One step closer

The first round was a tune up for most teams, as no series went past six games. Things will get a little tougher for the eight remaining teams over the next week or two. In a couple weeks, there will only be four remaining teams. I am making some predictions again, they are below. For the record, I was 5 for 8 overall in the first round. The Hawks, Grizzlies, and Mavericks were all teams that went on when I thought they wouldn't. In retrospect, two of the three weren't all that surprising, only the Spurs have me still a bit shocked. I was expecting them to fall to the Thunder in five games.

The Grizzlies will now have that honor, as the Thunder will be too deep and tough for them in this series. I don't think the Thunder will run over all the Grizzlies, but I also don't expect this series to go the full seven games. Zach Randolph has been doing his thing, but this is Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook's time to shine. The Thunder win this series in six games.
Sorry to Mark Cuban and any Mavericks fans, but I still don't give them the credit that they feel is owed to them. This is even coming off the Hornets almost shocking the Lakers out of the playoffs. I don't expect the Mavs to compete much with these Lakers as the Lakers will win this series in five games.

The Hawks played well against the Magic and gave their city a lot to look forward to in years to come. They are one player away from going on a deep playoff run. Unfortunately, the loss of Kirk Hinrich makes them two players away from that run. This loss will make it easy for Derrick Rose to exploit their defense as needed and the Bulls will win this series in five games.
The Heat and Celtics is one of the matchups a lot of us were looking forward to when the playoffs became set in stone. A lot of this will depend on health and how everyone plays towards the end of games, but I think the Heat will win this series in seven games. That would make for potentially the first full series thus far.
Right now, I am leaning towards the Bulls, Thunder, and Heat as teams playing like potential champions right now. The Lakers will be in that category soon too. Youth has been one of the biggest trends thus far, as the older Spurs bowed out to the younger Grizzlies and The Lakers looked destined to do the same with the Hornets for a couple games. The Thunder will likely showcase their youth against the Grizzlies, en route to another potential showdown with the Lakers. Oklahoma is ready to redeem themselves from last year. I know I am not alone in praying for a Thunder/Heat Finals at this point. I've seen enough "traditional team" finals the last few years.

2011 Black N Blue Bowl is less than a month away...

April showers bring the second round of the NBA Playoffs to us...

The NBA Playoffs have gotten into full swing rather quickly and there has been no shortage of excitement. There have been a lot of hard fought matchups, but not many upsets yet. Half of the eight opening series went five games or less, with Boston being the only sweep. With seven of the eight teams having made the second round already, I am going to take a look back at my picks from two weeks ago.
I hit the nail on the head with Bulls series, but I wasn't expecting the series to be that competitive. Hopefully this Pacers team will continue to improve next season. Meanwhile, the Bulls move on and face the Hawks in the second round. Those Hawks were the biggest surprise of the first round for me. In retrospect however, it is of course no surprise that the Magic fell apart that quickly. Orlando had better move quickly and start getting some good, young talent around Dwight Howard. Otherwise, they can do their best to get whatever they can from the Lakers for him in the offseason. Anyway, I don't think the impressive run will continue for the Hawks against the Bulls, especially if Kirk Hinrich is unable to go in this series. Derrick Rose will run all over the Hawks if they don't have someone good guarding him.
I figured the Heat would have their way with the 76ers and they did. They will have a much tougher match up on their hands in the second round when the face the Boston Celtics. Boston cruised against the Knicks in the first round, sweeping them out of four games. Watching those games made you feel sorry for the Knicks. They finally make the playoffs after all these years and then they play the brand of basketball that kept them out of the playoffs. Blame it on a lineup that had only played a third of a season together going into the playoffs. The Celtics could be too much for the Heat to handle if they get Shaq back healthy. I can't wait for that series.

I won't make any further predictions on the Spurs/Grizzlies series. That has been somewhat of a surprise, although I have been saying all season that I did not think this Spurs team was Built To Last in the playoffs.
The Thunder pretty much did what I expected to, though the Nuggets gave them a run for their money in a couple of those first games. This Thunder team is fully capable of winning the next few NBA titles. I hope they get to face the Lakers again in the playoffs this year. That will be the best series of the playoffs if it happens again.
I got one wrong in each Conference (possibly two if the Grizzlies close out the Spurs) and the Blazers failed me in the West. What can I say, I have zero faith in the Mavericks when it comes to the playoffs. They will lose to the Lakers, bank on that. I was surprised to see the Lakers falter a little bit with New Orleans. I guess I forgot how great Chris Paul can be at times. Kobe Bryant may have to fake another injury or two, but this Lakers team will probably coast through the next round.