Larry O'Brien Trophy
And so we've just seen the first full weekend of the NBA playoffs 2005 completed. 16 teams, two conferences, a bevy of interesting match-ups, and a lingering conspiracy against the NBA.
Out East, the Miami Heat, Detroit Pistons, Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls figure to win their first round series, with the Heat and Pistons having a relatively easier time against the New Jersey Nets and the Philadelphia 76'ers respectively than the Celtics against the Indiana Pacers or the Bulls against the Washington Wizards. And just from observing the Heat and Pistons, right now, thats an entertaining match-up thats also a toss-up. If they meet in the Eastern Conference Finals as they are supposed to, that should provide for some hard-hitting heavy-weight fireworks. And I am sure Shaquille O'Neal is motivated against these guys after what they did to his Los Angeles L(F)akers in last summers NBA Finals.
Out West, the Phoenix Suns managed to stave off the Memphis Grizzlies and the Sacramento Kings lost by just five to the Seattle SuperSonics, even after the Kings guard Mike Bibby kept offering the Sonics the game as a gift with his horrendous shooting performance (1-for-16). But the two upsets so far in the early goings of the first-round series happened to the San Antonio Spurs and the Dallas Mavericks. Supposed favorites to meet up in the Western Conference finals, they have a lot of work to do to even get out of the first round. Thanks to the terrible shooting by the Spurs, the Denver Nuggets stole game 1 while the Houston Rockets took one from the Mavericks again thanks to terrible shooting by the Mavs. All said, I think San Antonio will be the only higher seed to fall in the first round, leaving the door open for Phoenix to drive onto the NBA finals. As it stands, I expect Phoenix to be facing off against either the Denver Nuggets or the Seattle SuperSonics in the Western Conference finals.
Look for a Phoenix Suns vs. Detroit Pistons finals, with Phoenix taking the crown.
* If San Antonio manages to get by Denver in the first round, all bets on the Phoenix Suns are off. The Spurs are one team that the Suns do not want to face.
** All the above predictions are made after just one game of each of the first round series. And all these predictions are in blatant violation of the first rule of NBA play-off predictions.
*** That first rule is, there are really no rules to predict the outcomes of series after just one game.
Enjoy the playoffs. Unlike the NFL with its one-game knock-out, the NBA playoffs ensure that almost always, the better team advances. So, if you are not in favor of cinderallas, and would rather see grit and true talent surface, watch these NBA playoffs.
3 comments:
Things are finally getting interesting. My personal take: Tim Duncan is not in the best of health and that showed in Game 1. If this continues, Denver is going to romp home in Round 1. I wont count out Mavs as yet but the Rockets will mount a good challenge for them. I am expecting Kings to make it after some hiccups and the Suns are probably going to be the easiest to predict as Round 1 winner. Here in the East, Miami and Detroit will make it just fine and Bulls and Celtics will have some problems before making it to the next round. Beyond that point, Ill stay away from kaing guesses and wait for things to unfold. :)
Bad dreams my friend.!!
It is going to be the HEAT.!!
Go Miami.!!!!
It aint dreaming Narayanan, it is simple arithmetic. Detroit has more quality players than Miami does, and thats going to be the difference.
Miami is Shaq, Wade, and a bunch of really no-bodies. To counter Shaq, Detroit has the two Wallaces. To counter Wade, they can throw Rip Hamilton and/or Carlos Arroyo. That takes away the primary weapons for Miami and I am sure the defensive prowess of Detroit is enough to take care of the other players.
Remember, I am no fan of Detroit coach Larry Brown and would wish that his team loses. But the simple fact remains, the team is simply superb.
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