NBA Playoff Predictions, Round 2

Pistons-Cavaliers
Mr. West
Oh, Damon Jones. Your 10 seconds of playing time will strictly be for garbage time, not miracle shots to win any of these games. Detroit is going to beat the shit out of Cleveland. The Piston frontline is so vastly superior to that of the Bullets that dudes like Sideshow Varejeo and Gooden will be reduced to meaningless bit players in loss after loss after loss. Sorry, LeBron, but you are going to get a lesson.
Pistons in 5.

Mr. East
LeBron James will one day be King. Not yet. He is so talented at such a young age that we forget that he can’t even buy a beer. There are those out there who believe in James, and think he has a puncher’s chance against the Pistons, but that team is just too good. There isn’t a single player outside of LeBron that would see minutes on the Pistons, and that should tell you enough. I expect the Pistons to sweep and go on to dominate everyone else as well. You’re looking at the new Bulls, without Michael. If they stay together, I think they can go to the Finals every season and win a good handful of titles.
Pistons in 4.


Heat-Nets
Mr. West
I hope the Nets win. I hope Vinsanity plays inspired ball like he did all year against the Heat. I hope Shaq sits with foul trouble. I hope Kidd finally finds his range from deep. Sigh ... I fear this will not happen. Despite the fact that Heat are prone to veteran lethargy and major lengths of mental blocks, I do not see how the Nets will challenge Miami for this series given Vince Carter's tendency to shrink in rough games. His flashes of brilliance will be matched play-for-play with his love for bad shots and 20-ft. fadeaways. Once Collins and Kristic get in foul trouble, the Nets are done. If there was any series for Jason Kidd to dominate, this is the one the Nets need the most.
Heat in 5.

Mr. East
The Nets are good. The main reason the Nets are good is because they have Jason Kidd. In our season preview, Mr. West and I heaped praise on Kidd and he’s lived up to it again. Vince is also good. He’s not Kidd good, but he’s better than most of the other guys at his position in the league. Richard Jefferson is good. He’s not Vince good, but he’s better than most of the guys at his position in the league. No one else is good.
Heat in 5.

Spurs-Mavericks
Mr. West
Dallas has gotten better and better to create a playoff-winning
basketball team. Sure, it is not fair for them to face San Antonio in the second round but it had to be done sooner or later. But the Mavs are not ready to topple the Spurs.
Tim Duncan should destroy the Dallas big men because goofballs like Dampier are meat on a stick to him while smaller dudes on Dallas play small. Truly, if Avery Johnson had balls, he should have Dirk guarding Duncan. Of course, dirty cheapskate Bruce Bowen will be on Dirk-- and Dirk (and Dallas) will only thrive if he can somehow use footwork to beat him off the dribble. The Spurs have the savvy and the Mavs don't.
Spurs in 6.

Mr. East
This is a tough series to pick. Dallas is not the soft bunch of finesse guys they used to be and I think they have a formula to beat the Spurs. Nowitzki’s mutant powers make him potentially the best player in the series, apologies to Tim Duncan, and they may be ready to take the next step. Avery Johnson was a great coach on the floor as a player and it’s translated to the bench. All that said, the Spurs have been there. Duncan is still one of the premier big men in the game, although he didn’t dominate this year as much as in years past. I actually have no evidence to support that, so I might be guilty of talking out my ass, but it sure seems that way. None of that matters though, because the other guys on the Spurs are better than the other guys on the Mavs and that’s what wins.
Spurs in 6

Suns-Clippers
Mr. West
You'd think the Suns were primed for a Clipper beating: they just went the distance with the Lakers, their "big men" needed to cover Brand and Kaman re really just tall guards, and the Clippers are the darkhorse the critics love. Sorry, I'm not buying it. Having seen the regular season matchups between these teams, the fact is that the Suns small-ball effectively removes Kaman from the court and renders Brand as an outcast on the court. The Suns are basically going to dangle bloody meat in front of Cassell, Mobley, Maggette and Radmonovic: "look, boys, we'll let you run, we'll let you shoot ... go ahead, you know you want to ..." I like Sammy Cassell but he will be so tempted to get up and down and jack shots that Brand and Kaman (the true Clippers strengths) will be an afterthought. This series should be fun but disciplined ball won't be found here.
Suns in 7.

Mr. East
I’d like to go with Mr. West’s analysis on this one because I think the Suns are the better team. I think Marion and Nash are the best two players on the floor, even considering the outstanding Elton Brand, and they have one of the other members of the top 5 players in the series in Boris Diaw. Tough to pick the Clips, to me. I’m going to. This is the playoffs, and while the Suns showed they have lasting power against tall odds and Kobe Bryant, it’s just a smokescreen to celebrate that comeback without acknowledging that the Lakers are a middle of the road ballclub. Yes, they had a big run at the end of the year to turn their record from .500 to a playoff qualifier, but they still start Kwame Brown, Smush Parker, and Luke Walton. The Suns should have won that series in 5. The Clips have the best post player in the series and that’s how I pick my playoff series when it’s close. It’s not clear cut here so I go with Brand. He’s ready to follow The Alien and WWE’s Kamanator into the Conference Finals….
Clippers in 6