Ian WhiteThere Can only Be One
May 5th 2008 23:17
The first round of the NBA playoffs came and went with a flurry of assault, marijuana, and rap beef. This seriously is one of the most exciting playoffs in years, and I'm happy to have so much free time to watch all the games thanks to my jobs hour cut backs. I'll be breaking down each second round series, talking about awards, and giving some predictions.
Hornets vs. Spurs:
Little Isiah after silencing his first wave a critics, gave the chlorform treatment to a few more after he produced a double double in a game 1 trouncing of the defending champs. Chris Paul was once again unstoppable. He got everywhere he wanted with single coverage, split doubles, hit the open man, and scored whenever the Spurs attempted to stay at home on the open man. David West showed his all star appearance was no fluke as he went off for 30 and 9 on one of the NBA's best defenses. However the biggest lift came from Tyson Chandler who held the man hailed as the greatest power forward of all time to 5 points on 1-8 shooting. His long arms and superior athleticism bothered Duncan all night and he was unable to adjust. The damage from Parker and Ginobli were also minimized which of course led to a Hornets victory. I predicted the Hornets would take it in 6 or 7, but if the Spurs can't get Duncan going and stop Paul and his supporting cast, this one may be over even faster.
Celtics vs. Cavaliers
Despite the first round scare against the Hawks, I don't expect Boston to face the same troubles with Lebron and company. Cleavland does not come close to the young athletes that the Hawks posses with the exception of King James which already gives Boston an edge. Cleveland is not known as a running team, particularly with a frontcourt of Ben Wallace and Big Z. They play in the half court game which is the bread and butter of the Celtic's league best defense. After the trade, the Cav's offense has not been crisp and a team like Boston will be able to turn Lebron into a jump shooter and not give anyone good looks. Then on the other end they sport the young stud Rajon Rondo and 3 future hall of famers who each are looking for the open man. I expect the Cav's to be totally outmatched and fall to the Celtics in 5. Cleavland does not posses the quickness to bother Boston and their offense relies on the penetration of 1 man. And as we saw last year in the finals, one man won't cut it.
Detroit vs. Orlando
This series looks like it'll playout as it has for the past 8 games in the postseason. Detroit has too much toughness for the magic to deal with. Their offense relies on establishing Howard inside and getting out on the run to start raining threes. Detroit however shut down Howard who showed once again that he isn't there yet and forced Orlando into tough shots all game long. On the offensive end, they were able to exploit the Magic's weak perimeter defense and flimsy frontcourt help at the rim. Look for a sweep. I doubt Detroit will break down mentally so soon after that fiasco with the 76ers.
Lakers vs. Jazz
This has the makings of either a 7 games series or another sweep for LA. They totally outplayed the Jazz whom cannot stop Kobe when he looks to score, and struggle worse when he looks to pass. It also doesn't hep that they lead the league in fouls which is why Kobe went 21-23 from the freethrow line. The Lakers forced the Jazze into their weakness of jump shooting and used the endless supply of bricks to beat them soundly in transition. The only thing that kept the Jazz in the game was their offensive rebounding. Its just scary to think of how good LA could be with Bynum. Either way, they are too much for the Jazz. However, if Utah can focus on letting Kobe score while shutting down everyone else, they can ride their rebounding to a few wins, as long as they stick to their strengths on offense and stop letting Brewer and Kirelnko shoot.
Awards:
The annual individual achievements weren't too shocking this year around. Ginobli easily wrapped up 6th man which honestly wasn't fair since its like an NFL team putting its best defender on special teams. Manu could start on every team in this league and would have long ago been an all star, yet comes off the bench for strategic purposes. If he stays a reserve, they may have to retire this award.
Defensive player of the year was another no brainer, though far closer than the previous award. Kevin Garnett led a complete turnaround in the Boston team. They shot to the top of the defensive rankings due to KG's passion and high IQ on the defensive end. He does everything. Blocks/alters shots, plays passing lanes, picks the dribble, guards well on the pick and roll, dealing well with switches. He is everywhere. This is a totally different squad when he is anchoring that D. Marcus Camby was the runner up and may be the best individual defender in basketball. However it is overshadowed by the terrible defensive effort that Denver displays every single game, which was a big part of their first round sweep.
Most improved player was well deserved. Hedo had a a breakout year during which he brought even more attention to the fact that they grossly overpayed for Rashard Lewis. Hedo was the man in crunch time as one of the league leaders in 4th quarters scoring, and was flirting with a triple double in many games. My only beef is that this award was intended for young players that are on the rise, not league veterans who finally got their game together. Regardless, props to Hedo. Too bad you can't beat Detroit.
Coach of the year to Byron Scott was great for highlighting his impact on this newly elite western conference powerhouse. Though Chris Paul rightfully gets a large part of the credit, let's not forget who encourages Paul's toughness and improvement in shooting, the guy who brought Tyson Chandler out of draft bust status and who turned unknown David West into a threat. Scott has this team running a silky smooth offense and an aggressive defense that commits the least fouls in the NBA. Its about time Bryon got props for all he's done, especially after the raw deal he got in New Jersey after taking them to the finals in back to back seasons.
So the word on the street is that kobe will get his first MVP award. Not shocking though. I long prepared myself for the media guilt trip that would get Kobe the award. They felt bad for leaving out the best player in the NBA the last few seasons, especially after Dirks fall from grace. My personal choice was Chris Paul who I felt deserved it above the rest. Nobody even mentioned the Hornets at the start of the year, yet here they are, 2nd in the West and just knocked off one of the conference's elite in 5 games, while later destroying the defending champs in the 2nd round opener. So what if his team didn't finish first, based on the tightness of this West that should not have been overly emphasized. But at least Kobe finally got one. It would have been a far bigger travesty if Kobe never got an MVP award.
As far as predictions go, I've got a Boston vs. Laker final. Boston has a favorable remaining schedule in the east, except for Detroit who will give them trouble if they beat Orlando again.
Hornets vs. Spurs:
Little Isiah after silencing his first wave a critics, gave the chlorform treatment to a few more after he produced a double double in a game 1 trouncing of the defending champs. Chris Paul was once again unstoppable. He got everywhere he wanted with single coverage, split doubles, hit the open man, and scored whenever the Spurs attempted to stay at home on the open man. David West showed his all star appearance was no fluke as he went off for 30 and 9 on one of the NBA's best defenses. However the biggest lift came from Tyson Chandler who held the man hailed as the greatest power forward of all time to 5 points on 1-8 shooting. His long arms and superior athleticism bothered Duncan all night and he was unable to adjust. The damage from Parker and Ginobli were also minimized which of course led to a Hornets victory. I predicted the Hornets would take it in 6 or 7, but if the Spurs can't get Duncan going and stop Paul and his supporting cast, this one may be over even faster.
Celtics vs. Cavaliers
Despite the first round scare against the Hawks, I don't expect Boston to face the same troubles with Lebron and company. Cleavland does not come close to the young athletes that the Hawks posses with the exception of King James which already gives Boston an edge. Cleveland is not known as a running team, particularly with a frontcourt of Ben Wallace and Big Z. They play in the half court game which is the bread and butter of the Celtic's league best defense. After the trade, the Cav's offense has not been crisp and a team like Boston will be able to turn Lebron into a jump shooter and not give anyone good looks. Then on the other end they sport the young stud Rajon Rondo and 3 future hall of famers who each are looking for the open man. I expect the Cav's to be totally outmatched and fall to the Celtics in 5. Cleavland does not posses the quickness to bother Boston and their offense relies on the penetration of 1 man. And as we saw last year in the finals, one man won't cut it.
Detroit vs. Orlando
This series looks like it'll playout as it has for the past 8 games in the postseason. Detroit has too much toughness for the magic to deal with. Their offense relies on establishing Howard inside and getting out on the run to start raining threes. Detroit however shut down Howard who showed once again that he isn't there yet and forced Orlando into tough shots all game long. On the offensive end, they were able to exploit the Magic's weak perimeter defense and flimsy frontcourt help at the rim. Look for a sweep. I doubt Detroit will break down mentally so soon after that fiasco with the 76ers.
Lakers vs. Jazz
This has the makings of either a 7 games series or another sweep for LA. They totally outplayed the Jazz whom cannot stop Kobe when he looks to score, and struggle worse when he looks to pass. It also doesn't hep that they lead the league in fouls which is why Kobe went 21-23 from the freethrow line. The Lakers forced the Jazze into their weakness of jump shooting and used the endless supply of bricks to beat them soundly in transition. The only thing that kept the Jazz in the game was their offensive rebounding. Its just scary to think of how good LA could be with Bynum. Either way, they are too much for the Jazz. However, if Utah can focus on letting Kobe score while shutting down everyone else, they can ride their rebounding to a few wins, as long as they stick to their strengths on offense and stop letting Brewer and Kirelnko shoot.
Awards:
The annual individual achievements weren't too shocking this year around. Ginobli easily wrapped up 6th man which honestly wasn't fair since its like an NFL team putting its best defender on special teams. Manu could start on every team in this league and would have long ago been an all star, yet comes off the bench for strategic purposes. If he stays a reserve, they may have to retire this award.
Defensive player of the year was another no brainer, though far closer than the previous award. Kevin Garnett led a complete turnaround in the Boston team. They shot to the top of the defensive rankings due to KG's passion and high IQ on the defensive end. He does everything. Blocks/alters shots, plays passing lanes, picks the dribble, guards well on the pick and roll, dealing well with switches. He is everywhere. This is a totally different squad when he is anchoring that D. Marcus Camby was the runner up and may be the best individual defender in basketball. However it is overshadowed by the terrible defensive effort that Denver displays every single game, which was a big part of their first round sweep.
Most improved player was well deserved. Hedo had a a breakout year during which he brought even more attention to the fact that they grossly overpayed for Rashard Lewis. Hedo was the man in crunch time as one of the league leaders in 4th quarters scoring, and was flirting with a triple double in many games. My only beef is that this award was intended for young players that are on the rise, not league veterans who finally got their game together. Regardless, props to Hedo. Too bad you can't beat Detroit.
Coach of the year to Byron Scott was great for highlighting his impact on this newly elite western conference powerhouse. Though Chris Paul rightfully gets a large part of the credit, let's not forget who encourages Paul's toughness and improvement in shooting, the guy who brought Tyson Chandler out of draft bust status and who turned unknown David West into a threat. Scott has this team running a silky smooth offense and an aggressive defense that commits the least fouls in the NBA. Its about time Bryon got props for all he's done, especially after the raw deal he got in New Jersey after taking them to the finals in back to back seasons.
So the word on the street is that kobe will get his first MVP award. Not shocking though. I long prepared myself for the media guilt trip that would get Kobe the award. They felt bad for leaving out the best player in the NBA the last few seasons, especially after Dirks fall from grace. My personal choice was Chris Paul who I felt deserved it above the rest. Nobody even mentioned the Hornets at the start of the year, yet here they are, 2nd in the West and just knocked off one of the conference's elite in 5 games, while later destroying the defending champs in the 2nd round opener. So what if his team didn't finish first, based on the tightness of this West that should not have been overly emphasized. But at least Kobe finally got one. It would have been a far bigger travesty if Kobe never got an MVP award.
As far as predictions go, I've got a Boston vs. Laker final. Boston has a favorable remaining schedule in the east, except for Detroit who will give them trouble if they beat Orlando again.
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