Written By: Seth Edwin Thompson
Here we are, the time of the year that people actually start to care about the NBA again. It’s not that people don’t care about the NBA all season, it’s just that in what can be viewed as 2,460 games of mediocrity, now is the time where people actually care and players play like they care about it again. The defenses tighten up, the players play harder, and my favorite part; teams will actually try to stick to a strategy to win a series.
Here we are, the time of the year that people actually start to care about the NBA again. It’s not that people don’t care about the NBA all season, it’s just that in what can be viewed as 2,460 games of mediocrity, now is the time where people actually care and players play like they care about it again. The defenses tighten up, the players play harder, and my favorite part; teams will actually try to stick to a strategy to win a series.
I’ll start in the East where I see the very strong chance of a (1) Chicago vs. (2) Miami matchup in the Eastern Conference Finals. Some people may question the ability of the Bulls to make a deep playoff run as they are inexperienced, but I feel that the combination of (soon-to-be-named-MVP) Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and Carlos Boozer are the best combination of three players in the East. Yes, I said it. Yes, I mean that. The three of them work a lot better together than the Miami big 3, and have a lot better chance to go farther than Boston’s “fossil 3.” Could Miami’s big 3 show up and finally play together well enough to completely take over the playoffs and make this article look completely stupid? Yes. But if after 82 games they’re still not playing well enough together to take down the East’s 1st spot, I feel as though this is just not their year.
My biggest question mark in the East goes to the Boston Celtics. My first question about them is if they’ll even make it out of the first round. The reason I even pose this question is the fact that I feel that Amar’e will have to work against KG down low, but whenever KG is out of the game, I see the miss match of Amar’e vs. Kendrick Perkins Glen Davis being a crucial point in the series. My other main question about the C’s is pertaining to Shaq. While using Shaq as the main center in Boston may have seemed like a great idea when the Perkins deal went down, you now have to look at the fact that over the last 35 games of the season, Shaq has seen 5 minutes and 29 seconds of game time action. Not exactly the type of game ready conditioning I want my big man seeing down the stretch run.
As we flip coasts and head to the Western Conference, I see the West being very wide open this year. While the two-time defending NBA champion LA Lakers come in as the two seed, I see Kobe and Phil’s quest for their second three-peat in serious trouble. While they may not get much of a challenge in the first round against the David West-less New Orleans Hornets, round two more than likely against the Mavericks may be the end of the road for the boys of Tinsel town. My pick for the WCF comes down to Oklahoma City and Dallas.
For the NBA Finals this year I see it being a very young matchup and a set of teams that may very well go on and be competing with each other for a while now, the Chicago Bulls and the Oklahoma City Thunder. I feel that Derrick Rose vs. Russell Westbrook at the point guard position will be an epic battle that could later go on to bring back the nostalgia of the Isaiah Thomas vs. Magic Johnson.
NBA Finals Champion:
For the first time without Michael Jeffrey Jordan in the lineup, I see the Chicago Bulls “cutting down the nets” at the end of the postseason. While it would be a great series with the Thunder, I see the Bulls locking up the title in 6 games.
For the first time without Michael Jeffrey Jordan in the lineup, I see the Chicago Bulls “cutting down the nets” at the end of the postseason. While it would be a great series with the Thunder, I see the Bulls locking up the title in 6 games.
NBA Finals MVP:
Derrick Rose- This isn’t a hard choice really, but if the Bulls do go as far as I say they will, it’s going to be because of one man and one man only, Derrick Rose. Between his scoring, passing, and defensive abilities, Rose is very much becoming the best PG in the league, (sorry Rondo fans), but Rose has something that Rondo hasn’t been able to prove he has yet, a jump shot. You can’t tell me the best PG in the league can be guarded from the free throw line because he is absolutely no threat to shoot from downtown. With Rose’s handle and ability to get to the rim, you must guard him from half court and stay up on him; Rondo just doesn’t have that scoring prowess yet.
Derrick Rose- This isn’t a hard choice really, but if the Bulls do go as far as I say they will, it’s going to be because of one man and one man only, Derrick Rose. Between his scoring, passing, and defensive abilities, Rose is very much becoming the best PG in the league, (sorry Rondo fans), but Rose has something that Rondo hasn’t been able to prove he has yet, a jump shot. You can’t tell me the best PG in the league can be guarded from the free throw line because he is absolutely no threat to shoot from downtown. With Rose’s handle and ability to get to the rim, you must guard him from half court and stay up on him; Rondo just doesn’t have that scoring prowess yet.
Biggest Disappointment:
The Boston Celtics are going to be the disappointment in this year’s playoffs. The East 3 seed will struggle with the Knicks and will fall to the Knickerbockers in 6.
The Boston Celtics are going to be the disappointment in this year’s playoffs. The East 3 seed will struggle with the Knicks and will fall to the Knickerbockers in 6.
Most likely to shake things up:
The Los Angeles Lakers get this distinction, while I don’t have them picked to get out of the West Semi-Finals, with Kobe’s will power and their strong supporting cast, they have the best chance to take a run at the Western title outside of the Mavericks and Thunder.
The Los Angeles Lakers get this distinction, while I don’t have them picked to get out of the West Semi-Finals, with Kobe’s will power and their strong supporting cast, they have the best chance to take a run at the Western title outside of the Mavericks and Thunder.
I hope to see this year’s NBA playoffs live up to all the hype that has surrounded them in past years, and I truly feel that they won’t. With so many star studded line ups and superstars in this years playoffs, it really is a wide open race to the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.
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