Western Conference Finals
Lakers vs. Nuggets
Point Guard: Derek Fisher vs. Chauncey Billips- I think most sane people who know anything about basketball would agree that the Nuggets have a HUGE advantage here. Billups is the best point guard left in the playoffs, that is a good sign for the Nuggets, although the Cavs have the other decent point guard. It will be interesting to see if Fisher guards Billups a little bit better since he is not lightning quick like Williams and Brooks. This is the series where the Lakers point guard issues will really hurt them. Chauncey is going to have a big series; these are the situations where he thrives. If Chauncey is hitting the threes I don't see how the Lakers will win this series. EDGE: Nuggets
Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant vs. Dahntay Jones- This is again a complete mismatch. Offensively and defensively Bryant is much better that Jones, but Jones isn't expected to be a scorer so he can put all of his focus into stopping number 24. However, the Nuggets are going to play J.R. Smith a lot for offensive purposes; this is when Kobe is going to score his points. I fully expect Kobe to come up huge in this series. He has been good so far in the playoffs, but has not been great. Kobe better take it to that extra level against this super- confident Nuggets or the Lakers are in for an unpleasant surprise. EDGE: Lakers
Small Forward: Trevor Ariza vs. Carmelo Anthony- Lakers fans, I hope you have realized by now that Ariza will never be a great player; Nuggets fans on the other hand should be beaming on what Melo has done so far. Very quietly Anthony had a giant series against the Mavs with 30 points per contest. Also, he hit probably the most under-appreciated game winner of the playoffs because it was overshadowed by controversy, but he hit a game winning three with one second left none the less. Ariza has disappeared in the Lakers losses this postseason. They need him to be consistent on both ends for them to cool off this Nuggets team. Especially going against a great scorer like Carmelo. EDGE: Nuggets
Power Forward: Pau Gasol vs. Kenyon Martin: Gasol has been very consistent for the Lakers and needs to continue his steady play in this series. Gasol has been criticized as soft and it will be interesting how he plays against a brawler like Martin. You know Martin is going to try to mess with him, but Gasol is mentally tough. He may not be the leader of this Lakers team but he's definitely been a leader before so he has that mental strength some do not have. Martin on the other hand has not been as consistent and has disappeared in the Nuggets two losses. If the Nuggets are to beat the Lakers in a seven game series they need him to play like he has in Denver's wins. Could he be the key for a victory against the L.A.? EDGE: Lakers
Center: Andrew Bynum vs. Nene Hilario- Bynum has largely been a non- factor in the playoffs for the Lakers. On the other hand, if Bynum comes to play this series he could be the deciding factor. He isn't getting major minutes though and doesn't match up with Nene very well anyways. The Nuggets should bruise up the Lakers in the post. Physical play is not the strong suit of this Lakers team. If Nene can play like he played in games 1 and 2 of the Mavs series then it gives the Nuggets a big advantage down low. EDGE: Nuggets
Bench: The Lakers definitely have the best player one either bench. Lamar Odom is their third best player and is a bench player in name only. He is injured however. Will he be able to play major minutes and still be effective? It is going to be really hard on his body. Besides Odom the Lakers don't have a whole lot coming off the bench. Guys like Farmar and Vujacic can be effective but they will not likely chancge the series. Denver's bench has that ability. J.R. Smith is one of the most dangerous three point shooters in the entire NBA and if he gets hot, look out. Chris "The Birdman" Anderson is one of the best role players on the league. He is a master shot blocker and never runs out of energy. Linas Kleiza has ability too, but he has yet to find his groove. Smith and Anderson will need to play well for the Nuggets to advance.
Prediction: I have underestimated this Nuggets team for long enough. I've picked against them in both rounds so I think its time to jump on the bandwagon. I really thing the Nuggets should be favored in this series. They have been the best team in the West by any standard so far. The Jazz and Rockets both put up better fights than expected and this gritty Nuggets team is going to put the Lakers in their place. Nuggets in 6
Game by Game:
Game 1: Nuggets by 12
Game 2: Nuggets by 1
Game 3: Lakers by 5
Game 4: Nuggets by 4
Game 5: Lakers by 17
Game 6: Nuggets by 2
Eastern Conference Finals
Cavaliers vs. Magic
Point Guard: Mo Williams vs. Rafer Alston- Williams has been very good for the Cavs this whole year and has finally given LeBron the number two guy he needs to win a title. He is no Scottie Pippen by any stretch, but he is a valuable scorer who can take some of the burden of of King James. Alston on the other hand has not been asked to score for the Magic. Orlando wants him to be a good leader of their offensive and score if he he gets some open looks. They don't expect him to do the same same things Jameer did and Rafer knows his role isn't to be the second best guy on the court. However, this is where having Alston instead of Nelson will hurt the Magic. Add Jameer to this Magic team and maybe (thats a big maybe) they could knock off the Cavs. EDGE: Cavs
Shooting Guard: Delonte West vs. J.J. Redick- West has been dynamite for the Cavs so far in the playoffs. HE has performed better than expected and is one of the main reasons (besides the obvious) that they are blowing away opponents. When you get 17 or 18 points from a guy like West that really improves your chances over seven games and over the entire playoffs. Redick has not been a factor for the Magic at all so far. He has had a few nice games but hasn't come up big in most of them. Basically if his three shot isn't falling, he will not be a factor.
EDGE: Cavs
Small Forward: LeBron James vs. Hedo Turkoglu- Does anybody think Turkoglu will stand any chance against the King? LeBron is in full out beast mode right now. Nobody wants to be the unfortunate soul going against him. Turkoglu stands no chance, he's a soft perimeter player. James is going to annihilate him. EDGE: Cavs
Power Forward: Anderson Varejao vs. Rashard Lewis- Varejao might be the second most important guy on this Cavs team. He isn't asked to score 20 points per game, and doesn't. He is asked to go out and play solid defense and bang the boards and he is one of the most effective players in the league at it. He knows his role and does his job well. That said, he struggled a little bit on Josh Smith, who plays on the perimeter like Lewis. Lewis loves the three ball and he shoots it well. If he makes half of his threes in this series the Magic will be moving in the right direction. EDGE: Magic
Center: Zydrunas Ilgauskas vs. Dwight Howard- Ilgauskas has been a fixture in Cleveland for a while and continues his strong play each season. He is as consistent as they come and can post up and hit the 15 footer. If he looks on the other side of the court he will see arguably the best center in the league. Howard has been stellar so far, but he really need to work on his shooting this offseason. If he learns how to be great on offense, he will be unstoppable. Howard has a few big games in him if the series goes seven, but if the Cavs win the first two Howard might not be able to muster up mental strength to outdo Lebron. EDGE: Magic
Bench: The Cavs boast the deepest bench in the postseason. Nobody off that bench will kill you, but Smith, Wallace, Szczerbiak, and Gibson can all do some damage though. They allow LeBron and the rest of the starters to take some time off. The Magic don't have a great bench but do have Lee and Pietrus who can roll off some points. Their bench will not decide the series.
Predictions: The Cavs have dominated all season long and I do not see that changing. I don't see LeBron being stopped by anybody this year;who in the world will be able to stop him in three years? The Magic should have polished off the C's before they did and stand no chance against the power of LeBron. Cavs in 4
Game 1: Cavs by 20
Game 2: Cavs by 6
Game 3: Cavs by 1
Game 4: Cavs by 14
Looking ahead: If the Cavs and Nuggets do hook up I like the Cavs in 5.
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