Well, the first round of the NBA Playoffs has come to a close and there have been some surprises, like the Lakers and Bulls struggling with their competition and the Spurs
WESTERN CONFERENCE
4.) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 8.) Memphis Grizzlies: The Thunder dispatched the Nuggets in a five game stretch where Kevin Durant proved himself to be the greatest scorer in the history of the world, and Russell Westbrook tried to be the Stringer Bell to Durant's Avon Barksdale and usurp his power. The Griz upset the top seed Spurs in six games by destroying them down low with the Randolph/Gasol combo. This should be a fun, competitive series. The Grizzlies beat the Thunder three out of four times this season, but their frontcourt advantage won't be as pronounced since OKC now has Kendrick Perkins and Serge Ibaka playing significant time down low and they can put a body on Memphis' bigs. Durant might struggle a bit with Shane Battier on him, but I don't think that Mike Conley can handle Westbrook. Memphis has a good chance to win the series, but I think OKC is the Western Conference Team of Destiny. I'm going to go with Thunder in seven.
2.) Los Angeles Lakers vs. 3.) Dallas Mavericks: The Lakers got here by surprisingly struggling to beat the Hornets in six games and the Mavs advanced by surprisingly (to me) beating the TrailBlazers in six games. This could be an interesting series, as Dallas is capable of beating L.A., even though I'm near certain that they will not. If the Lakers are going to play like big boys again, they should be able to beat Dallas convincingly. There's no Chris Paul here to give the Lakers fits, and Dirk Nowitzki can be stifled by the Bynum/Odom/Gasol/Artest/Barnes frontcourt. After Dirk, no one else on the Mavericks can really score, while the Lakers have four guys who can put up 20 points each. I think Dallas wins a couple to make it interesting, but ultimately it will be Lakers in six.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
1.) Chicago Bulls vs. 5.) Atlanta Hawks: The Bulls got here by beating the Pacers in a tough five game series (the only series I predicted exactly right in terms of winner and amount of games), while the Hawks managed to finally topple Orlando in six games. As a Bulls fan, the Hawks scare me because they can randomly be really good and then be terrible the next night. Their offense and defense is erratic, while the Bulls have an erratic offense and consistently stingy defense. I expect Hinrich to get a lot of burn for Atlanta, as he usually defends Rose well. I expect Boozer to play considerably better, as he won't be outsized physically by larger defenders as he was against Indiana. Like the last round, I expect these games to be close more often than not, but Chicago is more consistent and has the better depth and talent. Bulls in seven.
2.) Miami Heat vs. 3.) Boston Celtics: The series everyone has been waiting for, albeit a round earlier than everyone expected. The Heat got to the second round by dispatching the 76ers in a tough five game series, while the Celtics swept the Knicks and finished strongly with two blowout wins to seal that matchup. The Celtics won three of four against the Heat during the regular season, but Miami won the most recent game in dominating fashion. This series could really go either way, but I think that if Shaq is healthy then the Celtics should have a huge advantage in depth. They can trot out the O'Neals, Big Baby, Garnett, and Kristic and the Heat really only have Bosh, Dampier, Joel Anthony, and Juwan Howard. Not impressive. If Rondo's play against the Knicks wasn't an aberration and he is back to his early season form, the Bibby/Chalmers combo won't get it done and as it has been all season, Miami will need Wade and LBJ to carry them. The other interesting thing is that Wade and LBJ have yet to really jell together as teammates and now they have to try to do it against a stingy Boston defense. I think that this is Boston's series to lose, despite not having homecourt advantage and being the older team. If the Celtics stay healthy, they should have the overall team and psychological edge. It should be a tough, tough series and both teams can be unpredictable, but I have to go with Celtics in seven.
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