After an extended hiatus from the blogging world, I'm back, and I've got NBA playoff fever. Today, we're dissecting the playoff matchups in the Eastern conference. We'll tackle the West in the next few days.
Let's start off with the East, where unfortunately it doesn't look to get all that interesting until the second round.
(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (8) Chicago Bulls
Breakdown:
It ain't easy to sugarcoat this one - The Cavs will likely win this series, and win it handily. The Bulls just don't have the firepower to compete. The Cavs have the veteran savvy, the desire, and the overwhelming talent to dispose of the young upstarts from the Windy City with very few problems.
They've got a favorable matchup in Derrick Rose against a weak defender in Mo Williams. Also, the Cavs have to use this series to reintegrate a newly slimmed down Shaquille O'Neal into the lineup after his being injured for the past two months.
For those reasons, these Bulls have a shot to take a game or two away from the Cavs in this series. However, the Cavs have that fella named LeBron James, and even with the Cavs shaking off rust and adjusting to Shaq's re-entrance in the lineup, the Akron Hammer won't be allowing this series to go past 5 games.
However, even if this series doesn't prove to be compelling, it will offer us this - A battle of the ridiculous hair. Noah v. Varejao. It's goin' down ladies and gentleman. This is like the World Series of bad haircuts.
Prediction: Cavs in 5
(4) Boston Celtics vs. (5) Miami Heat
Breakdown:
This will likely be the most compelling first round series in the East, and here's why -
Boston got real old, real fast this year. Rasheed Wallace, who predicted that the Celts would approach 70 wins on the year showed up looking like he welcomed himself to Boston by eating an entire Dunkin' Donuts franchise. Kevin Garnett is moving about as well as my grandfather. Ray Allen can't guard a chair at this point in his career, so I presume Dwyane Wade will present a challenge. This team has absolutely lost its fire while still behaving themselves like a team that will be in contention for a championship.
On the other side, Dwyane Wade is a bona fide superstar who can carve up the Celts in this series. However, his supporting cast remains terrible, with his supporting cast consisting of the underachieving Michael Beasley, Jermaine O'Neal's corpse, Quentin Richardson, Dorell Wright, and Carlos Arroyo. That team minus Wade might be good enough to beat the D-League All-Stars. They don't have an answer for Rajon Rondo nor Paul Pierce, so the Celtics should squeak by in a highly contested, entertaining series.
The Prediction: Celts in 7
(3) Atlanta Hawks vs. (6) Milwaukee Bucks
Breakdown:
This series makes me sad, because I jumped on the "Fear the Deer" bandwagon and I was a full fledged member. I'm a huge fan of what Scott Skiles has done with this team, and Brandon Jennings has got a swagger you just don't find that often anymore. This team was rolling, and NBA analysts everywhere were picking them for a first round upset. Then, this happened:
Sigh. With rising star Andrew Bogut out for the rest of the year, the Bucks just aren't going to be able to compete in what is already a tough matchup for them. Like any Scott Skiles team, they'll play hard, smart, and tough on defense, but Joe Johnson, Jamal Crawford, Josh Smith and Al Horford should be able to dominate in this series. I see the Bucks taking one at home due to Atlanta's lack of success away from Phillips Arena, but can't imagine this series going much longer than that.
Prediction: Hawks in 5
(2) Orlando Magic vs. (7) Charlotte Bobcats
Breakdown:
One would be tempted to say that the Magic will win this series easily, but the Bobcats are not a team to be overlooked. Larry Brown has done one heck of a job revamping this roster in the short-term. He's added a player and a leader with championship experience, in Stephen Jackson, and Gerald Wallace elevated his play to all-star levels. They've got big bodies to throw at big Dwight Howard, and he's going to have to work for his points.
The Magic are talented, and deep. They can play fast, and they can play slow. They've got the best defensive player in the league, and the most dominant big in Dwight Howard. They've got the wing scoring talent in Vince Carter, Jameer Nelson, and J.J. Redick. They will likely win this series. But it will not be a cakewalk for them, and the Larry Brown led Bobcats will give them all that they have.
Prediction: Magic in 6
So that's that, kids. The East is a bit less intriguing than you'd like it be in the first round, but the West is gonna' be wild, and we'll tackle that in the next couple days.
