The "Denver" Edition Of Len's 2nd Round Primer (Horribly Late, In Other Words)
Alright, a few quick things I took from the first round...
A) I like what the future holds for Oklahoma City. I do. I don't see this as a teaser, a one year bit where we're enticed with what's to come before they're back to Lotteryville next season. Kevin Durant is a perennial MVP candidate and he has a solid cast around him, that you figure Sam Presti will continue to build on. I gave them 6 because I felt they were young enough to get 2 from them (which they did) but in the end, the champs are just that for a reason. In the later rounds, they knew how to will their way through and that's exactly what they did.
B) I'm not sure who lit what fire underneath Orlando in that first round, but yeesh. Perhaps the Bobcats drew the single shortest straw they could've drawn in that first round. Perhaps if Larry Brown played Chandler more...no, wait. Dwight stayed in foul trouble, so that wouldn't have mattered anyway. Okay, perhaps if Jameer Nelson didn't have an out of body experience, it could've been a series. Either way you slice it, the Magic showed you why I see them winning the East for a second straight year. They are that deep and they are that angry over last year. Hell, they're probably angry over the fact folks are STILL looking past them to yet another L.A./Cleveland Finale.
Don't worry Magic, I'm not overlooking ya.
- You ever hit a point watching someone where you realize...
"No matter who they put around him, he might never win a title as the main man."
I've hit that point with Dirk. Look at his resume and see if you notice a trend here...
1) He found a way to lose a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals. Not just lose it mind you, but just 9 minutes away from going up Championship Point, he couldn't will his team past the Heat. If this wasn't crystal clear to folks that his heart pumps the blue sugary shit...
2) One year later, when the Mavs were the top seed out West and you'd figure, odds on fav to return to the Finals...the key never made its way to the ignition. Golden State aka Anti-Dallas jumped on Dallas like they were trying to steal something, left em' ass out with their feelings and guts hanging.
3) This year, Cuban takes part in the Washington Fire Sale, procuring probably the three most important Wizards not named Gilbert Arenas. This, along with JET and Coach Killin' Kidd, one figures should be more than enough to challenge for a title right? No way these guys slip in the first round AGAIN, right?!
Of course they slipped. Why? Because they ran into a team that hit them in the mouth and kept hitting them. Once Pop Belichick called his players "dogs" after Game 1, I already knew it was on. These guys (most of them) were four time NBA Champions. They didn't take kindly to being called out by their coach, but they answered and as a result, Dirk's wondering if Dallas should remain his home or if he should file for change of address.
I told you guys that the Spurs weren't a "7 seed" in the conventional sense and that the perceived weakness of Dallas that everyone overlooked, was still very much there. Oh and Ron was right, George Hill is a baller. If the Spurs become the lowest seed to win a title since the Rockets as a #6 in 1995, I shall dub him King Of The Hill. Yee-up.
- Are the Celts really back...or are the Heat just that far gone? Eh...I'd say both and I'll get on this later.
- Yes, Denver is that dysfunctional. Yes, Utah is that deep and no, they won't beat the Lakers.
Look, I'm not going to play the 'they missed their coach' card, because that's overdone. If they really missed their coach that much, common sense states they're going to play on so that their coach can come BACK in the second round. But in the end, Denver folds horribly allowing Utah another shot at its longtime nemesis Los Angeles. Anyway...on with my 2nd round primer and yeah, I know I'm horribly late with it.
Cleveland/Boston II
- The last time these two teams met up, The Boston Three Party weren't two years older and Cleveland had a short old guy as its center. Two years later, the Boston Three Party are two years older and Cleveland's got two old guys as its two headed Center Monster. Ain't that great? Oh yeah, LeBron's a two time "MVP" (I've got a special column in store for this). The Cavs took Game 1, Boston blasted Cleveland to get Game 2. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? I'll come back to my verdict on this later, this deserves "main event booking". :P
Orlando/Atlanta
- As best as I can recall, these two teams haven't met in the playoffs in Orlando's short history. Atlanta went two games longer with Milwaukee than they should've went and maybe the simplest way I can sum this series up is as follows...
If it takes you 7 games to beat a team sans its best low post threat and best player period, how do you figure to beat the reigning Eastern Conference Champion that just dispatched of a division foe with its best low post guy in foul trouble for the entire series and Jameer Nelson playing out of his mind, body and soul?
Answer, you don't. Orlando makes Atlanta vanish in 5.
Suns/Spurs
- If Lakers/Spurs is the "Hatfields/McCoys" of the NBA (and also, its best rivalry of the Double 0s), then Spurs/Suns is your perfect storm of contrasting styles. The Suns like to run and gun, the Spurs prefer to slowly and methodically dissect you like a science experiement. I think this will be a much more interesting series than the Lakers/Jazz, just cause of the vitriolic acid involved here. The Spurs have had their foot on Phoenix for the last 10 years or so and this year, unlike with Utah in the other series, Phoenix seems set on changing it. Unfortunately, I don't think they will.
Spurs in 6.
Lakers/Jazz Redux
- Yeah, let me sum this up like so...
The Jazz. Cannot Beat. The Lakers. PERIOD.
Lakers in 5.
Okay, back to Boston/Cleveland.
Cleveland took Game 1 because Boston let their foot off Cleveland's throat and so the story went. In Game 2, Boston toyed with Cleveland, letting them know in no uncertain terms...
"Anytime we get good and ready, we can and will end you. We don't care about what the NBA has a hard on for, we've been doing this longer than you've been thinking it. Longer than David Stern's been wanking to it. Who are we? We are your nightmare."
Plain and simple, if Cleveland is looking past this series to Orlando, they're not going to wake up. They'll die in their sleep as Boston laughs its way to the rematch that I personally want to see, Boston w/KG versus Orlando w/Jameer. This is what ESPNis SHOULD be rooting for to go down, not Orlando making Cleveland vanish in 6 games. Just because it's late and I'm in a real cynical mood, here's my prediction...
Boston in 6. I think Cleveland will stave off elimination just once, but the combined pressure of...
- Trying to win a title for LeBron in what might be his finale in a Cav uniform...
- Heightened expectations, even higher than a year ago without Shaq...
- A Boston team that's sick of hearing its last rites being read...
- A cast of characters that wouldn't be an MVP's supporting unit in a MOVIE, let alone real life, having to shoulder the burden of helping a two time MVP get his first title.
LeBron's cast vanished on him last year, it'll happen again this year, only one round earlier than before. End of story, I'm going to bed. (Blogger note, I ended this column a little under six hours ago. I simply didn't have the patience to stay up and post it, so shoot me. :P Ciao.)
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