With the playoffs beginning tomorrow here are my predictions on how the postseason will play out.  Behold, Ctodrummers picks!

EASTERN CONFERENCE ROUND 1

(1) Detroit vs. (8) Milwaukee

The Pistons stifling defense and playoff experience will prove way too much for the Bucks.  Look for the Pistons to sweep, although the Bucks might steal one at home.          

Pistons in 4                 

(2) Miami vs. (7) Chicago

Shaq, D-Wade and company might have some trouble with this young and talented Chicago group.  Shaq will step up, however, and give Miami a couple of solid games which will be more than enough for the Heat to take it.

Heat in 5

(3) New Jersey vs. (6) Indiana

New Jersey's outstanding play down the stretch has been reminiscent of the team that made back to back appearances in the Finals.  This will continue into the playoffs and they will win this series with relative ease.

Nets in 5

(4) Cleveland vs. (5) Washington

This series will be the most exciting first round matchup in the east.  Homecourt will be a key in a series that might go the distance.  LeBron's stellar play in his playoff debut will give the Cavs the edge in a tight series.

Cavs in 6

ROUND 2

(1) Detroit vs. (4) Cleveland

This series will be an extremely exciting one.  LeBron will undoubtedly play great, but with not enough help from his teammates the Cavs will be unable to beat the superior Pistons squad.  The Cavs might steal one in Detroit, but most likely not.

Pistons in 5

(2) Miami vs. (3) New Jersey

Yet another great series in store with two of the games' biggest stars facing off in Wade and Carter.  New Jersey will steal the homecourt advantage in Miami and then take care of business at home.  The Diesel is running out of gas and won't be as dominant in round 2.

Nets in 6

EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

(1) Detroit vs. (3) New Jersey

Detroit's first two walk thru's will hurt them here as they face a much better Nets team.  Look for the Nets to steal the homecourt but Detroit to rebound in game 3.  This series will head back to Detroit at 2-2 where the Pistons will get the job done and take it in 6.

Eastern Conference Champs: Detroit Pistons

and now to the west...

WESTERN CONFERENCE ROUND 1

(1) San Antonio vs. (8) Sacramento

The Spurs will take care of business at home as they have all season but will relinquish one at Arco.  The Spurs depth, however, will prevail as they close out the Kings in game 5 at home.

Spurs in 5

(2) Phoenix vs. (7) LAL

Unfortunately the post-Shaq playoff era in LA won't get off to much of a bang as Kobe shows that he can't win a playoff series by himself.  The Lakers will take one at home but with Nash and the running Suns the Lakers will be left in the dust.

Suns in 5

(3) Denver vs. (6) LAC

Even with the higher seed Denver will start this series on the road in LA.  The Clippers' lack of playoff experience will not hurt them in the first round as they take what will for sure be the West's most even first round matchup.

Clippers in 6

(4) Dallas vs. (5) Memphis

If one didn't know any better they might think that the 4 and 5 seed would be relatively evenly matched.  This is far from the truth however as the Mavericks were jipped by the NBA's screwed up playoff system.  This rightful #2 seed will have no trouble with this Grizzlies squad, whether Pao Gasol plays or not.

Mavericks in 5

WESTERN CONFERENCE ROUND 2

(1) San Antonio vs. (4) Dallas

Maybe after this series the NBA will rethink its playoff setup.  This series, which most would consider the Western Conference Finals, will most likely go the distance with the Spurs homecourt prowess being the key factor.  If Dallas can take one in San Antonio they stand a chance of winning the series but if the Spurs take the first 2 they will win in 6.  This is the hardest prediction to make thus far but the Spurs will dominate at home and win the first 2, but not without playing 48 minutes of hard-nosed solid defensive basketball. Credit to my coach of the year winner Avery Johnson for doing a great job with Dallas this year.

Spurs in 6

(2) Phoenix vs. (6) LAC

The Clips will be riding a high into round 2 and might take one in Phoenix.  Los Angeles, however, won't be able to hold on in a 7 game series.  Nash will lead the way as LA makes a very respectable second round exit.

Suns in 6

WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS

(1) San Antonio vs. (2) Phoenix

The true West Finals will have already happened at this point and the Spurs, who already faced their hardest test in the conference, will use the homecourt to their advantage as they have all season and through the first 2 rounds.  Phoenix will take one at home but will find the Spurs' depth off the bench too much to handle.

Western Conference Champs: San Antonio Spurs

and now ladies and gentleman, the moment we have all been waiting for. 

THE FINALS

Detroit Pistons vs. San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs were manhandled by Detroit in their 2 regular season meetings.  However, those 2 games occured early in the season and can not be factored in to where both teams are at now.  The question for the Spurs, besides obviously their health issues, is whether or not they will match the Pistons' intensity at both ends of the floor.  The question for the Pistons is their depth off the bench.  When the finals roll around both teams will have played around 100 games.  Many people have posed the question as to whether or not the Pistons starters will have enough gas left come Finals time.  The homecourt advantage will no doubt be an important factor here.  However, the bigger factor is whether the Spurs' health will continue to be an issue as it has all season long.  Luckily, as i stated in a previous blog, the bane of the Spurs this season has been back to back games.  Why is this lucky?  Well with the issue of health in the playoffs, not playing back to backs is a big deal for San Antonio.  Over half of their losses this year came on back to back games.  Keeping that in mind the Spurs will be a bit scarier when they dont have to worry about going 2 straight nights.  The Pistons will be ready to play and this series should be a doozie.  It will be important for San Antonio to steal the homecourt advantage.  If they can do that, which i think they will, they will probably win the series.  So in the best overall series of the entire postseason the Spurs will prevail, with their superior depth that leads them over a tired and worn out Pistons starting 5. 

NBA CHAMPS: San Antonio Spurs

So there you have it folks.  Ctodrummer's prediction's for the playoffs.  Im sure there will be detractors that will disagree.  But that is why this is nothing but a prediction.  That, as i have said before, is why they play the games.

Of course as an Astros fan it was hard to stomach when i heard that Houston hadnt offered Clemens arbitration.  Thus far the Astros have done just fine without the Rocket on the mound.   They currently lead their division with a 10-5 start and have showed an unexpected display of hitting ability at the plate.  Last year's World Series team was hindered all season long by poor offensive production.  Whats changed?  Not much.  With the exception of inserting Preston Wilson into the lineup the Astros roster is virtually the same as it was last year. 

The biggest question going into this year was how much depth does Houston's starting rotation have outside Oswalt and Pettitte.  Brandon Backe, who few know of outside of Houston, has played very well.  In last year's playoffs Backe had a better run then any of the staff with the exception of Oswalt.  Youngster Wandy Rodriguez has also shown a lot of promise so far into this young season posting a  2-0 record with a 2.84 era in 3 starts.  The bullpen also played very well in the playoffs last year.  Springer, Qualls, and Wheeler all pitched well in the postseason.  Brad Lidge was a monster all year until the NLCS and World Series.  However, I wouldnt expect that to become a trend.

With the season still very young its hard to say what will happen for the Astros.  I can say that I have been impressed so far with their 10-5 start.  I figured that they would be hovering around .500 at this point but they have been showing that they can actually score more than one or two runs in a game.  I can only hope that this will continue.  Can they win the Central this year and make a run at the Series again this year without the services of the Rocket?  I think so.

Unfortunately for the Mavericks there are no back to back games in the playoffs.  Why is this so unfortunate one might ask.  Well, the Spurs have struggled mightily this season in those games.  Of San Antonio's 18 losses this season, 10 have come on the second night of a back to back.  Now this of course is evidence that the Spurs' performances have been less than stellar when they are playing on little rest.  However, this means that when one eliminates the possibility of any back to back games in the playoffs the Spurs record looks a little bit scarier.  Winning 60 of the 68 games they have played when not including those 10 losses makes the Spurs a formitable foe...when they have rest.

The Mavericks are a very good team, but they are not great.  They are the only team with a bench that rivals that of the Spurs with guys like 6th man of the year candidate Jerry Stackhouse.  In the playoffs having depth in the bench is obviously very important.  Playing 90-100 games in 7 months can definitely take its toll.  This is something that has been called into question for a team like the Pistons who possess little depth with the exception of Antonio McDeyess.

The Mavericks problem, however, does not lie in their bench.  Their problem lies in the San Antonio Spurs.  The Spurs are too good, and are only getting better.  With injuries hindering their play much of the season, Pop is gearing them up for the postseason.  Nick Van Exel and Mike Finley are finding their groove, and everyone knows that Big Shot Bob doesn't play until the playoffs.  Beno Udrih was playing very solid while Nick Van Exel was out until he sprained his ankle a couple of weeks ago.  

Bench play aside, the Spurs have one valuable asset that the Mavericks do not.  The Spurs have proved that they can win it before.  Pop and the rest of the coaching staff have an edge over almost any other staff in that they know what it takes to win in the playoffs.  The Mavericks have yet to shed the label of team that is built for the regular season.  Its hard to see what piece of the puzzle they are lacking.  In previous years it has undoubtedly been their defense, or lack thereof.  However, with Avery Johnson's added emphasis on D this year that could change. 

The question then becomes what are they missing?  Its not that they are missing anything really.  Its just that the Spurs are...well....a better team.  In a 7 game series Dallas will have a very difficult time beating the Spurs, a team that can beat you in so many different ways.  On paper the Spurs are just too good of a team.  Of course, as they say, that is why they play the games. 

   

A certain blog that i was reading (by a person whose name i will not mention) left me a bit uneasy.  This person was trying to convince me that Kobe Bryant is playing at a Michael Jordan level.  I, however, wouldn't venture to compare Kobe  to Michael.  

 Mike made everyone around him better.  No doubt Kobe is a great talent, however he is not a great team player.  In the limited time that i've gotten to see the Lakers in action this season i have seen Kobe time and time again take lower percentage shots instead of dishing to Odom, or Mihm, or Parker or whoever it might be.  He wants the ball in his hand when the game is on the line because he is selfish and wants all the glory even if it means not passing to someone who might have a much better look. 

Yes a play might be drawn up for Kobe, but he should always be on the lookout for any man with an easy look.  If you ask any coach in this league whether he would want his superstar taking a difficult shot with the game on the line or one of his role players getting an easy look at the basket he would choose the latter.  Taking high percentage shots is what every coach stresses to his players at any level of the game.  Jordan would have done that.  He would have done what was best for the team like putting the game winning shot in Bill Paxson's hands in the finals instead of trying to do everything himself like Kobe.  It was that sacrifice that seperates Jordan from Kobe in that he did what was best for the team.  Kobe does whats best for himself. 

If Phil Jackson had Michael then and was able to win and now he has Kobe then why aren't they able to dominate?  If Kobe is on the same level as Mike then what has changed?  It isn't that the coach and his philosophy have changed or that the role players on this Lakers squad are far inferior to those of the Bulls.  As a matter of fact I would bet most people can't even name the starting 5 on that 72-10 team.  There were certainly no hall of fame caliber players on that team save Mike and Scottie.

The difference here is simple.  Mike had that ability to make everyone around him better.  Kobe does not have that.  In his prime Mike could have gone anywhere and that team would have instantly become a contender.  Obviously the same can not be said for Kobe. 

Im not trying to sit here and say that Kobe is not deserving of the MVP award this year or take away from any of his spectacular individual performances this year.  However thats exactly what they were: individual.  So in the future i hope this person, of whose name I wont mention, wont make claims that Kobe is on the level of Mike.  He is far from it.

Is it just me or does anyone else feel betrayed by old Jerry.  Terrell Owens is no doubt a great player.  One of the best receivers in the game no question.  So of course when the prospect of the Cowboys signing T.O. came about my first reaction was one of excitement.  However, that was soon followed by one of shame.  Is this not the same player who five years ago mocked the fans at Texas Stadium by disgracing the star at midfield? 

The Cowboys seem to have become a haven for castoff players in the last few years.  Some have worked out well (Keyshawn Johnson), while some not so well (Alonzo Spellman).  However, should a team sacrifice its integrity at the cost of one player?  Its no secret that Jerry Jones cares about one and one thing only: winning!  I too, as a loyal Cowboys fan, want my team to return to it's glory days of the 90's, but at what expense?  T.O. is one of the worst team players in the history of professional sports.  Everywhere that he has been he has caused controversy and drama.  Now I dont know about my fellow Cowboys faithful on this one, but I would rather pass up on a player who might be beneficial to my team at the expense of my pride.

Im sure that T.O. is going to produce on the field this year.  He will help the Cowboys to win games.  However, after he stood on the star at midfield and blatantly disrespected the team that I  have loved my whole life, he will NEVER be a true Cowboy.  Atleast not in my book.