistons 96, Cavaliers 89
Feb. 1: Cavaliers 90 at Pistons 80
Feb. 22: at Cavaliers 99, Pistons 78
Mar. 31: at Cavaliers 79, Pistons 73
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(1) Los Angeles (65-17)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(8) Utah (48-34)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Lakers lead 2-1
Jan. 2: at Lakers 113, Jazz 100
Feb. 11: at Jazz 113, Lakers 109
Apr. 14: at Lakers 125, Jazz 112
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(2) Boston (62-20)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(7) Chicago (41-41)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Celtics lead 2-1
Oct. 31: at Celtics 96, Bulls 80
Dec. 19: at Celtics 126, Bulls 108
Mar. 17: at Bulls 127, Celtics 121

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(2) Denver (54-28)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(7) New Orleans (49-33)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Tied 2-2
Nov. 27: Hornets 105 at Nuggets 101
Jan. 3: at Nuggets 105, Hornets 100
Jan. 28: at Hornets 94, Nuggets 81
Mar. 25: Nuggets 101 at Hornets 88

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(3) Orlando (59-23)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(6) Philadelphia (41-41)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Magic lead 3-0
Nov. 6: at Magic 98, 76ers 88
Nov. 26: Magic 96 at 76ers 94
Feb. 28: Magic 106 at 76ers 100

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(3) San Antonio (54-28)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(6) Dallas (50-32)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Tied 2-2
Nov. 4: Mavericks 98 at Spurs 81
Dec. 9: Spurs 133 at Mavericks 126 (OT)
Feb. 24: at Spurs 93, Mavericks 76
Mar. 4: at Mavericks 107, Spurs 102

*************************************

(4) Atlanta (47-35)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(5) Miami (43-39)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Hawks lead 3-1
Dec. 12: Hawks 87 at Heat 73
Jan. 26: at Heat 95, Hawks 79
Feb. 27: at Hawks 91, Heat 83
Apr. 14: at Hawks 81, Heat 79

*************************************
(4) Portland (54-28)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0
(5) Houston (53-29)
Games remaining: 0 (0 Home, 0 Away)
vs. +.500: 0 vs. Div: 0

REGULAR SEASON SERIES
Rockets lead 2-1
Nov. 6: at Trail Blazers 101, Rockets 99 (OT)
Feb. 24: at Rockets 98, Trail Blazers 94
Apr. 5: at Rockets 102, Trail Blazers 88

If the playoffs started tody…..

Well, now it appears HOURLY updates will be necessary to gauge the NBA playoff picture, but what has been confirmed in the last couple of days is that the road to the promised land will go through Cleveland as the Lakers’ lost at Portland has handed it to the Wine & Gold. So the one seeds are in stone, but the rest is anyone’s guess. Cuban and the boys from Dallas have avoided first round automatic exit by going 7-3 in their last 10, thus moving up to the sixth seed and a date with Houston thus avoiding Board Walk and Park Place of the West(LA, Denver) with a good chance to advance to the next round. The only team to play LA even (2-2) has been Portland, where it is well documented that the Lakers haven’t won in five years, so the Blazers gotta figure if they can steal one in LA, then the door is wide open. In the East the Magic are on ‘upset watch’ as Philly tries to hold on to the sixth-seed. Although they’ve swept them, the Sixers are playing some of the best ball in the East and all three games were competitive. The East has a Board Walk & Park Place of their own with Cleveland and Boston, and Chi Town is only a half game back of Philly with one game on the road and one at home but will need the Sixers to stumble. Spots six thru eight could still shuffle the deck, but view the current playoff matchups here, and in the NBA chat rooms.

Cavs look unbeatable while the Lakers look ripe for the upset

As they come to the tape the Cleveland Cavaliers are peaking at the right time while the Lakers are ‘Gimpy’ at best, coming to the end of their seven-game road trip where they have lost their last two, and are behind the Cavs by 3 games for the best record in the NBA with eight to play. In short, the road to hanging a banner will go through the ‘Q’ where only one team has won all year. King James & Co. have won 13 straight, and will win at least 65 games, and have the best record (29-4) against the West. After having a year to gel with his additions, the Cavs are clicking on all cylinders but their questions may be, how do they play when they have the ‘bulls eye’ on their back for the first time? The perpetual underdog is now the team to beat and must bring it every night. Are they ready for this? On the flip side you have the team that has participated in half of all of the NBA finals matchups, the Lakers who seem to be fading, as they are not getting good play from the ‘Bench Mob’ that was their claim to fame for most of the year but now are letting big leads get away and not allowing the starters to get enough rest as they must be brought into save the day, which may come back and haunt LA as the second season wears on. As good as Gasol has grown into the Triangle Offense, they must have a HEALTHY Andrew Bynum to come back if they hope to have a shot at redemption, but never underestimate the Moomba or the fact that the one team that the Cavs have yet to beat are the kings of the Western front. Are the Cavs getting enough respect or too much for a team that has not won anything? Let us know here and in the NBA team pages. Also, check the current NBA betting lines in the Players Club.