2006 NBA Playoffs Options

[without_opinion]

Here to rival Sask's NHL Playoff Thread is the 2006 NBA Playoffs, ready to stretch out the ENTIRE summer. Games start Saturday and will finish by winter.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

1 Detroit vs 8 Milwaukee
Milwaukee gets the worst year spot to end up with -- good enough for the playoffs, but bad enough to play the best team. Detroit could probably play their second 5 and sweep this one.

2 Miami vs 7 Chicago
Is The Diesel aging too quickly? Can Alonzo stay healthy? Are the Bulls plucky enough to make this series interesting? These games will be fun to watch, but when it comes down to it no one on the Bulls is going to stop Dwayne Wade.

3 New Jersey vs Indiana
Jersey gets the 3 seed in both NHL and NBA. Pacers get lucky with their first round opponent, but their team has been imploding for 3 seasons. Looking at the names in this series you'd expect something great -- Kidd, Carter, Jefferson, O'Neal, Peja -- don't get your hopes up. Both teams need an offseason overhaul.

4 Cleveland vs 5 Washington
Can LBJ beat the Wizards in a series? Probably...it'll take a lot from the Wizards coaching staff to figure out a way to shut down Lebron and company, despite Washington's terrific team play. Sit back and enjoy whatever King James has to offer for his first playoff appearance.


WESTERN CONFERENCE

1 San Antonio vs 8 Sacramento
Despite the presence of Artest this series is going to be a boring one, just like most things the Spurs are involved in.

2 Phoenix vs 7 LA Lakers
Here's the fun one...these games are going to be worth watching. Kobe attempts to make up for being the 2nd best team in LA by taking down the fun-gunning Suns in the first round. Problem is the key to the Lakers lately has been Smush Parker, and he cannot keep up Steve Nash.

3 Denver vs 6 LA Clippers
Nuggets and Clips??!! A first round matchup in the Western Conference? Not sure anyone saw this one coming. Doesn't matter who wins this series, they're going down in Round 2. Cheer for the Clips because you hate the Lakers.

4 Dallas vs 5 Memphis
Dallas finally has a defense to bring into the playoffs, and Dirk is playing at his highest level yet. Enter the Grizz with a stingy D of their own. Don't expect this matchup to be thrilling, but do expect Dallas to move on to the 2nd round.

[SpacemanSpiff]

Y'know, the Bulls have done a fairly great job at stopping Wade so far this season. If Shaq doesn't step up to the plate (which he most certainly will) the Bulls have a shot here.

[without_opinion]

Y'know, the Bulls have done a fairly great job at stopping Wade so far this season. If Shaq doesn't step up to the plate (which he most certainly will) the Bulls have a shot here.

i'd agree with you, but Wade during the playoffs is like Sausage during the Sombie Madness. Bulls won't be able to keep up.

[SpacemanSpiff]

Y'know, the Bulls have done a fairly great job at stopping Wade so far this season. If Shaq doesn't step up to the plate (which he most certainly will) the Bulls have a shot here.

i'd agree with you, but Wade during the playoffs is like Sausage during the Sombie Madness. Bulls won't be able to keep up.

I hope you're wrong, but until these young Bulls they're ready for the onslaught of Wade in the playoffs, the Heat have the upper hand.
That said...GO BULLS!!!!

And my finals picks are as follows....Dallas and Detroit, Detroit wins in 6.

[biggie mcsmalls]

Detroit vs 8 Milwaukee

Detroit 4-0. I don't think anyone has a chance, seriously. Doubtful that any of the possible first round opponents would win a game .

2 Miami vs 7 Chicago

Miami in 6. I think it's gonna be a lot more competitive than people think. The Bulls play the Heat pretty well, and are playing a lot better ball than when they lost those two close ones.

3 New Jersey vs Indiana

Indiana in six. They're playing well going into the playoffs, and the Nets kind of ended the season with a "meh" after that nice streak. Last couple Pacers games everyone looks like they're closer to being on the same page after O'Neal coming back from injury.

Complain, what do think of your squad going into the playoffs?

4 Cleveland vs 5 Washington

Washington in 6. Lebron is the bigger star, but Arenas is close to his talent, and plays on a better team. Washington has a lot of experienced guys: Jamison, Daniels, Butler, etc.

1 San Antonio vs 8 Sacramento

San Antonio in 5, maybe 6. This will be boring, unless Artest shaves "Nigga, please" into his hair or something.

2 Phoenix vs 7 LA Lakers

Yeah, as said above, this is the fun one. I think the Lakers win this one. Kobe wants it too much. He and Phil are on a mission. If Odom & Kwame can produce, they knock off the Suns.

3 Denver vs 6 LA Clippers

Clips. I really like this team. I think Denver is not really very good, and will be exposed in the playoffs.

4 Dallas vs 5 Memphis

Dallas. Dirk dominates Gasol, Terry breaks B Jax ankles, and Josh Howard has his coming out party.

[without_opinion]

3 New Jersey vs Indiana

Indiana in six. They're playing well going into the playoffs, and the Nets kind of ended the season with a "meh" after that nice streak. Last couple Pacers games everyone looks like they're closer to being on the same page after O'Neal coming back from injury.

Complain, what do think of your squad going into the playoffs?

hey, i hope so. i'm just so down on indy teams performing in the playoffs lately, i don't want to get my hopes up. games 80 & 81 of the season were their highest scoring games (115 & 120), then they closed out against a hot orlando team, although the bulls had already knocked the wind from orlando's sails the game prior.

i'd love for them & the bulls to win their first round series, i'm just wary about getting my hopes up.

[helmet52]

3 New Jersey vs Indiana

Indiana in six. They're playing well going into the playoffs, and the Nets kind of ended the season with a "meh" after that nice streak. Last couple Pacers games everyone looks like they're closer to being on the same page after O'Neal coming back from injury.

Complain, what do think of your squad going into the playoffs?

hey, i hope so. i'm just so down on indy teams performing in the playoffs lately, i don't want to get my hopes up. games 80 & 81 of the season were their highest scoring games (115 & 120), then they closed out against a hot orlando team, although the bulls had already knocked the wind from orlando's sails the game prior.

i'd love for them & the bulls to win their first round series, i'm just wary about getting my hopes up.

I just don't see it with Indiana. They actually finished their season terribly - going 6-8 in their final 14 games including losses to Atlanta, Charlotte, and the Knicks. Their 6 wins were all against the bottom-feeders of the league. New Jersey meanwhile rattled off 14 straight wins before they started resting all their starters in the last 2 weeks. I think Jersey takes this series easily in 4 or 5 games.

[biggie mcsmalls]

Yeah, Indy was pretty pukey for a good bit. They seemed to get it together at the end, though. Tough to really get a feel at the end of the season, too.

I don't know about New Jersey. They weren't resting dudes when they started losing those games. The starters played regular minutes in the Chicago, Philly, and Cleveland losses.

You're probably right, though. Maybe I'm thinking that Indiana got it together more than they did in those last couple of games. The Detroit lass was pretty brutal.

[Howard Rock]

I will check the scores until the Bulls lose, and after that I'm out. The NBA is nausea-inducingly boring. Give me the race to Lord Stanley.

[SpacemanSpiff]

I will check the scores until the Bulls lose, and after that I'm out. The NBA is nausea-inducingly boring. Give me the race to Lord Stanley.

You're really missing out, then. Lebron's in the playoffs this year, Wade should still be a beast in the postseason, and Kobe v. the Suns should be the most entertaining series to hit the playoffs since a few years ago when the Kings were at their peak.
Now's the time to watch!!

Oh yeah, and hockey blows.

[helmet52]

I've just got a hunch that the Memphis/Dallas series is going to be an intriguing one. Memphis has the stingiest defense in the league. They only give up around 85 points per game at home. I'm thinking Dallas is going to have some problems with this team - this should be far from a cake walk.

[Howard Rock]

Good god no. The NBA sucks. I'll pay attention to the Bulls out of historical loyalty, but who cares? Not me. Enjoy tho...

[helmet52]

but who cares?

You sure you're not talking about the NHL?

[Howard Rock]

Oh I know the NHL has many less fans than the NBA...for the record, I was only saying that the NHL playoffs are much more entertaining. NBA is just boring to me. Once college basketball ends, I"m pretty much done with any basketball until football is over.

If the Bulls win, I'll keep watching.

[dice]

san anton and detroit go to conference finals, phx gets past lakers, beyond that i make no predictions. i can only see the heat or pistons coming from the east

[wh1tep0ny]

laugh if you must

Sacramento will take San Antonio to 7 games and I think they will win

Duncan and the Spurs have either been coasting or struggling

I say both and this is not the Same Kings team. ALso how long will Duncan survive on his bum wheel??

the Kings are 14 games over 500 since Artest came aboard (they lost the first 3 after the Artest trade)

had they had Artest all season I think they would of won their division

[MattW]

I'll be watching the Bulls, but I could really care less about the playoffs until the Conference Finals. The NBA need a new format to spice things up.

My proposal:
- 6 teams make the playoffs in each conference (eliminating useless 1 vs. 8, 2 vs. 7 series)
- 1 and 2 seeds get a bye through the first round
- 3 v. 6, 4 v. 5 in a best of 3 in the first round

The best of 3 makes the bye not a disadvantage for the 1 and 2s because these series can be over in 3-5 days. The chances for upsets increase while still giving advantages to the best teams.

This best of 7 crap through all 4 rounds just doesn't work for me. Plus teams that finish at or under .500 have no business in the playoffs.

[dice]

My proposal:
- 6 teams make the playoffs in each conference (eliminating useless 1 vs. 8, 2 vs. 7 series)
- 1 and 2 seeds get a bye through the first round
- 3 v. 6, 4 v. 5 in a best of 3 in the first round

i like your first two points, but i'd stick w/ best-of-seven

[MattW]

But a team can't rest for a week or longer. Plus, the urgency in a best of 3 would be so much fun.

[helmet52]

Sacramento will take San Antonio to 7 games and I think they will win

I agree that the Kings could have given the Spurs a great series, but Artest's thumb injury is clearly bothering him. He has shot a putrid 22% from the field since his injury. Granted, the guy is a warrior, and will play through the injury. But now he's playing with a big bandage over nearly his entire right (shooting) hand.

If you take away Artest's 17 points of offense every night (he's averaging 7 ppg since the injury), I find it nearly impossible for them to take down San Antonio. Who knows, maybe the injury is minor - but it certainly doesn't appear that way.