Fear Sameer

NO, I am NOT going to be tumbling about the NFL Draft that just finished the first round moments ago; that I’ll save for another post later this month-early next month. I will be blogging about the first round of the NBA playoffs, and give you my first impressions.

Let’s Go! Starting off with the Eastern Conference:

#1 Chicago Bulls vs. #8 Philadelphia 76ers

Last season’s regular season MVP, Derrick Rose, has missed like a bajillion games this year due to injury. What surprised me, though was how well the Bulls did without him - Rose missed about 1/3 of the regular season, and yet, the Chicago Bulls have the #1 seed heading into the playoffs, due to their stingy defense. The 76ers, on the other hand, do not have a #1 scorer like a majority of these playoff teams have; instead, they depend on the ‘hot hand’ for that game that will lead the Sixers in points. I see the 76ers shockingly stun the Central Division champion Chicago Bulls here.

Prediction: 76ers in FIVE SIX

#2 Miami Heat vs. #7 New York Knicks

The expectations for the Heat are SKY-HIGH right now; if they do NOT win it all this year - they are the prohibitive favorites in the Eastern Conference - their season would be a big, fat bust. It’s all or nothing here. The Heat bench players HAVE to step up after a mediocre regular season. Who will it be? Aging 3-point vets Battier or Miller, or young’un Norris Cole? Or playoff vets Udonis Haslem or Ronny Turiaf? If no bench player shows up, this series could go to seven games. For the Knicks, all of the pressure is on how Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire will coexist after Amare missed most of the second half of the regular season with a bum back; plus, no one player is HOTTER than Melo right now. With Steve Novak having a breakout season and newly-acquired J.R. Smith doing well, we might have a series here. I see the Heat squeaking by.

Prediction: Heat in SIX FIVE

#3 Orlando Magic vs. #6 Indiana Pacers

Probably one of the dullest first-round matchups of the season. It wouldn’t be much of an upset should the Pacers win this series, since the Magic starting line is a bunch of old three-point shooters - Jason Richardson, Hedo Turkoglu and Ryan Anderson - and nothing else, since Dwight “whiny” Howard is out for this series with a bad back - similar to Amare’s injury. The Pacers, on the other hand, have a young, VERY talented starting unit, with underrated center Roy Hibbert and talented guard-forwards in Danny Granger and Paul George. I see the Pacers EASILY winning this matchup.

Prediction: Pacers in FOUR FIVE

#4 Boston Celtics vs. #5 Atlanta Hawks

Is it just me, or do we see this playoff matchup EVER SINGLE YEAR? This series will have it’s competitiveness, but the stars for both teams the past three-four seasons are still the same - Rondo, Allen, Pierce and Garnett for the Celtics and Johnson, Smith and Marvin Williams for the Hawks. Like the Heat, someone outside this big 7 cast has to emerge as the X-Factor and lead his team to the second round. But who? I feel like the Celtics, with their red-hot defense, will move on to the next round.

Prediction: Celtics in SIX Woohoo! Got this correctly on the dot!