Well since I have already given my picks for the Eastern conference, I guess I have to also give them to you for the West. And I don't really want to, since the picking the Western Conference is going to be anything but easy. But it's going to be some great basketball to watch, that's for sure.
So let's finish these picks, shall we?
First Round:
(1) LA LAKERS V. (8) DENVER
This is a matchup of two high scoring offensive teams for sure. Denver doesn't know how to do anything but play offense. That and drive drunk. Anyway, I only see the Nuggets mustering enough Kobe-stopping defense to grab one or maybe two games away from the Lakers. I won't be watching much of this series because I cannot stand watching Gasol prance up and down the court! Watch him, he's a prancer. Lakers in 6.
(2) NEW ORLEANS V. (7) DALLAS
The Hornets, by the way, are the #3 most thugginest team in the league, if you didn't already know that little tidbit. But they are also very young and don't have a lick of playoff experience. Still they've got Chris Paul and they've got some talent on that team. If guys like Peja actually show up to play, they are very hard to stop no matter who they're playing. Dallas is still real pissed after losing to the Warriors last season as the top seed in the west, so they're ready to play as well. Very good series. I think Dallas wins it in 7.
(3) SAN ANTONIO V. (6) PHOENIX
The Suns are the team that I am rooting for to win it all. So I would love to see them sweep the crap out of the Spurs. But somehow I don't see that quite happening. This is the series to watch out of pretty much all of them. I'll probably try and see every game. This is the exact reason why the Suns went out and grabbed Shaq from the Heat, so we're going to see how well that works out for them. Phoenix wins in 7.
(4) UTAH V. (5) HOUSTON
In a rematch series from last year's first round, the Jazz meet the Rockets once again. Utah has flown way beneath any radar for most of the season, but are going to be a tough team to beat in the playoffs. Houston has the home court advantage in this series, but that won't really matter. I think Utah is very well-equipped for a good playoff run. Utah wins in 6.
Second Round:
(1) LA LAKERS V. (4) UTAH
Like I just said, Utah is going to be a very very tough team to beat four times. But the Lakers might be a little bit harder. In the four games these two teams played this year, the Lakers won 3 of them. They both match up very well, and pretty equally. Except one team has Kobe Bryant and one team doesn't. Lakers win in 6.
(6) PHOENIX V. (7) DALLAS
Never thought I would actually pick the 6th and 7th seed to win a first round series, but that's how the Western Conference has been all year long. These two teams play a very similar style of basketball, so neither team can really "run on the other team" or "slow down the pace" and have a decided advantage. I think if Shaq can stay out of foul trouble for the most part, he's going to be a huge difference for the Suns. I think with Amare playing the way he is, he's nearly unstoppable. Everyone's paying too much attention to Shaq banging around in the paint, to effectively stop Amare. Suns win in 7.
Western Conference Finals:
(1) LA LAKERS V. (6) PHOENIX
The matchup of all matchups. I still can remember when these two teams hooked up a couple years back. That was a great series, folks. Must-see TV for sure. This year will be no different. You can't get much better than Shaq versus Kobe for the Western Conference title. As much as I want to see the Suns win the whole thing, I just think Kobe is too good. I think if any one player in the Western Conference can life and carry his team all the way, it's Kobe. I think the series goes seven games (and I hope it does too) and the Lakers win it. Lakers in 7.
So there you go. I've probably picked it all wrong. But you can't really tell in the Western Conference this year, and it's pretty much a crapshoot. My NBA Finals pick will come in a couple days.
