This year’s version of the NBA Playoffs has brought strong matchups in the conference finals. The playoffs have been nice considering that neither the Spurs nor the Lakers will be in the final, although the winner of the East will again be between the Detroit Pistons and the Miami Heat. No offense to San Antonio fans, but it’s nice, for a change, not seeing them in the Western Conference Finals. Ditto for Kobe and his supporting cast, as the Suns eliminated the Lakers in the first round after trailing three games to one.
It’s also been nice to see other teams make it to the second round. Remember not too long ago when the Cavaliers were considered unlikely to win their series with the Washington Wizards. It was seen as a draw, but many thought the Wizards would win. The wonderful result of that barn-burning series was that the Cavs took him out and finally gave the hapless city of Cleveland something to cheer about, which is great when you realize that Cleveland is a major sports city that He’s been through tough times.
Another surprise was the Clippers, who gave the Phoenix Suns a dogfight before being eliminated in Game 7. Clippers fans like Billy Crystal finally have something to celebrate, and it’s amazing that Staples Center was a red sea, instead of the perennial gold and purple.
Phoenix has also been a surprise, considering the injuries it has dealt with. Steve Nash and Shawn Marion have been warriors, despite nagging injuries. Without their stallion Amari Stoudemire, the Suns are three wins away from the NBA Finals.
The Mavericks had doubts of their own after losing Game 1 to Phoenix at the last second. However, with Dallas matching the series with Phoenix at one all night after a huge fourth-quarter comeback, naysayers and drumbeaters calling for the Mavericks to die if they lose 0-2 may simply have to wait longer. time for the clouds of doom to arrive.
There’s also a lot of offense in the Eastern Conference Finals, but both the Detroit Pistons and Miami Heat play better team defense than the Mavericks or Suns. The Pistons are a fun team to watch as they are one of the few teams in the NBA that still plays as a team, both on the offensive and defensive end. Regardless of the Heat’s veterans, including Gary Payton and Antoine Walker, Miami will only go as far as Dwayne Wade and Shaq will take them. The Pistons, when they really show up and play with some effort, can limit the effectiveness of the other players for Miami. For anyone who still wants to doubt the Pistons, even though they evened the series on Thursday night, don’t forget this is the same Pistons team that lost 3-2 to New Jersey last year and beat them. convincingly in the decisive seventh game. When the doubters returned once again after the Pistons fell 3-2 to the Cavs, Detroit came from behind and beat a red-hot Cleveland team led by that Air Jordan-Magic hybrid known as LeBron James.
The best part of the playoffs has been seeing the likes of Boris Diaw and Devin Harris stand out and even dominate many games during the playoffs. Winning a championship sometimes takes the efforts of unsung heroes or those who haven’t been big players in the past. A lot of playoff foes just need to remember Robert Horry’s name, which will probably make them sick.
The bottom line is that no matter who wins in the conference final, the results will most likely lead to an intriguing matchup in the final.