The second round starts tomorrow (or really, in just eight hours). I'm interested in hearing ya'lls opinions of how you think it will break down. The first round really only had one real "upset," but the second round is when things get interesting - East: #1 Miami #5 Chicago #2 New York #3 Indiana West: #1 Oklahoma City #5 Memphis #2 San Antonio #6 Golden State ---------------------------- My predictions - East: #1 Miami #5 Chicago Miami in 6. (I love watching Chicago play, because they hustle, they play smart, and they play with effort. They've also been able to take Miami out of their game before in the regular season. Noah also looked great tonight, despite the plantar fasciitis. That's why I'll give them two games, and that's why I'll also be rooting for them in this series, but does anyone really give them a puncher's chance in this one?) #2 New York #3 Indiana Indiana in 6. (New York has lived and died on their shooting all year long. J.R. Smith can lose you games just as easily as he can win them for you, and Melo's in a similar boat. They're just not a very well rounded team. Indiana should have had a clean sweep of Atlanta, so I'm worried about their focus right now, but this is one series I'd throw money down in Vegas on in favor of the underdog and not lose a minute of sleep over.) West: #1 Oklahoma City #5 Memphis Memphis in 7. (I'll be political and predict a hard fought series here with my Grizz pulling it out in seven... although out of any match-up, I think the Westbrook loss effects this one the least. This series will be won or lost based on the frontcourt match-ups and Martin's outside shooting.) #2 San Antonio #6 Golden State San Antonio in 6. (I'm rooting for Golden State in this one, and San Antonio has choked a few key playoff series away recently, but I just find it hard to bet against Pops and his Spurs. They were supposed to be "done" three years ago, yet they wound up with the third best record in the entire NBA with a Tim Duncan that should be enjoying retirement, an old banged up Manu, an aging Parker, and a cast of players that would have been labeled "scrubs" by other teams' metrics. It's hard to pick against the results,... although I'll definitely be rooting against them.)
You asked and I shall deliver. Heat in 5. Heat are on another level. Regular season means very little in the playoffs. Heat have turned it up onto another notch. I actually think CHI wins the first game, gets Miami's attention, and then get rammed. I'm going with INDY in 6. Knicks shooting will get them a couple wins, despite the strength of Indy defense. Melo will go big a couple nights along with JR. Think Indy defense is just a little too good. Could easily be NY, though. Carmelo can flat out score. San Antonio in 5. Doubt Popovich lets them bomb 3s like the Nuggets let them do. Also, Tim Duncan is a lot better than any other post guy on the Nuggets. Won't allow them go with the super small lineup. Memphis in 5. OKC with no Russ? Not a chance, imo. Durant will have a big game, but thats all. Memphis D is MUCH better than Houston, and I think you'll see the effects of no Russ, in this series more than last series.
Aside from the MEM/OKC series, which I think will be a lot closer than most people realize, largely because of OKC's interior defense and our inability to be a consistent perimeter threat, the CHI/MIA series is the one I've got my eye on. The frontcourt of Noah/Boozer could give Miami some trouble. The East is so weak, and Miami will most likely wind up in the Finals after avoiding the same war path that the Western Conference team will have to face, but Chicago will at least make it interesting. The Heat are clearly the (much) better team, but how many more talented teams have the Bulls beat this season? It's probably just me liking their style of play, but in the battle of effort vs. talent, I like Chicago to win more than a game. Also, although unlikely, there's Derrick Rose. I know he's been saying he won't play, but in my Matthew McConaughey voice, "It'd be a lot cooler if you did...."
The first thing I think when I look at the 2nd round match ups especially in the west is that SAS and OKC are damn lucky they have home court advantage. This is why the regular season is more important than some people think. If GSW had HCA I think they would blow the Spurs out. And I think MEM has a great shot anyway but I could see them run away with it if they had HCA. For some reason it doesn't seem to matter as much in the east.
Miami in 5 Knicks in 5 Warriors in 6 Thunder in 4 'Id love to see Chicago play well though. They play with so much heart. Most heart in the playoffs. I think the Finals are Thunder/Miami again and Miami wins in 5. Again.
I agree with all of these, except I think OKC takes it to 6. And I wouldn't be even a little bit surprised if the Heat sweep the Bulls.
Heat-Bulls: Heat in 4. I like Chicago but I think Miami is determined this year and Chicago's competitiveness will keep them engaged. I think most of the games will be close, but Miami takes them all. New York-Indiana: New York in 7. I was actually writing up a blurb about how NYK is total fools gold. But I do think they're capable of stealing a game back in Indy. And I think Stern absolutely wants both to re-ignite the Indy-NYK rivalry but more importantly get a Knicks-Heat matchup. Indy should murder them on the glass but they also lack top shelf playmakers. This one's tough to call and my brain is saying Indy's gotta take it in 6 since they already got 1 in NY, but I'm going with my gut. Mem-OKC: Memphis in 6. I like both of these teams, its just hard to see how OKC pulls this off without Westbrook. They got game 1 but Memphis only needs to steal one in OKC and then win out at home, which I think is exactly what will happen. GS-SA: I stopped making steadfast predictions on my own teams a long time ago. I said before the Denver series if we get one game in Denver that we're going to take the whole thing. Not very bold, but accurate. We haven't won in SA since 97 but were close a few times this year. We also went 2-0 against the Spurs at home. I think we match up pretty well with the Spurs, the question is will we be able to be as consistent as they are. The Nuggets could get rattled and implode for stretches. The Spurs won't very much. The Nuggets were very long and athletic and made it tough for Curry to get shots, the Spurs aren't going to be as aggressive on the high pick and roll and won't trap much. I think Ginobili is the X factor in this series. I think we'll try our luck with Bogut/Festus one on one against Duncan and have everyone else stick tight to SA's shooters. Parker and Curry sort of cancel each other out, and Klay plays Parker fairly well. Will Ginobili come in and wreck shop on Jack/Curry/Barnes? Will he provide that third weapon? I read a few times that hes slowing down but he terrifies me in the playoffs. Also I keep seeing people citing SA with the size advantage. Splitter is hurt, but even if hes healthy you can do worse than Bogut on Duncan and Landry on Splitter, then you have Draymond Green and Barnes to play Bonner and Diaw. Festus on Blair. Like with Denver, I don't expect us to beat them on the glass, but I think we can hold our own and actually having Green/Barnes instead of Lee could help a lot on defense against Bonner/Diaw.
You also posted in another thread that you thought the Knicks, Bulls or Warriors are going to win the championship.. Make up your mind.
No he lasted 45 minutes because he made his pick halfway through the game. My pick lasted several days.
What do you mean? Just because I pick the Thunder to beat the Grizz doesn't mean I think they'll win the title. The winner of that series is going nowhere. Either the Warriors, Knicks, or Bulls will win the title.
