Now that March Madness is officially over (in April, no less), the casual basketball fan can turn his or her attention to the NBA postseason.
Here’s a quick look at the playoff race in each conference along with potential first round matchups. Everyone always starts with the East (damn East Coast bias!) so I’ll switch things up and discuss the Western Conference first. The images below were clipped from John Hollinger’s playoff odds feature.
The Rockets are still technically alive (10.2%), but facing a three-game deficit with only five to play is a tough task. They do have very winnable games against Sacramento, Minnesota and the Clippers, and they get to take on the Hornets in New Orleans on Wednesday. Unfortunately for the Rockets, it’s the second game of a back-to-back with the Royals…um…Kings. Houston still has a shot because the Hornets’ schedule is pretty tough: HOU, PHO, MEM, UTA and DAL. The Grizzlies are tied with the Hornets, so they could falter as well.
The Lakers are trying to catch the Spurs, who have lost six of their last seven games. The two teams square off next Tuesday in L.A. and the winner might very well be the #1 seed in the West. If the Spurs can get on track and beat the Hawks, Kings and Jazz this week, it will make things tough on the Lakers.
The Mavs look like they’re locked into the #3 seed and are right now slated for a first round matchup with the Blazers, though that could chance as Portland, Memphis and New Orleans are all separated by one game. A Thunder/Nuggets first round matchup is looking very likely.
With just 5-6 games left, it sure looks like the Bulls are going to lock up the #1 seed and home court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs. If the Spurs continue to falter, they have a shot at the best overall record as well. The #1 seed in the East is big because they’ll avoid the Heat and Celtics until the Conference Finals.
On the other end of the spectrum, the playoff hopes of both the Bobcats and Bucks are on life support. Charlotte is only one game back in the loss column, but the Pacers swept the season series (4-0), so they own the tiebraker as well.
As a Bucks fan, I’m disappointed with the way the season has gone, and have actually been rooting for losses down the stretch. While it would be fun to watch Chicago and Milwaukee square off in an I-94 series, the Bucks are better off with a lottery pick. Maybe they’ll land in the top 3 and get a shot at Derrick Williams, Kyrie Irving or Harrison Barnes. The bottom line is that they need another good player to add to the Andrew Bogut-Brandon Jennings core, preferably a wing who can create his own shot.
At this point, do the Heat/Celtics want to play the Knicks or the Heat? New York has won three straight (against Orlando, New Jersey and Cleveland) after dropping nine of their previous 10 games. One would think that the Knicks are more dangerous than the Sixers because Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire could get really hot for a six- or seven-game stretch.
Boston is 2-1 against Philly, but the three games have been decided by a total of eight points, so the Sixers have given the C’s some problems. Miami has handled Philly in three wins. The Knicks are 0-1 against Boston with their current roster, and they’re 1-0 against Miami since Carmelo’s arrival. It looks to me that the Sixers are the better matchup for the Heat, while the C’s would rather see the Knicks. I’d be interested to hear from Boston and Miami fans about which team they’d rather face in the first round.
