...all about the NBA: The East...

After watching the LA Lakers get beated down in Portland yesterday, I was interested to look at the playoff picture and look at how it would fare. Miami is still my favorite team, but early on in the season, I got Cleveland and LA squaring off in the finals, and they haven't done anything to change my mind this late in the season.

Early Easter Sunday mass weirdly inspired me to just paint a whole picture of how I see the playoffs happening. Hence, I write about who I'd like to see matched up with who by using projected starters and bench players (baka ndi kumpleto, ndi ko memorize lineups, and since Divine Inspiration lang to, un playoff picture lang titingnan ko sa NBA.com para makita matchups nila.)in addition to my thoughts on who would win the series.

==============================================================

East Picture: First round

Though I'm more interested in the West matchups, this is the easier picture to paint. The West, up to this point in time, still does not have definite seeding while the East, playing the way they are playing now, is pretty much set.

(1) Cleveland  vs (8) Detroit

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Zydrunas Ilgauskas                                  C     Rasheed Wallace
PF  Ben Wallace                                            PF  Antonio McDyess
SF  LeBron James                                        SF  Tayshaun Prince
SG Maurice Williams                                   SG  Rip Hamilton
PG Delonte West                                           PG  Rodney Stuckey
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

C   Joe Smith                                               PG Will Bynum

PF Anderson Varejao                                     PF Jason Maxiel

SF Sasha Pavlovic                                         SF Walter Hermann

SF Wally Sczerbiak                                       C Kwame Brown

PG Daniel Gibson
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Team Analysis:

The Detroit Pistons have arguably been the most consistent playoff contender in the East for several years now, dating back to their Cinderella run back in 2004. But after shipping Chauncy Billups away for Allen Iverson, you'd like to doubt their commitment to winning it all. True, Chauncy's presence would hinder the growth of their emerging star in Rodney Stuckey, so it's logical to ship him out. But how does getting Allen Iverson help? And now, with AI out for the season, and him not wanting to take a back seat for anyone, the Pistons found an "answer" to "The Answer's" posted problem: Will Bynum. The guy scored 26 points in a quarter, against near-playoff contenders Charlotte. While Stuckey has seemingly been sub-par, Will Bynum is being what Rodney Stuckey was last year; a revelation. With Bynum being a spark, Dyess can move into the starting lineup and leave his sixth man duties to the little guy.

Cleveland is making all the stops to keep hometown hero LeBron happy where he is. They could sell the whole team and ask LeBron who he wants as teammates just to make him stay. The team is where it is now because of LeBron, and without him, they're going back to their regular seat in the lottery. The Cavs were the Clippers of the East, a team that always had a young core, but never considered as a franchise with a winning tradition. They reached the Finals a couple of seasons ago with LeBron literally carrying the whole team there. But he could only do so much, going against the team concept of the mighty Spurs. Now, with an offense made deadlier by a shooter in Mo Williams and the slashing of Delonte West, and a defense anchored on the hustle of Big Ben Wallace, plus a bench veteran who could fill in in the person of Joe Smith, the Cavs are poised to make more of a statement than they did when they were swept by the Spurs in the Finals.

Result: Cleveland win in 5 (Story: King is always better than the Prince)

The Pistons will probably be stronger next year, with AI off the books and financial flexibility in their power. But this year, they're going to hit a dead end against the Cavs team not looking for an early exit. The Cavs are just invincible at home, and may drop game 3 due to the playoff atmosphere in the Palace, but they'll ultimately persevere and win it all back home.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

(2) Boston Celtics vs (7) Philadelphia 76ers*

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Kendrick Perkins                                     C    Samuel Dalembert
PF  Kevin Garnett                                        PF  Mareese Speights
SF  Paul Pierce                                           SF  Thaddeus Young
SG Ray Allen                                              SG  Andre Igoudala
PG Rajon Rondo                                           PG  Andre Miller
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

C   Glen Davis                                              PG Louis Williams

PG Eddie House                                            SG Willie Green

PG Stephon Marbury                                      PF Reggie Evans

PF Leon Powe                                               PF Donyell Marshall

PF Mikki Moore                                            SG Kareem Rush
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Team Analysis:

The Sixers nearly upset Detroit last year, but had one major flaw: shooting. Hence they made arguably the biggest move in the offseason to remedy that:: sign Elton Brand. Ok. I honsetly didn't know what to think of that deal. Probably because the other "AI" wasn't much of a franchise player, so they needed a legit franchise player to take over games when "AI" didn't want to take over. How the deal was beneficial? Everytime Brand went down, the Sixers got better. A LOT better. And teams kept on overlooking them because they didn't have Brand. Even oddmakers didn't show them love.  Anyway, a couple more offseason deals made them somewhat better in the shooting category, getting Donyell Marshall and Kareem Rush. But the two have not met expectations as of yet, save for a couple of games for Marshall.

Boston is still a heavy favorite to repeat, having their core somewhat intact, except for the retirement of PJ Brown and James Posey's loss to free agency. They did get Mikki Moore, who would probably duplicate what PJ Brown did for them last year (rebounding, not midrange shooting), and they got a disgruntled Marbury who "only wants to play". Kendrick Perkins is actually having to compete for his starting spot, as Big Baby Glen Davis is starting to show promise.

Result: Boston in 6 (Story: Celts say "not now, kids")

As long as you have a group with Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen, you're going to make things happen around you. Promising as the Sixers may be, this is not a good first round draw for them. They'll be back next year, that's for sure, but this year, they're going to have to settle for the playoff spot. The Celts could take it earlier, but I'm thinking the injuries might take it's toll on them.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

(3) Orlando Magic vs (6) Chicago Bulls*

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Dwight Howard                                      C    Joakim Noah
PF  Hedo Turkoglu                                          PF  Tyrus Thomas
SF  Rashard Lewis                                         SF  Luol Deng
SG Courtney Lee                                           SG  Ben Gordon
PG Rafer Alston                                             PG  Derrick Rose
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

SG Keith Bogans                                         PG Kirk Hinrich

PG Anthony Johnson                                     SG John Salmons

C   Marcin Gortat                                           PF Brad Miller

SG JJ Reddick                                              PF Tim Thomas

SF Mikael Pietrus                                           

C   Tony Battie
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Team Analysis:

The late-season deal that brought John Salmons and Brad Miller to Chicago has worked wonders for them. That's why I can't write anyone off in the "key" reserve list for Chicago. Well, except Tim Thomas. That team is just that good. Their late season push made them where they are now, and kicked Milwaukee out of contention for the final playoff spot. This is a group that is going to contend for years to come.

I swear, at one point this season, I actually believed that Orlando might just blindside the East and make a serious Finals rally. But after Jameer Nelson went down, they have not been as exceptional as they were before. Rafer Alston was a good pickup, but he's no Jameer, who was in the running for most improved player and had an all-star spot this season. Marcin Gortat is fun to watch. He's a more talented Pat Burke. I saw a game where Gortat was seemingly unstoppable, probably thinking HE was Dwight. But among the whole team, I think the biggest impact might be Mikeal Pietrus, who's an offense-defense kind of player. If he's healthy in the playoffs, they could go deeper than they should.

Result: Orlando in 7. (Story: Who will persevere?)

This is a tough call. Hedo turned his ankle in their game today, and if he can't play as well as he does in the playoffs, then Chicago might just steal what was supposedly theirs.

(*as of the moment, the Sixers are 6th in the playoff picture, while Bulls are 7th. I penned them as so because I think the bulls are on a hot streak while the Sixers are headed the wrong direction)

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

(4) Atlanta Hawks vs (5) Miami Heat

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Zaza Pachulia                                          C    Jermaine O'Neal
PF  Al Horford                                                PF  Udonis Haslem
SF  Josh Smith                                              SF  Jamareo Moon
SG Joe Johnson                                          SG  Dwayne Wade
PG Mike Bibby                                              PG  Mario Chalmers
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

SG Maurice Evans                                       PF Micheal Beasley

SF Ronald Murray                                         SF Yakhouba Diawarra

PG Acie Law                                                SG James Jones 

                                                                   SG Daequan Cook

                                                                   C    Jamaal Magloire

                                          

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Team Analysis:

With a strong showing in last year's playoffs against eventual champion Celtics, Atlanta's rise in the standings isn't that surprising. They may have lost Josh Childress to the Euro Leagues, but they still have Mike Bibby, Josh Smith, and Joe Johnson at the core, so they're pretty much as strong as they were last year. Getting Maurice Evans on their bench helps pretty well too. They have two guys who can be a spark off the bench in Evans and Ronald Murray.

Miami Heat can very well change their name to Miami Wades. Dwayne Wade and doing a LeBron in Miami, carrying the team on his shoulders. They got Jermaine O'Neal in the trade deadline, but so far, Jermaine has not been anywhere near his all-star form. Good thing Miami has found a gifted scorer in Micheal Beasley, who may be somewhat of a liability in defense, but a pretty good scorer when given the chance. James Jones and 3-pt Shootout winner Daequan Cook are also potent shooters off the bench, so if they decide to help the cause, Team Wade might actually make it. 

Result: Miami in 7 (Story: You can't stop Wade!)

Playoff time is a time where greatness is displayed. This is going to be a great matchup, as the Hawks are a pretty good home team, but my personal bias says Miami's going to get this. I do think that the Heat have a legit chance at beating the Hawks, just because of the Wade difference.  And that difference could all be all there is to this matchup, as Wade, despite his stellar comeback year, won't win the MVP award, and will probably lay it all out here. Though whoever wins doesn' t really matter much in the second round.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

Second Round

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs (5) Miami Heat

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Zydrunas Ilgauskas                                  C     Jermaine O' Neal
PF  Ben Wallace                                            PF  Udonis Haslem
SF  LeBron James                                          SF  Jamareo Moon
SG Maurice Williams                                      SG  Dwayne Wade
PG Delonte West                                           PG  Mario Chalmers
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

C   Joe Smith                                               PF Micheal Beasley

PF Anderson Varejao                                     SF Yakhouba Diawarra

SF Sasha Pavlovic                                         SG James Jones

SF Wally Sczerbiak                                       SG Daequan Cook

PG Daniel Gibson                                           C  Jamaal Magloire
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Match Analysis:

LeBron may very well win his first season MVP award with his exceptional season. Having breezed through the first round, his team is well rested and I think the Cavs owned both the Heat and the Hawks in the regular season.

D-Wade will have a chance to prove his worth against Bron here, but he will ultimately fail as the Cavs are just too much for him to handle.

Result: Cleveland in 4 (Story: This ain't your house no more, D-Wade)

As I said, whoever wins the Hawks-Heat matchup won't matter much against LeBron and the Cavs. I'm not saying the Cavs are simply invincible, I'm just saying they're playing at a different level than both the Hawks and the Heat. Painful as it may be for me to write off my team (hey, I gave them the Hawks series!), I have to accept the fact that this is not their year.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

(2) Boston Celtics vs (3) Orlando Magic

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Kendrick Perkins                                     C    Dwight Howard
PF  Kevin Garnett                                          PF  Hedo Turkoglu
SF  Paul Pierce                                             SF  Rashard Lewis
SG Ray Allen                                                SG  Courtney Lee
PG Rajon Rondo                                           PG  Rafer Alston
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

C   Glen Davis                                              SG Keith Bogans

PG Eddie House                                            PG Anthony Johnson 

PG Stephon Marbury                                      C   Marcin Gortat

PF Leon Powe                                               SG JJ Reddick

PF Mikki Moore                                            SF Mikhael Pietrus
 
                                                                    C   Tony Battie
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Match Analysis:

Boston will probably have their groove back by this time, and may look like the defending champs that they are. Chemistry won't be much of an issue by this time.

Orlando would have a tested team by this time. Depending on Stan Van Gundy's learnings and adjustments on his team's weaknesses back in the first round, they might make a good run against Boston at this time.

Result: Boston in 6 (Story: Green just isn't the color for Superman)

They will be tested, but I think the Celtics will ultimately persevere in this matchup. If Jameer Nelson was never lost in the lineup, I would've probably written something different, but as it stands, the Magic are going to fall to the defending champs.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs (2) Boston Celtics

Starters:                                                        Starters:
C    Zydrunas Ilgauskas                                  C     Kendrick Perkins
PF  Ben Wallace                                            PF  Kevin Garnett
SF  LeBron James                                          SF  Paul Pierce
SG Maurice Williams                                      SG  Ray Allen
PG Delonte West                                           PG  Rajon Rondo
=======================                      =======================
Key Reserves:                                               Key Reserves:

C   Joe Smith                                               C   Glen Davis

PF Anderson Varejao                                     PG Eddie House

SF Sasha Pavlovic                                         PG Stephon Marbury

SF Wally Sczerbiak                                       PF Leon Powe

PG Daniel Gibson                                          PF Mikki Moore
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Match Analysis:

Let me run through the matchups:

Big Z and Kendrick Perkins matchup may be more in favor of Z, just because of his veteran role in there.

Big Ben and KG are the defensive anchors for both teams, but of course KG will get the better of Ben. Well, that is, if his current season-ending rest actually made him feel better.

Lebron and Paul Pierce is a matchup to see. They had an epic shootout where LeBron just fell short last year. Expect an encore for LeBron this year.

It's going to be a shootout at the SG position, with shooters Ray Allen and Maurice Williams matching up against one another. Of course Ray Allen would get my nod as the better shooter, but because of his fit in the Cavs rotation, Mo' Will losing out to Ray in this particular matchup wouldn't be a reason for the Cavs to lose.

Rajon Rondo and Delonte West is going to be a battle of speed. Rondo would have the upper hand, having playoff experience and all, but I think

Anderson Varejao would outhustle Mikki Moore.

Big Baby will be a challenge for Joe Smith.

Stephon Marbury is a puzzle, as is Daniel Gibson.

Eddie House is a far more better shooter than Wally Sczerbiak, unless Wally proves me wrong.

Leon Powe is a more vital piece in winning than Sasha Pavlovic is in terms of bench contribution. (Powe: hustle, energy, rebounding, inside scoring, Sasha: points.)

Result: Cleveland in 7 (LeBron: Payback's a bitch, ain't it, Paul?)

Boston needed 7 games (and a Paul Pierce hot streak vs LeBron) to put the LeBron and his team away last year. This year, LeBron is not alone. And they have homecourt advantage. I see this matchup as a homecourt-wins matchup.

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

I would write my Western Conference thoughts, but because this set took me 4 hours to make (dahil inulit ko, almost 5), I think I'll take my break and wait for the unpredictable West to finish up their seedings.

But just to get it out of my head (this was, after all, that which started these thoughts in my head) :

Sportswriters always talk about the Lakers having a formidable frontline consisting of 3 7-footers, Andrew Bynum, Pau Gasol, and Lamar Odom.

Then have that teamed with a backcourt featuring Kobe Bryant and veteran Derek Fisher, and you have a 5-man lineup that's as formidable as it gets.

Then add pieces like crafty facilitator Luke Walton, energy guy Jordan Farmar, shooter Sasha Vujacic, and an athletic Trevor Ariza, then you get a team capable of winning 60+ games, and no one might be able to match them.

However, they are owned by Charlotte for reasons no one really knows. And there's this other team that they failed to beat at home for the past 8 tries: the Portland Trailblazers. Then I thought, Portland may have the best lineup that could match LA.

To combat the three 7-footers in the frontcourt, Portland can get Joel Pryzbilla, Greg Oden, and Lamarcus Aldridge out there.

Though Gasol will certainly eat Pryzbilla alive, Joel will still probably limit Gasol a bit. Europeans going at it. It's going to be...Soft.

Then there's the young matchup of Oden and Bynum.

Then you have the mobile 7-footer match between Aldridge and Odom.

Now, the 4th quarter is Brandon Roy territory, the same territory the Mamba travels on. The last matchup between these two showed just how much Roy can match Kobe in the 4th (at least, in the Rose Garden).

Steve Blake is no Derek Fisher, but he does what Derek does in LA: provide stability to his team.

Then the bench: crafty facilitator? Sergio Rodriguez. Energy guy? Nicolas Batum. Shooter? Rudy Fernandez. Athletic wing? Travis Outlaw. All bases covered.

Safe to say the Trailblazers are a poor man's Lakers?