Baker’s Dozen: NBA Playoff Questions

While it’s been more than a week or two since I last officially reflected upon the playoffs here, that doesn’t mean a TON of stuff hasn’t progressed since then.

In case you fell under a rock or are avoiding any type of specific analysis…here’s a quick re-cap [Clement-style].

It's what everyone wants! Right?
Credit: GearLive.com

…out West…
-Golden State became the first eight seed to ever upset a 1-seed in the modern 7-game format. Not to mention, they seemed to enjoy every moment of frustrating soon-to-be-MVP Dirk Nowitzki while silencing the championship-prepped Mavericks.
-The Denver Nuggets might’ve stolen Game 1, yet never really stood a fighting chance against the veteran-led, savvy Spurs.
-Phoenix survived an early hiccup against the Lakers and then proceeded to dispatch Kobe Bryant and co. much easier than they did in last year’s opening round of the western conference playoffs.
-Utah outlasted Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, and the other relatively unknown 10 Houston Rockets. Yet again denying T-Mac the opportunity to avoid a tearful early exit from the playoff picture.

…out East…
-Detroit swept the Magic…as expected.
-Cleveland swept the Wizards (sans-Arenas & Butler)…as expected.
-Toronto was out-rebounded, out-coached, and out-played by Jason Kidd’s, not Vince Carter’s, New Jersey Nets.
-Chicago swept Miami…which couldn’t have been expected by many of the experts.

And now…we’re nearly a week into the second-round (remember, the NBA Playoffs last half of the calendar-year) and suddenly things seem to be ending a lot quicker than many of us had anticipated and, more than likely, hoped for.

…out West…
-Riding a return to form from AK-47, the ever-resounding maturity of Deron Williams, and the emotional memories of Derek Fisher and Game 2…the Utah Jazz held serve at home, barely, over the Warriors (who missed out on two golden opportunities to steal a key game in the Playoffs on the road).
-San Antonio stung the Suns on the road late in Game 1, as should-be-MVP Steve Nash could only sit on the bench and bleed profusely from the nose (thanks trainer). After withstanding a few early punches (and a potential kick in the Achilles from Bruce Bowen to new 1^st-teamer Amare Stoudemire) from San Antonio, the Suns rode smart defense, namely from Kurt Thomas, and a cooled-off Tony Parker to even up the series as it heads to the Alamo.

By the way...Bowen isn't new to accusations.
[w/ Ray Allen] [w/ VC] [w/ Knicks] & [w/ Candace's older brother]

…out East…
-Detroit dominated every aspect of Games 1 and 2 at home AND despite an 18-point deficit in the 3^rd quarter of Game 3, the balanced-team attack of Detroit proved too poised and too potent for the still-Baby Bulls. With a 3-0 lead, there’s no bet in Vegas worth taking against Motown.
-New Jersey couldn’t keep up on the boards or in the closing moments against LeBron and the Cavs in the opening games of the series. As the series heads to Jersey, it remains to be seen if this is the last of Jason Kidd in New Jersey or not?

So there it is. Laid out all nice and easy to understand. [Sure.]

So what happens next?

Questions always happen NEXT.

Can Golden State feed off of the hysteria of their home-crowd and take the crucial step needed on Friday night…securing their first victory in the series? Is Baron Davis healthy enough to continue his stellar play? Can Stephen Jackson overcome the defensive resurgence of AK-47? Will Monta Ellis ever show up in these playoffs? Or will the Jazz, with so much size in Boozer and clutch-play from Williams/Okur, make the series a foregone conclusion by the time the weekend is over?

Can Phoenix man-up and steal one in San Antonio? What will become of Amare’s comments about the Spurs being a “dirty team”? Was Tony Parker simply rusty or potentially fatigued/figured out? Where is Manu Ginobli? Can Kurt Thomas honestly hope to briefly contain TD? Ultimately: will this series go seven, as everyone is hoping and wishing for?

Are the Nets ready to make a statement against Cleveland? Or is their disadvantage on the bench and the boards simple too much to overcome? Can Vince Carter shoot lights out or make a dozen-plus trips to the free throw line at home consistently? From my own specific bank, is this the year Larry Hughes finally delivers time-and-time again?

Can Chicago learn from this 0-3 deficit and scratch its way back to Motown with a fighter’s chance in Game 5? Or are these Pistons simply too talented, too together, and too much for the East to possible contain?

All these questions…and perhaps some answers are all that remains this busy NBA Playoffs-happy weekend.'

Until next time...

Warriors Shock the World

In what has to be considered the biggest upset in NBA Playoffs history, the Golden State Warriors became only the third #8-seed (alongside the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks) to upset a 1-seed. What you might not yet know is that the Warriors were the first team to do it in the current 7-game series system.

And who did they beat? Only the 67-win Mavericks, the heavy odds-on-choice to secure their first NBA title. Only a year after a 4-game collapse following 2 early victories over the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals, the Mavericks seemed hungrier, deeper, and plenty poised to take home this season's NBA title. Securing home court advantage sometime in February, soon-to-be MVP Dirk Nowitzki and his Mavs appeared to be running on all cylinders.

Enter Don Nelson, responsible for the drafting and development of Nowitzki (and Avery Johnson as a coach), and his rag-tag bunch of thuggish-scruggish Warriors. Playing small-ball, and often barely going 7-deep, the Warriors had swept the season series from Dallas this season (and went 3-1 last season against them).

Despite a torrid end to the season - including securing their playoff spot following the last game of the season against Portland - many people didn't give Golden State much of a chance. Myself included.

Yet, the Warriors stole Game 1 in Dallas, and despite a double-digit loss in Game 2, Golden State never panicked during the series. They dominated the tempo and shot lights out from behind the arc in Games 3 and 4 (their first playoff games in Oakland in 13 years). Despite losing a 9-point lead in the closing minutes of Game 5 in Dallas (especially rallying from being down as much as 21 in the first half), the Warriors returned home feeling relaxed and confident.

For all of the trash-talking, technical fouls, and menacing facial expressions, Stephen Jackson was a force on the court all series. Shooting 10-19 from the field, including an astounding 7-8 from the 3-point line, Jackson's 33 led the Warriors throughout their 111-86 crushing of the Mavericks in Game 6.

B Diddy was off-balance all-night, yet hit every shot that mattered.
Credit: Yahoo! Sports

Despite pulling a hamstring early, Baron Davis (yes, the same B Diddy I said should've been traded at the deadline) put up his typical 20 point, 10 rebound, and 6 assist game despite fighting through brutal pain. Matt Barnes, as important as any role player in the 1st round thus far, played on a bad wheel of his own and contributed a key 16 points, 11 rebound, and 7 assist game. Whereas Maverick role players (i.e. Devean George, Devin Harris, and Austin Croshere) only stunk up the joint. Even rookie Maurice Ager saw action in the final 5 minutes.

Only Jerry Stackhouse, who had a 16-point first-half (including 4-5 from downtown), seemed to shoot well for the Mavs early on (who trailed by 2 at the half). Even Josh Howard, the most consistent Maverick throughout the series, struggled to hit key shots and assert himself on the defensive side of the basketball.

Placing blame on his superstar all series, it was Dallas head coach Avery Johnson who finally threw the towel in, following a ferocious dunk from Jason Richardson, by placing his MVP, Nowitzki, on the bench for the final 4 1/2 minutes of the game.

As for the MVP, he flat-out stunk up the joint during these playoffs.
His line tonight: 2-13 from the field, 8 points, 10 rebounds, 3 turnovers, countless flops and flailing-arm shots trying to draw fouls.

Dirk played uninspired basketball and appeared almost untalented the majority of this series. The small-ball approach by the Warriors (which often had Jackson or Barnes front Dirk and help come from the weak or post-side) was often suffocating and softened Dirk up quite a bit. Outside of a clutch performance in the closing minutes of Game 5, Dirk took poor shots, tried to draw far too many fouls throughout each of the games and lacked any presence to control the game in the closing seconds.

The question for Dallas and owner Mark Cuban now remains: Can we ever win our championship?

The answer for now is an emphatic NO.

The Warriors shocked everyone but themselves. Don Nelson was masterful in his game planning and had the Warriors convinced they could win this series by simply playing their type of basketball. Baron Davis is clearly the post-season MVP thus far. Meanwhile, hot-head Stephen Jackson (who was practically given away by Pacers executive Larry Bird) was incredibly poised and extremely clutch. Meanwhile, guys like Al Harrington bought into Nelson's system and accepted role situations.

All credit is due to the Warriors. However, heat must be placed on the Mavericks, and especially on their MVP Nowitzki and head coach Avery Johnson (who clearly couldn't motivate his star or push any of the right buttons for his team).

It's quite a story for the expected doldrums of the opening round of the NBA Playoffs.

Warriors in 6. Mavericks done.

Until next time...