Post by New Orleans Hornets on Oct 14, 2007 6:40:27 GMT -5
As the regular season nears the end, its time to look at some of the playoff matchups that can be either a blowout or a future hardwood classic.
WESTERN CONFERENCE:
1st and 8th seed:
Phoenix Suns vs Denver Nuggets/Dallas Mavericks/Houston Rockets
----the main focus on this series is whoever reaches the 8th spot will have a lot of things to do to be able to stop this offensive juggernaut called the Phoenix Suns.
Denver will have a hard time against this team as they clearly don't have the experience and a true defensive player on their team.
The rockets are filled with a mix of veterans and youth but the main problem in this team is their inconsistency and conditioning. with only a few players who can run for very long periods of time this team will have a very difficult time keeping up with the high octane offense of the Suns.
The team with the most chance to be able to compete with the Suns are the Mavericks who are now having problems winning games despite the great start earlier in the season. what they have to do in order to beat the Suns is to be consistent each and every night and be aggressive offensively and defensively.
MY PREDICTIONS:
Suns vs Nuggets: 4 games = Suns
Suns vs Rockets: 4 games = Suns
Suns vs Mavericks: 6 games = Suns
2nd and 7th seed
New Orleans Hornets vs Utah Jazz
---This will be a very interesting matchup since the Utah Jazz won the regular season series against the Hornets (2 - 1 = UTAH) and will have a very big advantage since Chris Paul and Hedo Turkoglu, 2 of the Hornets scoring options might not make it to the postseason due to injuries. If Tim Duncan continues to play MVP type ball and Ben Wallace and Gerald Wallace will step up their offensive game at the same time defend well, the Hornets will have no problem getting into the 2nd round. Will the Hornets be able to hold their ground? or are we looking at an upset for the ages?
MY PREDICTION:
Hornets vs Jazz: 6 games = Hornets
3rd and 6th seed
LA Lakers vs San Antonio Spurs
---A matchup that has been a great one since Shaq in his laker days. this will be a new type of matchup which will be a must see. Lamar Odom and Kobe Bryant will team up again who will face an old rival with a new set of faces. since the departure of Tim Duncan, the spurs have shown that they can still hold their own against some of the toughest teams in the NBA. The lakers will now have a chance to prove that they can win without Shaq and get into the 2nd round. If Odom and Bryant and the rest of the lakers continue to play like a team, they have a big chance of reaching the western conference finals or even the NBA Finals. Will the lakers be able to gel as a team and get past the 1st round or will youth prevail in this series?
MY PREDICTION:
Lakers vs Spurs: 5 Games = Lakers
4th and 5th seed
Minnesota Timberwolves vs Golden State Warriors
---This might be an interesting series to watch since both teams are now back in the playoffs. these two teams who have overhauled their rosters this season will be competing in a battle of the opposites. the Twolves led by Eddy Curry prefer a half court game and is a team who looks to post up everytime they have the ball in their hands while the Warriors are a fast paced, fastbreak type team who looks to run whenever they have the opportunity. it will all come down to experience and defense. This will be an exciting series to watch
MY PREDICTION:
T'wolves vs Warriors: 7 games = Warriors
So far, the teams who have the higher seed except for one are predicted to win their respective series. i hope this will be a season to remember to all the teams and GMs. good luck!
WESTERN CONFERENCE:
1st and 8th seed:
Phoenix Suns vs Denver Nuggets/Dallas Mavericks/Houston Rockets
----the main focus on this series is whoever reaches the 8th spot will have a lot of things to do to be able to stop this offensive juggernaut called the Phoenix Suns.
Denver will have a hard time against this team as they clearly don't have the experience and a true defensive player on their team.
The rockets are filled with a mix of veterans and youth but the main problem in this team is their inconsistency and conditioning. with only a few players who can run for very long periods of time this team will have a very difficult time keeping up with the high octane offense of the Suns.
The team with the most chance to be able to compete with the Suns are the Mavericks who are now having problems winning games despite the great start earlier in the season. what they have to do in order to beat the Suns is to be consistent each and every night and be aggressive offensively and defensively.
MY PREDICTIONS:
Suns vs Nuggets: 4 games = Suns
Suns vs Rockets: 4 games = Suns
Suns vs Mavericks: 6 games = Suns
2nd and 7th seed
New Orleans Hornets vs Utah Jazz
---This will be a very interesting matchup since the Utah Jazz won the regular season series against the Hornets (2 - 1 = UTAH) and will have a very big advantage since Chris Paul and Hedo Turkoglu, 2 of the Hornets scoring options might not make it to the postseason due to injuries. If Tim Duncan continues to play MVP type ball and Ben Wallace and Gerald Wallace will step up their offensive game at the same time defend well, the Hornets will have no problem getting into the 2nd round. Will the Hornets be able to hold their ground? or are we looking at an upset for the ages?
MY PREDICTION:
Hornets vs Jazz: 6 games = Hornets
3rd and 6th seed
LA Lakers vs San Antonio Spurs
---A matchup that has been a great one since Shaq in his laker days. this will be a new type of matchup which will be a must see. Lamar Odom and Kobe Bryant will team up again who will face an old rival with a new set of faces. since the departure of Tim Duncan, the spurs have shown that they can still hold their own against some of the toughest teams in the NBA. The lakers will now have a chance to prove that they can win without Shaq and get into the 2nd round. If Odom and Bryant and the rest of the lakers continue to play like a team, they have a big chance of reaching the western conference finals or even the NBA Finals. Will the lakers be able to gel as a team and get past the 1st round or will youth prevail in this series?
MY PREDICTION:
Lakers vs Spurs: 5 Games = Lakers
4th and 5th seed
Minnesota Timberwolves vs Golden State Warriors
---This might be an interesting series to watch since both teams are now back in the playoffs. these two teams who have overhauled their rosters this season will be competing in a battle of the opposites. the Twolves led by Eddy Curry prefer a half court game and is a team who looks to post up everytime they have the ball in their hands while the Warriors are a fast paced, fastbreak type team who looks to run whenever they have the opportunity. it will all come down to experience and defense. This will be an exciting series to watch
MY PREDICTION:
T'wolves vs Warriors: 7 games = Warriors
So far, the teams who have the higher seed except for one are predicted to win their respective series. i hope this will be a season to remember to all the teams and GMs. good luck!