The Philadelphia 76ers Do Away With Generic Play In the Middle and Add a Brand Name

The Philadelphia 76ers went from marginal playoff team to Eastern Conference contender and it only cost them about $80 million dollars. This team overachieved last season in making the playoffs, let alone going up 2 to 1 against the mighty Pistons in the first round. Brand is a career 20 and 10 guy and instantly becomes one of the two best power forwards in the Eastern Conference alongside KG. In the East his chances at becoming an All Star and making it to the NBA Finals increase exponentially. His signing will allow Reggie Evans, a high energy guy who lacks the tools to be a dominant NBA power forward, to come off the bench and hopefully allow Sammy Dalembert (who has been a disaster since being given a big contract) to develop offensively. Andre Miller had a career year scoring the basketball last season (17 ppg), but his assists were down. The addition of Brand will allow him to find a even ground between scoring and handing out assists. Andre Igoudala needs to shoot better, but having a bona fide threat in middle will allow him room to slash to the basket, which is what he does best. Brand, when healthy, took the Clippers to within one game of the Western Conference Finals, yes the LA Clippers, so his credentials needed not be brought into question. I am assuming somewhere in the city of LA Baron Davis is sobbing. At least he has those $80 million to fall back on. The East is still all about the Mighty C's, but the Sixers will now be worth watching, especially if they someone, anyone, who can shoot the ball from the outside.

NBA Draft Wrap

It is amazing how superior the NBA Draft is to the NFL equivalent. It probably has a lot to do with team's only having five minutes in-between picks in the first round and two minutes in the second round. Also, only two rounds instead of seven helps. Most importantly is the fact that Chris Berman is not on the stage. This is not to say that the NBA Draft is perfect. There is still the Stuart Scott and Steven A. Smith problems and there is always Jay Bilas' overuse of his newest favorite phrase to describe players that no one has heard of. It appears that wingspan is the new upside. All in all, it was a draft that provided few surprises.

The Bulls made the smart pick at #1, bringing Rose back home to play. Now they will be able to move either Heinrich or Gordon and finally have some potential excitement on the offensive end. The Heat also did the right thing by drafting arguably the best player in the draft. Beasley is Al Horford amplified and with him, Wade, and Marion, the Heat will win more than 15 games next season. O.J. Mayo to Minnesota made sense, but I am not sure about this guy. He will either be Deron Williams or Shaun Livingston. But Minnesota subsequently trading him to Memphis for Kevin Love is questionable (did they forget that drafted Mike Conley to be the point guard of the future in last year's draft?). Love will be nothing more than an 8 rpg guy for Minnesota, if that. I thought Seattle should have taken Jerryd Bayless instead of Russell Westbrook at #4 and thought it a major coup for Portland to land Bayless (via trade with Indiana), who could end up being the best player in this draft. The Knick's selection of Danilo Gallinari at # 6 does nothing for a very bad team (needed to go guard here). I did like Milwaukee picking up Joe Alexander, who could be an integral part of an up-tempo offense alongside newly acquired Richard Jefferson. The Clippers needed a point guard and took a shooting guard (Eric Gordon) and the Bobcats needed a center and took a point guard (D.J. Augustin), meaning the Nets got a steal in Brook Lopez (the one who can play offense, not defense) at #10. Some good players were acquired in the second round, as the Heat were able to get a much needed point guard in Mario Chalmers via trade with Minnesota and New Jersey again got a steal in getting Chris Douglas Roberts at #40. The Mighty C's drafted high potential guys who have major character issues in J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker. They also drafted a guy from Turkey who will never play in the NBA (he is the backup to the guy from Turkey who was drafted earlier in the second round, his name is both inconsequential and difficult to spell).

Sweet Seventeen

My earliest NBA memory is the 1986 NBA Finals and euphoria that accompanied the Celtics winning their 16th title. I still remember the images of Bird and Walton on the sideline in the game's waning moments and how the fans stormed the court like one only sees in a college game today. The Celtics returned to the finals the following season and lost to the Lakers, thus ending the glory days for my favorite team. Since that last championship, Celtics fans have endured the deaths of Len Bias and Reggie Lewis, the breakdown of Larry Bird's body, the Rick Pitino experiment, not getting Tim Duncan in 1997 draft, and Antoine Walker as a number two scorer, I could name more. During this dark period there has been one ray of hope that has shined on, albeit very dimly at times, Paul Pierce. Of all the great Celtics, none have dealt with more pitiful circumstances than "the truth." The acquisition of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen made this team an instant contender. And yes, now that they have won a title we can refer to them as "The Big Three, V. 2.0." Also, the signing of James Posey was a great signing. Say what you will about the guy, but he can play. He has a Robert Horry quality to his game. Depth was the major question mark coming into the season for the Mighty C's. But solid play from the likes of Leon Powe, Glen Davis (much to my surprise), Eddie House, and later P.J. Brown answered that question. Another question was the play of everyone in the starting lineup not named Pierce, Garnett, or Allen. Young Rondo demonstrated that he is on the cusp of becoming a top flight point guard in the NBA. He shot better than was expected throughout the season and played sensational defense. He is starting to blossom under the tutelage of a coach who was a pretty good point guard in his own right. Kendrick Perkins is one of the more frustrating players to watch, as he shows signs of being able to take over a game with his interior defense and rebounding, but has problems staying on the court because of foul trouble. He showed something during these playoffs, a toughness and improved presence on the block that should make all Celtics fans excited.

Back to the aforementioned feeling of euphoria. After watching this team nearly squander a 24-point in the final 8 minutes of Game 2, play terribly and still almost win Game 3, engineer the greatest comeback in the playoffs in any sport since Frank Reich brought Buffalo back from the dead in the 1993 Wildcard playoffs in Game 4, and nearly finish the Lakers off in LA in Game 5, I was cautiously optimistic going into last night's Game 6. Cautious optimism became over-exuberance as the Mighty C's put it on the Lakers to close out the first half. Remembering Game 2, I was weary, but the onslaught continued with the best defensive performance exhibited in a championship game since the Steelers held the the Vikings to 119 yards and 9 first downs in Super Bowl IX. The Mighty C's set a finals record with 18 steals. Rondo was fantastic and demonstrated his potential shooting the ball in being aggressive early. Allen exhibited why they signed him, going 7-9 from the three-point line. Garnett saved his best performance for the series clincher. And James Posey was once again stellar off the bench. The Celtics never let up, putting on a show with the second unit to close out beating their once bitter rivals by 39. Like I had said in my posting before the start of the playoffs many moons ago, "17 is currently my favorite number." But I must say, 18 is looking good all of a sudden...

2+2=17

The Mighty C's held serve through the first two games of the NBA Finals. After leading by 24 with 8 minutes to play in Game 2, the Lakers roared back, cutting the lead to 2 by way of a three-point barage normally reserved for the NCAA tournament. Needless to say, this was a bit unnerving. The story for Boston was the play of Leon Powe, who went for 21 in victory, shooting more free throws by himself than the entire Laker team. Garnett has dominated the glass and Pierce has been brilliant in the series thus far. The key to victory in the first two games has been keeping Kobe in check (holding him to 24 and 30 is considered hodlding him in check, as he is the best player on the planet). Kobe is due for dominating performance, so look out. As good as Boston has been at home in the playoffs (12-1), the Lakers have been better (8-0). The 2-3-2 format used in the NBA Finals is obnoxious, but as long as the Celtics manage one win out of the three in LA they will be in great shape to unfurl banner #17 from the rafters.

Road Warriors

After going winless on the road in first two rounds of the NBA playoffs and nearly causing me multiple heart attacks, the Mighty C's flexed their collective muscles and managed two wins against the Pistons in one the NBA's toughest venues. After nearly allowing a 17-point fourth quarter lead to vanish in Game 5, the Celtics used a strong fourth quarter in Game 6 to eliminate the Pistons, who are in the midst of an Atlanta Braves like run over the past 6 years (6 Conference Finals, 2 Finals, 1 championship). Kevin Garnett will be the story of this finals, as he has that John Elway quality about him, the guy everyone wants to see win a title (I want to be on the record as saying I was not one of these people, for John Elway, not KG). But, for me as a life-long Celtics fan, it is all about Paul Pierce. No Boston star has had to suffer like Pierce (most playoff games in team history without an NBA title), as over the course of his stellar 10-year career this team has been somewhere between terrible and mediocre. Pierce better be ready, as Kobe brings the Lakers back to Boston for the NBA Finals. The last time these teams met in the Finals, the year was 1987 and Magic Johnson hit the infamous "junior, junior sky-hook" in Game 4 that me and all Boston fans would love to forget.
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As for my pick, I will go with my heart, although my head is trying to convince me to go another route. No team is playing better than the Lakers right now, as they dismissed the champs in the short-order in the Western Conference Finals. The key to this series will be the play of each team's number 3 guy-Ray Allen vs. Lamar Odom. As exhibited for a majority of the playoffs, the Celtics struggle when Allen struggles. He certainly found his touch in the second half of the Eastern Conference Finals and needs to continue to play at a high level to give his team a chance. These are both deep teams, thus bench play will be another major factor. The defense of Paul Pierce has been exemplary in playoffs against LeBron James and Tayshaun Prince and he will face his biggest challenge yet against the best player on the planet. Keeping Kobe under 30 points is a big part of the formula for victory. My final projection-Celtics over Lakers in 6.

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This will be the 61st NBA Finals and the 11th time these teams have met, so it is difficult to not get excited for it, even if the rivalry is nothing like it was in the 1980s. In the 80s, the Lakers were the only evil empire I knew anything about, epitomizing all that was wrong in the world. It is this healthy type of hatred bred in the heart of a 7 year old that free agency has killed in sports. Celtics-Lakers used to be the struggle between good and evil. While it might not be the same 20 years later, one phrase still sounds good...Beat L.A.

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For the take of someone who remembers when Kareem went by Lew, go here.

To Be the Champ You Have To....

The Hornets proved they were more Michael Spinks than Buster Douglas when it came to a prize fight with the champs. The Spurs dismissed the youthful Hornets in easy order last night. The future is certainly bright in the Big Easy, but it was not to be for Paul and West this season. The Spurs victory sets up a dream Final Four for the NBA with the league's four best teams (yes, the Hornets were technically the number 2 seed in the West, but the Spurs were a better team). To date, LWAL has picked all playoff series winners correctly, which is not that impressive when one considers that outside of the Spurs beating the Hornets, the higher seed has won every series. A track record like this means I am due to be wrong. Without further adieu, Picks That Sure to be Wrong, Conference Finals Edition:

• Mighty C's over the Pistons, 4-2: The Celtics will win at least on game in Detroit in a series that will certainly be low scoring, as these are the two best defensive teams in the NBA. This nonsensical streak of wining at home and losing on the road cannot continue. It must be embarrassing for Ray Allen to lose minutes in the fourth quarter of a Game 7 to Eddie House. He must shoot better. All of these games will be close and come down to who executes best in the fourth quarter, also Billups' health could be an issue.
  
• Lakers over Spurs, 4-3: This should be a great series. Of course I said Spurs-Hornets would be great and it was the worst seven game series in the history of sports. These two teams have won 7 of the last 10 championships, thus their meeting in the Conference Finals is a dream match-up for basketball fans. I like Kobe playing the signature game of his career in a close Game 7 at home.

This of course will create an NBA Finals for those who's interest has waned since Larry and Magic retired. While the rivalry is not what it was, when the Lakers' starting five were the five sports figures I despised more than all others, this match-up might bring people back into the fold. My projection remains unchanged: Celtics over Lakers.

For an expert take, go here.

It's About Time, Part II

For the second time in the month of May, the Mighty C's have been taken to a Game 7 by an inferior opponent and won, thus making the Celtics perfect at home and winless on the road in the 2008 playoffs. As a fan, this has been quite unnerving, especially with the Pistons and one the three best from the West on the horizon. The story of Sunday's game was Pierce and Lebron, with Cleveland living up to the moniker I game them here, the Cleveland LeBron James'. His team is pitiful. James scored 48.9 percent of the team's points. This guy is one Pau Gasol away from leading a bad team to an NBA title. In the end, it was Pierce's 41 that won the day (FYI-Larry Bird's career high in a Game 7 was 39), relinquishing Lebron to Dominique Wilkins status. Wilkins' 47 points and fourth quarter duel with the aforementioned Bird (34 for the game, 20 in the fourth quarter) in Game 7 of the 1988 Conference Semifinals in the Boston Garden is still the standard bearer for great performances in a losing effort in a Game 7. Pierce's performance was certainly one that will be remembered as one of the greatest in the storied playoff history of the Mighty C's. He has been the only constant on a team that has overachieved for most of his career (the 2002 trip to the Conference Finals exemplifies this point most clearly), thus as a fan, watching Pierce dominate a Game 7 on a great team is extremely gratifying. Worth noting is the performance of P.J. Brown in yesterday's game. He played 20 minutes, going for 10 and 6 on 4-4 shooting from the floor, including a super-clutch 17-footer in game's waning moments. I did not think the old man had it in him, but credit to Doc for acquiring him late and recognizing how effective he could be when provided the opportunity.

Another Game 7 tonight with the Pesky Hornets trying to KO the champs in the Big Easy. My prediction was Spurs in seven and I will stand by that pick, for I still cannot see this very talented young team taking out the veteran Spurs. Picks that are sure to be wrong, Conference Finals Edition coming tomorrow.

Desparately Seeking Scottie

If last night's Game 5 of the Boston-Cleveland series taught us anything, it taught us that LeBron James needs a sidekick. Guys named Boobie, Wally, and Zee need not apply. Despite James' 23 points in the first half, the Cavs only led by 3 (after squandering a 14-point advantage minutes earlier) at the intermission. James ended with 35, but was essentially a non-factor in the second half. At this stage in his career, James is Michael Jordan (Kobe is the best player, but too old to take the role). James plays on a team of fourth and fifth scoring options. The Celtics were not too heartbroken when they had to part with Delonte West, who is an exceptional backup point guard. In their first three trips to the playoffs (1985-1987), Jordan's Bulls won one game (this stretch included two sweeps by the Mighty C's). In the 1987 NBA draft they added Scottie Pippen and immediately began winning in the playoffs, including a trip to the conference semis in 1988 and consecutive losses to the Bad Boys in the Eastern Conference Finals in 1989 and 1990. We know what happened next. The point is, Jordan needed help to get over the hump. The Bulls might have won a title had the Sonics not traded the rights to Scottie Pippen for the rights to Olden Polynice, but they would not have gone on to be the second most dominating team in NBA history (a distant second at that to the 1960s Celtics). It is here where the parallel to James is clearly exhibited. Not to take away from the Cavs and their superstar, but they have over-performed the past three seasons. While Jordan was playing the likes of Larry, McHale, and Parrish in the first round, LeBron has faced the Wizards, a franchise that passed out t-shirts celebrating their making the playoffs in consecutive seasons. While teams that made the playoffs in the Eastern Conference in the 1980s deserved to be there, one can question the credentials of the playoff teams from the Least over the past three seasons. The fact remains, the Cavs will not win the championship until they get LeBron a guy who can score, run the offense, and play shut-down defense when required. That might be asking too much, but how about just a decent player...

Good Homecooking

There is nothing better than a good home cooked meal. Spaghetti made by Mom tastes so much better than that prepared by lesser acquaintances. She knows that good spaghetti involves the inclusion of Italian sausage in the sauce and avoids serving sauce that is laden with nasty hunks of tomato. Others don't know this, so it is just not as enjoyable to eat their sausage-less chunky tomato paste at their house. But, sometimes you just have to do it. This is my advice to all the teams still playing in the NBA playoffs, especially the Mighty C's of Boston. The only home team to lose in the second round at home is the team that is no longer playing, the Orlando Magic. The Hornets kept the exemplary home play going last night by easily dismissing the champs and sending them into the ropes. This has been the most boring 3-2 series I have ever watched. Despite the much hyped anticipation here, every game of this series has not been intriguing after halftime. I will reluctantly stay with my prediction of Spurs in seven. The play of the Celtics on the road has been baffling. This team lost 10 road games during the regular season and have already lost five in five tries during the playoffs. While the defense has been very good, the offense has been awful. I am still waiting for LeBron to go off for 40, which he is due for. The good news is that they have home court advantage throughout the playoffs, but I do not want to assume they will just win every time they play in the state of Massachusetts. They will win tonight and hopefully get that first road win on Friday. The Lakers night be in trouble. If Kobe Bryant cannot shoot from outside the paint they will be extremely vulnerable to the very good team from the Mormon State.

For expert analysis, go here.

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My current projection-Celtics over Lakers

Do you believe in (the) Magic?

While each conference's respective top seed are making seemingly easy progress toward the conference finals, the other two series seem to be getting interesting:

• Boston/Cleveland-Defense and unselfish play on offense have been the story for the Mighty C's. After averaging 29.8 points on .483 shooting and less than 3 turnovers a game in round 1, King James is averaging a mere 16.5 points on .190 shooting with a ridiculous 8.5 turnovers a game. Who has filled the void offensively? Zydrunas Ilgauskas is the Cavs leading scorer at 20.5 per game. During the regular season he led the team in scoring 5 times and the team went 2-3 in those games. This team will not win a single game in this series if James does not get it together.
• Detroit/Orlando-In his first eight career playoff games, Dwight Howard is averaging 20.9 points, 16.1 rebounds, and 3.75 blocks a game. The fact that they were able to dominate the Pistons in Game 3 (and blowing an opportunity to win Game 2 in the waning moments) paired with the fact that Chauncey Billups might not be able to play in tomorrow's Game 4, the Magic might be able to work themselves back into the series. It is good for the psyche of young team to at least play well in a series they are supposed to get blown out in (see this year's first round performances by the Sixers and Hawks for examples). The future is bright for the Magic, even more so if they are able to push the Pistons to 6 or 7 games.
• Los Angeles/Utah-No one is playing better than the undefeated in the playoffs version of the Los Angeles Lakers. Kobe Bryant is playing like a man on a mission. He needs that ring without Shaq to shake the stigma. He is averaging a ridiculous 36/7/6.5 for the series. Deron Williams is not enough to topple this team, his 19.5/6/9.5 has been exceptional but not enough. The Jazz should manage a split at home, seeing how tough they are in the state of Utah, but this series will not be coming back to the state, so Jazz fans should enjoy.
• New Orleans/San Antonio-The Spurs looked old in the first two games of this series, getting dominated in the third quarter of both games. They bounced back last night, flexing their championship quality muscle in the the second half, outscoring the pesky Hornets 56-43. In his first eight career playoff games, Chris Paul has averaged 25.6 points, 11.8 assists, and 2 steals a game. But the most amazing stat is that he has 94 assists and only 10 turnovers. I still like the guys with all the hardware in seven in this series, but if New Orleans manages a win in Game 4...

My current projection-Celtics over Lakers

It's About Time

The only thing better than a Game 7 is a Game 7 where your team wins. The only thing better than a Game 7 where your team wins is when your team blows out its opponent by 34. I actually felt sorry for the cagey Hawks in the second half as the Mighty C's poured it on the overachievers from Atlanta en route to a second round date with the Cleveland LeBron James'. Throughout the series, the Hawks seemed out of their element when not playing at home and today's game was no exception. Now the second round can actually begin (unless you play in San Antonio, New Orleans, Detroit, and Orlando, where it started yesterday). All match-ups are intriguing. Hopefully the second round has a bit more excitment than round one (except for the heart attack the Hawks nearly caused yors truly). All first round picks made here were correct (teams that advanced, not the number of games it took), so now for the second round:

• Celtics over LeBron James, 4-2: The Cavs win two games because of James and nothing more. It is scary to think of how good this team will be when they find him a sidekick or at least stock the roster with at least one other decent player.
• Detroit over Magic, 4-1: This will be the series that convinces everyone that Detroit is the team to beat in the East. They dominated the magic in yesterday's Game 1. It is hard to see them competing unless Howard can average 22 and 18 as he did in the first round.
• Lakers over Jazz, 4-2: This could be a great series. Kobe versus Deron Williams is Must-see TV, but the Jazz are terrible outside of the state of Utah and the Lakers are good.
• Spurs over Hornets: This is potentially the best series of the entire playoffs outside of Boston versus Los Angeles. The upstart Hornets taking on the veteran Spurs, is the penultimate battle of youth versus experience. I like experience when it has won four titles in the last 10 years, but the Spurs will have to defend David West better than they did in a bad Game 1 loss.

My current projection-Celtics over Lakers

D Is For Disappointment

If I were Avery Johnson, I would not feel to secure in my position as head coach of the Dallas Mavericks. Last night's loss at the hands of Hornets meant that his teams have failed to make it out of the first round in consecutive seasons. No one really expected them to win this year, but is this an excuse for a team that won 67 games a year ago? I say no. This team should be better. Most picked them to contend in the super-loaded Western Conference and this team barely made the playoffs. Chris Paul continued to display why he is a top 3 player in the league (and deserving MVP for this season) with a triple double in last night's win (24/11/15). In his first 5 career playoff games, Paul is averaging 25 points, 6 rebounds, 12 assists, and 2 steals. The other disappointing team in the Western Conference would have to be the Phoenix Suns, who were a chic pick to win the conference this year and were eliminated in the first round by the Spurs last night. Like Dallas, this team should be better and should not have been in a position where they were playing the Spurs in the first round. This team should spend the entire offseason working on defending the pick and roll, as the combination of Duncan and Parker made these guys look like clowns defensively. Also, free throw shooting was a problem. The Suns did their best Memphis Tigers impersonation, missing 17 free throws. The biggest problem for this team as they move forward is age. Shaq looks and plays much slower. While he can still be effective in small doses, he is nowhere near the force he once was. Grant Hill missed this series, which was costly. Steve Nash looked old and played terribly in this series. He had four 4th quarter turnovers and had only 11 points and 4 assists in the team's most important game of the season. Were the critics right in their assessment of the O'Neil and Kidd acquisitions? Maybe. In other action, Tracy McGrady kept the Rockets' heads above water in blowout fashion and the Pistons finally asserted themselves on the Sixers. Three of four picks correct in yesterday's picks that are sure to wrong playoff close-out edition, as for tonight, the Mighty C's find their way back to the light at home in dominant fashion over the cagey Hawks and the Cavaliers close-out the Wizards.

This Was Not Supposed To Happen...

The scrappy Atlanta Hawks will not go away. Last night, behind 35 by Joe Johnson and 28 by Josh Smith, the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference drew even with the Mighty C's. It is hard to imagine this continues into Wedensday's Game 5, but we all thought there was no way the Warriors could dismantle the 67-win Dallas Mavericks a year ago at this time. In other action, the heartless Denver Nuggets were swept by the Lakers, which could not have surprised anyone who watched five minutes of that series. Why this franchise is bringing back George Karl as head coach is inexplicable. This team has two of the top four scorers in the league and arguably the league's best defensive player and this is the best they can do? Also, in the NBA TV Invitational, the Magic finished off the Raptors in a series watched by seven people. It is not clear why the NBA thinks that people would not want to see these games (only one game was not on NBA TV). Dwight Howard had his third 20-20 game of the series, making him the first player to do that since Wilt Chamberlain. Yes, Wilt Chamberlain. Tonight will be close out night in New Orleans, San Antonio, and Utah with the Pistons finally taking a series lead in Detroit over the surprising Sixers. Hopefully the second round will be a bit more intriguing than the first.

My current projection-Celtics over Lakers

Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant Are MVP-ish

To date, the first round of the NBA playoffs have been mildly uneventful. With the exception of the Sixers' shocking Game 1 win in Detroit, everything has gone according to the script. The only series where the higher seed is not leading (or tied if you are the Pistons) is the Utah-Houston series, but Tracey McGrady never wins in the playoffs so this should not be surprising. We can begin to formulate answers to the questions we considered here the other day. The Hornets do not appear to have stage fright in their maiden voyage into the playoffs, as they have dominated the veteran-laden Dallas Mavericks in the first two games. The Spurs are not too old, winning the best game of playoffs thus far in double OT in Game 1 and dominating in Game 2 against Phoenix. This current Phoenix team could go down as the best team to never win a title in the annals of NBA history. The Mighty C's are fantastic and have refused to play down to the Hawks level (a good young team, but not playoff caliber by any stretch of the imagination). The Lakers are as good as advertised and the Pistons seem to be about as good as one might expect, Game 1 not withstanding. While the series' have been anti-climatic thus far, there have been countless utterly ridiculous individual performances worth noting, here are the five best to date:

1. Kobe Bryant: 40.5 ppg/5.5 apg/5.2 rpg/50% FG--Had 49 last night and 32 in Game 1 after a very slow start. He is the best basketball player on the planet, no questions asked.
2. Chris Paul: 33.5 ppg/13.5 apg/3.5 spg/64% FG--Proved that his playoff debut was not a fluke (35 points, 10 assist, 4 steals) by playing even better in Game 2 (32 points, 17 assists, 3 steals). He is easily the best point guard in the league and should be the MVP (Kobe will win it).
3. Dwight Howard: 27 ppg/21 rpg/4 bpg/66% FG--A basketball insider close to LWAL asked last night if Howard could get to 100 points/100 rebounds in only 5 games? He could, but I do not know if this series will go that long. Like Paul, a stellar playoff debut for one the league's brightest burgeoning stars.
4. LeBron James: 31 ppg/7.9 rpg/7.2 apg/55% FG--Has been somewhat overlooked this season with the play of Bryant and Paul, but the NBA's scoring champ has been sensational thus far and has made what should have been a tough series seem easy through two games.
5. Tim Duncan: 29 ppg/16 rpg/ 3 bpg/55 % FG--The league's most unselfish player demonstrated his greatness in Game 1 with 40, 15, and 5 and hit a clutch three-pointer that sent the game into overtime.

My current projection: Celtics over Lakers

17 is Currently My Favorite Number

With the start of the NBA playoffs, my earliest NBA memory comes to mind, the Celtics eliminating the Rockets in the 1986 NBA finals. It was the 16th title for that storied franchise. A franchise that has failed to live up to a high standard ever since. There is sharp contrast between East and West. While the latter is loaded with many intriguing match-ups, the former has only one. There are many questions. Are the Hornets too young? Are the Spurs too old? Are the Mighty C's too good? Are the Jazz able to win on the road? Are the Lakers as good as advertised? Are the Pistons underrated? I have no idea, but it will be great fun to find out. Here are some picks sure to be wrong, NBA Playoff Edition:
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Celtics over Hawks, 4-0
Cavs over Wiz, 4-2
Pistons over Sixers, 4-1
Magic over Raptors, 4-3

Hornets over Mavs, 4-2
Lakers over Denver, 4-1
Spurs over Suns, 4-3
Jazz over Rockets, 4-3

My current projection-Celtics over Lakers

Deep in the Heart of Texas...

Last night the Celtics completed a season sweep of the current 3, 6, and 7 seeds on a whirlwind road trip through the state of Texas with a win over the Dallas Mavericks. Defeating the Spurs in a tight game on Monday night and putting an end the Rockets' amazing 22-game win streak in blowout fashion on Tuesday the Celtics have seemingly answered the question about how they might fare against the superior competition offered from the Western Conference. The Celtics are 23-4 against the West, including 10-3 against the teams currently in the playoffs in the West. At this point they are clearly the best team in the NBA, possessing size, sharpshooting, great defense, and a very underrated bench. Sam I Am has started playing better after a dreadful start to his tenure as a Celtic, he had 17 points and a clutch three pointer in the game's waning moments in the win over the Spurs this week. Last night, he only had four points but had six assists while playing most of the fourth quarter. It seems that Doc Rivers will utilize the experience of Cassell and Posey with the big three in the fourth quarter of a close game. And now for my favorite past time senseless rankings, the NBA edition:

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1. Celtics
2. Lakers

3. San Antonio

4. Detroit

5. Phoenix

It is worth mentioning the play of the Philadelphia 76ers, a team's who's best players are Andre Miller and Andre Igoudala. This team should be in the lottery not in a position to potentially (but unlikely) host a playoff series in round one. They currently sit in the seventh spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race, one game behind Washington for fifth and 4.5 behind Cleveland for fourth. Andre Miller is playing like he belongs in the conversation about top 5 NBA point guards. This team is one star player away from being a strong team in a weak Eastern Conference. Mo Cheeks is the coach of the year at this point.

My current projection-Celtics over Lakers

20????

If someone had asked me before the start of the season which NBA team had the best chance of winning 20 games in a row, I would have listed these teams, in this order:

1. Boston--The Eastern Conference is embarrassingly bad.
2. Detroit--The Eastern Conference is embarrassingly bad.

That's it. I would have laughed at the notion of any Western Conference team being able to pull it off. "The conference is too deep," I would have stated authoritatively in my best NBA expert voice. Well, the Houston Rockets have done the impossible, tying the second longest winning streak in NBA history last night with a tough win over the Atlanta Hawks. While they are a long way from the '71-'72 Lakers 33 game streak, this streak is nothing short of amazing, especially when one considers that they have played the last eight without Yao Ming. Also, Tracy McGrady is having his lowest scoring output (22.1 ppg) since the '99-'00 season with Toronto (15.4 ppg), his assists are down from last year, and his rebounding is well below his career average. It is not clear how this team is within one game of the best record of the best conference the NBA has seen in quite some time. This team cannot win the title without Yao Ming, but they are the story in the NBA right now. In somewhat related news, the Mighty C's of Boston won their 10th in a row with a thrashing of the lowly Supersonics. This is the first such streak since '85-'86 when the Celtics, interestingly enough, beat the Houston Rockets in the NBA Finals.

My current projection: Celtics over Spurs

Welcome Sam I Am

The Celtics have added an sometimes disgruntled, yet very veteran point guard. Sam Cassell is a proven commodity on good teams with a significant amount of playoff experience. In 2003-2004, his first year in Minnesota, Sam I Am teamed with Kevin Garnett (and Troy Hudson, remember him?) to lead that franchise out of the wilderness into the Western Conference Finals. While they were subsequently discarded by the Shaq-Kobe juggernaut, this seemed to mark a formative step in the development of a team that had been steadily getting better (the Timberwolves have not made the playoffs since and are currently one game behind Miami for the right to own the most ping pong balls in the silly draft lottery). In 2005-2006, his first year with the L.A. Clippers, Cassell teamed with Elton Brand to lead that lowly franchise further than it had ever been, within one game of reaching the Western Conference Finals. The mighty C's currently have one glaring hole, depth at the guard position. Currently, Eddie House and Gabe Pruitt are the only other point guards on the roster. House is not known for his deft passing ability and Pruitt plays less than six minutes a game. Rajon Rondo garners mixed reviews in my opinion. While he has proven to be a solid defender and a surprisingly good shooter (48% FG), he barely averages five assists a game on a team with Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce. His play has been very uneven, which is where Cassell enters the picture. He can teach young Rondo how to better play the position, provide a player who can handle the ball when Rondo is on the bench (Eddie House bringing the ball up-court can be quite unnerving), and be a seasoned playoff veteran to run the offense in the game's waning moments.