I know that I did an NHL preview the other day, and if you couldn’t tell, hockey isn’t really my number one sport. But now, with the exception of maybe March Madness, my single favorite sporting event of the year is here—(in the voice of Dick Vitale) IT’S NBA PLAYOFFS BABY! So in honor of this hallowed and revered time of year, I give you an NBA playoffs preview (first round only):

Western Conference

Before I get into a deeper analysis, let me just say the Western Conference makes me giddy. I don’t know if you could possibly ask for a more exciting first round. 8 teams great teams, all of whom won 50 games, 7 are fun to watch (sorry Spurs fans. There is no beating around the bush. You have a great team but they are just miserable to watch), and 6 out of the 8 are legit title contenders (OKC is just too young, as much as I love them, and Portland has no chance if Brandon Roy is injured). In a nutshell, the West is a smorgasbord of excellence

#1 Los Angeles Lakers vs #8 Oklahoma City Thunder

I would say this is my pick for most exciting first round matchup, but honestly, there are just too many great first round series. Nevertheless, it will be fun to watch.  As I wrote several weeks ago, the Lakers are prime for an upset. However, it will not be this round. Despite the Lakers woes the last few weeks, this is a veteran team with countless playoff experience, and (hold your breath) they have Kobe Bryant. As much as I hope the Lakers will, there is no way they are losing this series. Nobody on the Thunder has a chance at guarding Kobe. Ron Artest is going to make Kevin Durant work as hard as Durant has all season for his points. The Thunder do have an advantage at the point guard spot, but Derik Fisher lives for the playoffs. And beyond all that, the Thunder have literally no way of guarding the Lakers down low. I’m sorry, but “no game” Nenad Kristic is going to get abused by Pau Gasol (who incidentally personifies the meaning of Mog—half man, half dog—from Spaceballs. John Candy may actually be better looking though…), and as much as I love Jeff Green, he cannot guard Andrew Bynum down low. While the Thunder may have a better bench, it still will not be enough to overcome the Lakers.

Prediction: Lakers in 5.5 (I know that makes no sense, but I just really can’t decide between Lakers in 5 or in 6. But if you don’t like it, sue me. I write the column)

#2 Dallas Mavericks vs #7 San Antonio Spurs

Hands down the most boring playoff series, solely because the Spurs are in it. Listen, I respect the Spurs tremendously, but they make for low ratings and boring basketball. The Mavericks can thank the Wizards for the 2 seed and a legit chance to make it to the finals for the absolute gifts given to them in Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood (who, in the likes of Tim Thomas, is playing out of his mind because it’s a contract year). Let’s get to the point—the Dallas Mavericks are stacked. J-Kidd running the point, Caron Butler at the 2, a motivated Marion at the 3, European, poor man’s Larry Bird aka Dirk Nowitzki at the 4, Erick Dampier/Haywood at center, and Jason Terry and DeShawn Stevenson coming off the bench (yes, I am intentionally forgetting Jose Juan Barrea. I just don’t like him)!! Dallas has a chance to redeem themselves from 2006, when they choked more famously than the Knicks did against Reggie Miller and the Pacers. As good as the Spurs are, they are not going to win this one.

As far as the matchups go, Dallas has this series. They are too deep and have great players at every position except center, but even there they are in good shape. Kidd is in the perfect position at this point in his career. He is completely surrounded by talent and can throw alley-oops all day to Butler and Marion. However Tony Parker will look like Roadrunner out there against Kidd’s aging body and nonexistent defense. Butler and Ginobli essentially cancel each other out. Richard Jefferson has been quite a disappointment this year, and Marion is playing in a system that is almost perfect for him (the only system better is still the Phoenix Suns), so I give Marion the advantage here, plus Marion is a better defender when he wants to be. I don’t really know how the rest of the matchups are going to work. If San Antonio starts both Tim Duncan and Antonio McDyess, Nowitzki is going to have a field day and I legitimately would not be surprised if he shot 60% for the series. However, if the Spurs start Duncan at center and put Blair or Bonner on Nowitzki, it really is not going to make that much of a difference, although Duncan will probably destroy Haywood/Dampier. And as far as the bench goes, the Spurs are completely outmatched. Terry is one of the best 6th men in the league, and no one on San Antonio except maybe Roger Mason scares me.

Prediction: Dallas in 6

#3 Phoenix Suns vs. #6 Portland Trailblazers

This had potential to be another great series, but without their leader in Brandon Roy, I just don’t see the Trailblazers winning this series. I honestly feel bad for the Blazers. They are without Oden and Roy. With them, they would also be contenders. Without them, the Blazers are going to get run back to Portland in time for hunting/fishing season by the surprise of this year in the Phoenix Suns. Andre Miller, who somehow has revitalized his career, will not be able to keep up with Nash (Nash is pretty much like Yoda in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones. He is just so wise and crafty, and his play is absolutely out of this world, a la Yoda’s battle with Count Dooku). Jason Richardson is without a doubt better than Rudy Fernandez, who will be starting in place of Roy. Nicholas Batum and Grant Hill pretty much cancel each other out, although I may give Hill the advantage only because he has more experience. Amare Stoudamire against LaMarcus Aldridge is not really fair. The over/under for times Amare dunks on Aldridge is about 2.5 Marcus Camby is definitely better than Jarron Collins, but not enough so to make up for Roy’s absence.

Prediction: Suns in 5

#4 Denver Thuggets er, I mean Nuggets vs. #5 Utah Jazz

A quick side note: When watching the Nuggets play, I sometimes feel like I accidentally went to the wrong channel and am watching an episode of Miami Ink or something. It is absolutely ridiculous how many tattoos the Nuggets players have, especially Birdman, Kenyon Martin, Carmelo Anthony, and J.R. Smith (he may have the most tattoos in the NBA, an amazing accomplishment if you think about it).

But back to the point. This will be another fantastic first round, although I think the Nuggets have too much firepower. I could be completely wrong because Utah has better chemistry, and that definitely counts for something. Nevertheless, it will be a great series. Chauncey Billups against Deron Williams is a great matchup of point guards, and although Williams is better, Billups plays amazing in the playoffs. Advantage Williams, but not by much. Neither team has good shooting guards if Denver brings J.R. Smith off the bench. Aaron Afflalo against Wesley Matthews is not really a key matchup, although J.R. Smith off the bench will is definitely an advantage for the Nuggets (especially if they are playing at home. See last season’s series against the Lakers—Smith was nonexistent on the road but an absolute monster at home). Carmelo Anthony is going to absolutely destroy C.J. Miles, nothing more needs to be said (ok, I lied.This matchup would not be nearly as one-sided if Andrei Kirilenko was still healthy). Carlos Boozer is worlds better than old Kenyon Martin, although Martin may surprise people if he isn’t still mad about the whole popcorn incident. And while it seems Mehmet Okur is way better than Nene Hilario, I disagree. Nene is without a doubt the most underrated center in the league. Like my buddy J-Mill says, Nene plays great D and throws down some nasty dunks. I give Nene the advantage here.

Prediction: Nuggets in 7

Eastern Conference

Unfortunately, the Eastern Conference is not as balanced as the West is. I don’t think many of the series will be that close or fun until the second round.  The East is just so one-sided, but I am sure I will be pleasantly surprised by at least one series.

#1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. #8 Chicago Bulls

One word: Lebron

Prediction: Cavs sweep

Additional comment: On ESPN.com today it asked if Mo Williams and the Cavs could avoid an upset and beat the Bulls. On what world is Mo Williams the leader of the Cavs?! I am seriously insulted, and if I was the editor of ESPN, I would fire whoever put that up. Such stupidity is not tolerable.

#2 Orlando Magic vs. #7 Charlotte Bobcats

I have to say I am pleasantly surprised by the fact that the Bobcats got the 7 seed. After years of mediocrity it is nice to see Charlotte make the playoffs. However, the fun will be short-lived. Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis are going to make Boris Diaw and Theo “Methuselah” Ratliff look silly. Jameer Nelson, who hasn’t been quite the same since hurting himself last year, is still better than Raymond Felton (yet another disappointing product from UNC in recent years. See Marvin Williams, Tyler Hansboro, Rashad McCants, Sean May, David Noel, Brandon Wright). As much as I hate to admit it, Stephen Jackson has the advantage over Vince Carter for two reasons. Vince Carter is a complete disappointment and chokes in big situations, and Jackson is playing out of his mind since the trade. Gerald Wallace is also better than Matt Barnes despite Wallace’s complete disappointment in the dunk contest.

Prediction: Orlando in 5

#3 Atlanta Hawks vs. #6 Milwaukee Bucks

Just so you know, the most exciting finals would be Atlanta-Oklahoma City hands down. The sheer amount of dunks and Sportscenter-esque plays would be ridiculous. They would have to have a separate top-ten each night dedicated solely to the number of alley-oops thrown. Unfortunately, this matchup has no chance of happening.

Milwaukee is another feel good team this year, and their whole “Fear the Deer” campaign is downright hilarious. However, it’s not going to get them past the Hawks. Milwaukee is just plain out-manned at every position at point guard, and even that advantage is decreasing just as is Brandon Jennings’ field goal percentage. Jennings has way more talent than an aging Bibby does, and Bibby’s defense is up there with Nash and Kidd for most atrocious in the league by a player not named Tim Thomas or Sasha Vujacic (if you don’t believe me about Sasha, watch this video). However, Joe Johnson is clearly better than John Salmons in pretty much every aspect. Furthermore, Josh Smith, the most athletic player in the league sans Lebron, is going to posterize Luc Richard “I got tired of typing his name” so many times its going to make Shawn Bradley feel good about himself again. The first time Smith sends Mbah a Moute’s shot into the 12th row, Mbah a Moute is going to disappear just like Jimmy Hoffa. And without Bogut, the center matchup is also one-sided as Al Horford will have his cake and eat it too against Kurt Thomas.

Prediction: Hawks in 5

#4 Boston Celtics vs. #5 Miami Heat

I must say I am so happy the Heat are playing the Celtics in the first round. As a Heat fan, I must say I was not really looking forward to this year’s playoffs. I don’t care what anyone else says, other than Dwyane Wade the Heat are a bunch of average NBA players and good D-Leaguers. I am fairly confident that as far as scoring options go for the Heat it is 1. Dwyane Wade 2. Dwyane Wade and 3. Dwyane Wade.

On paper, this series should be a joke. The Heat are absolutely outmanned at every position except for shooting guard. Rondo kills Chalmers, Pierce kills Quentin Richardson, Kevin Garnett destroys the biggest disappointment for me in recent history, Michael Beasley, and even Rasheed Wallace is better than Miami’s grotesque assembly of centers (I refuse to offer even one compliment to Jermaine O’Neal. When you are the highest paid player in the NBA, you better average better than 14-7. Enough said).

However, Miami may have a chance. The Celtics have been as painful to watch since the All-Star break as Kevin Garnett’s knees. I am assuming that the Celtics are going the old Shaq route—mail it in until the playoffs and then start playing again. If they don’t, the Celtics could be severely disappointed. Wade has the potential to win this one for the Heat.

Prediction: Celtics in 7 (I just have to. I cannot believe that Boston is this bad. They will get it together for at least one round in the playoffs)

 

Alright, so I went a little long. Hopefully you can tell I am a little excited for the playoffs. I can’t wait to watch the games, and hopefully there will be some pleasant surprises along the way (come on Thunder, come on Thunder!!). As always, until next time…

It’s NHL playoff time people!!

Normally, the NHL does not inspire me to ever even think about watching a game, but this year I might reconsider. Granted, I am not going to be a fanatic cheering throughout the first round, yet I may not spend my April, May, and June solely watching the NBA playoffs.

Let’s just be honest. I know basically nothing about hockey. I like watching them fight, and Sportscenter shows some sick goals. I don’t know too many players; I can’t name half the teams. However, I do know Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. That being said, I might watch the Eastern Conference second round, when Ovechkin and Crosby’s respective teams could potentially face off.

Yeah, that makes me a shallow fan, but it is better than nothing. I have been hearing for some time now about Ovechkin and Crosby’s legendary battles. Now, my buddy Wheeler hates me for this. He says I just encourage the East Coast bias. I guess that is true. However, the only team I remotely care about (as of now) is the Anaheim Ducks, but they were horrible this season. I am not going to cheer for a team just because they are from the West Coast. As a matter of fact, I am not going to cheer for any team.

Basically, I am hoping that this year’s NHL playoffs make me more of a hockey fan. I would love to become a more well-rounded sports fan and hockey finally has enough marquee players to draw in people who don’t normally watch, like me.

Finally it is over. I no longer have to see nor hear anything else about Ben Roethlisberger, aka just Will Ferrell as a football player—so Will Ferrell 2.0. 2.0’s saga has been well documented these last few months and Monday it finally came to an end as the prosecutor decided not to press charges against 2.0 for allegedly assaulting a 20-year old at a nightclub.

Besides having to see 2.0 every day for some time (I guess 2.0 is only an upgrade in an athletic sense. He isn’t nearly as funny as the original. Oh well, you win some and you lose some), I am starting to get tired of hearing about all the sex-related athlete news these days.

Which brings me to my point: athletes live in a completely different world that you and I do. I can’t speak for the athletes, but it seems like they think they are invincible and that nothing can touch them. Despite all of the troubles surrounding their fellow athletes, they think they will still be ok. While 2.0 is innocent here, there still have been so many cases lately of athletes and sex, and beyond that, athletes in trouble with the law in general.

As many have stated before me, many of these athletes were given so much so early. Many of them became professionals about the time they could drink or before, and yet they are being paid salaries fit for Manhattan investment bankers. I can’t even imagine being put in situations like they are—it’s no wonder they mess up.

Now, I am no math major, but this lack of maturity coupled with too much money and few guiding figures is an equation for social Chernobyl. There needs to be an increase in accountability among athletes, otherwise our role models will continue to let us down.

Tiger’s Masters Meltdown. Tiger’s Swing Badly in Need of Repair. Tiger’s performance was “lackluster, inconsistent, and never put him in contention to win during the four rounds of golf from Augusta.”1

These are just a few of the headlines after the conclusion of Sunday’s Masters. Here’s a news flash to every writer bagging on Tiger’s golf game: He did pretty well.

Think about it. The guy has been taking a break since his troubles started back in November. Give or take a few days, that’s about 5 months. If Lebron or Kobe or Peyton Manning or Albert Pujols or any other athlete took 5 whole months off of their respective sports, I guarantee they would not play amazing their first game back.

Second of all, Tiger finished fourth. Fourth place. That’s pretty amazing. After all that time off, Tiger still beat 92 out of the 96 golfers at the Masters. For any other golfer, that would be totally fine. However, we are so used to Tiger winning and dominating that if he doesn’t automatically  win then there must be something horribly wrong.

Sure, Tiger’s swing was not picture perfect. Give the guy some time. He will return to his old form in due time. From a purely golf standpoint, I view Tiger’s swing struggles as comparable to those in 2003 and 2004. Tiger will come back and be as good as ever. Just give him a chance to prove himself… in golf at least.

 

1. news.lalate.com

Well, I had every intention of watching UFC 112 Saturday night. However, due to extenuating circumstances and the fact that I found out the results of the fight before the fight was broadcast in the U.S., I ended up not watching. That’s right, the fight was fought in Abu Dhabi and the results announced before the U.S. broadcast (needless to say, I was a little annoyed).

If you don’t know, Anderson Silva put up a lackluster performance but still won and retained his title as middleweight champion with a unanimous decision over Demian Maia

Anderson Silva. I really don’t know what to think of him anymore. Clearly, he has all of the talent, which he supposedly demonstrated in the first two rounds tonight. But there are times when he can just be so frustrating and does not do much at all, which is what he did in the last three rounds. The guy can be flat out amazing. They call him the Spider for a reason (check out his knockouts of Forest Griffin and James Irvin or any of Silva’s highlight videos). I just don’t get it. Two of his last three fights have been disappointments (although the Thales Leites fight wasn’t really Silva’s fault; Leites just laid on the ground the whole time). The only solution I can think of is to give Silva a challenging fight, either against Georges St. Pierre (the likely choice) or against Fedor. Both would be great fights and if Silva doesn’t step his game up he probably will lose.

I really hope Anderson Silva starts fighting like his old self. There really isn’t anyone like him. The first time I saw Silva fight all I could think of was Neo from the Matrix dodging bullets. I just don’t get how he can dodge punches like that. It is crazy. Hopefully he can get his act together because Silva really is a treat and joy to watch.

Oh, the Lakers. I really just don’t know what to think about them (objectively of course. In real life, when I am less objective, I just hate them.) Despite my ill feelings towards the Lakers, I have to admit they are a great team…most of the time. To me, the Lakers are like Mike Tyson. Stay with me for a second. The Lakers are like young Mike Tyson: they have all the talent in the world. Realistically, nobody should be able to stay with them. They have 5 potential all stars.

Lamar Odom, who despite never really living up to his full potential, can still be dominant and is that perennial “X-factor.” Then you have Pau Gasol, who can pretty much score at will against most teams despite looking like one of the orcs in Lord of the Rings. Andrew Bynum has tons of potential and is one of, if not the, best young centers in the game. Ron Artest is possibly the best perimeter defender in the NBA and is a solid offensive weapon. And then there is Kobe Bryant. While he may not be the best teammate in the league, he still is pretty good (ok, there is an underestimation).

However, like Tyson against Buster Douglas in 1990, I feel like the Lakers could very well be upset this year. Yes, I know they just clinched the top seed in the Western Conference Friday, but they still seem vulnerable, especially since the All-Star break. They have lost a ton of games that they should have won (see Charlotte and New Orleans). The Lakers are still the team to beat, but it will be interesting to see if they can keep it together. Realistically, nobody should even touch them, but like Buster Douglas, upsets happen.

For better or worse, according to the Chinese calendar 2010 is the year of the tiger. I repeat, 2010 is the year of the tiger.

I don’t know how life could get any more ironic than that. It is so true. Tiger is seriously like Lil’ Wayne in that Lil’ Wayne is featured on EVERY SINGLE rap/hip-hop song on the radio, and Tiger is everywhere. Every day, you hear something on the radio, read something online, or see something on ESPN about Tiger. Like it or not, 2010 is the year of Tiger Woods.

Everyone wants to know how he will perform, especially at the Master’s, which starts Thursday. There is only one way Tiger can put this controversy behind him, and that is to play well and to win (for the record, I am not condoning Tiger’s actions by any means. What he did was wrong, disgusting, etc.).

I consider Tiger’s fall from grace very comparable to Kobe Bryant’s. Both got into trouble for extramarital sex, both lost sponsorships, both lost countless fans. The media surrounding each respective situation was comparable. Look at Kobe now; NBA champion, scoring leader, commercials with Nike, and more. The only way Kobe achieved this was by winning and by getting his life straight.

The only way Tiger can return to grace is by achieving these two goals. It seems like Tiger is trying to get his life straight, but who really knows, because Tiger’s private life is less well known than the launch codes for our nuclear weapons. So maybe there is part one. Like I said, the second part is winning. Everyone loves a winner, and like Kobe, people will forgive Tiger in due time, like it or not.

Yes, Monday’s college basketball national championship game was exciting. Yes, it had a memorable finish. Yes, it was a great game. At the sake of alienating Duke fans, Butler should have won it.

Yes, I know Duke fans from the Carolinas to California hate me for saying this, but Duke didn’t win the game so much as Butler lost it. I am really not trying to take anything from Duke; they are the national champions, they played the best, and that is that.

However, look at the stats from that game. Butler shot 34.5% from the field. 34.5%!! And sorry Dukies, that is not so much Duke’s defense but Butler missing easy shots. I watched the game, and while Duke did a solid defensive job, they were not that good. Butler missed open shot after open shot, layup after layup. Shooting like that is not going to get you a national championship.

I don’t know why Butler shot that poorly (they shot 10% below their season average.) Maybe they were not ready to handle the pressure. Maybe they were still surprised or in awe that they even made it to the championship game. I really don’t know. All I do know is that Butler shot as poorly as the Imperial Stormtroopers in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (search Wikipedia for principle of Evil Marksmanship to see what I mean).

In the end, congratulations are in store to both Duke and Butler. Butler made an incredible run and did what few thought they could do. Duke won the national championship, simple as that, and at the end of the day, that matters most.

This year’s “March Madness” has been as mad as ever, and Saturday proved to be more of the same.

In the national semifinals, aka the Final Four, Duke beat West Virginia 78-57 and Butler beat Michigan State 52-50. Both games had their share of surprise and intrigue but for very different reasons.

The Duke-West Virginia game was the more surprising of the two games. It is the fact that the game was a blowout that this game was astonishing. Last week, West Virginia defeated number one seed Kentucky, considered by many to be the best team in the country. However, the Mountaineers’ highly touted defense seemed helpless against the Blue Devil’s hot shooting. Duke shot 53% from the field and an astonishing 52% from the three point line.

The other game went down to the wire. Butler ultimately prevailed with a basket by Gordon Hayward with 2 seconds left, but for most of the game the outcome was in doubt. Butler was able to force 16 turnovers and, in many ways, this proved to be the deciding factor in the game. Still, Michigan State was able to come within one point, 52-50, with 56 seconds left. However, Michigan State was not able to come back.

The championship game is Monday, and it is the underdog, mid-major Butler Bulldogs against the storied, traditional powerhouse Duke Blue Devils. While Duke had a better regular season, Butler has the nation’s longest winning streak and one other advantage: the championship game is essentially a home game. Nevertheless, it will be a great game and hopefully one for the ages.