The Larry O’brien trophy
That long wait is over, the 2012 NBA Playoffs is here.
Yes guys..
It’s that time of the year again.
I know I’m late to post our playoff preview and all but it won’t stop us to share to you guys our thoughts in this year’s playoffs. Now let’s take a look at the playoff bracket shall we?
The Playoff Bracket
2012 playoff bracket from NBA.com
Key Factors and Prediction
This wouldn’t be a preview without some predictions right? Here’s our take on this year’s post-season..
Here we go..
#1 Spurs VS #8 Jazz (SAS leads 1-0)
Tim Duncan dunks over Paul Millsap during game 1
The Spurs routed Utah 106-91 on game 1. They did everything right during their first face-off with Tony Parker leading the way with 28pts and 8asts, they destroyed the Jazz. I can’t really see the Jazz pulling an upset in this series but it’s possible that the Jazz could win a game or two but it will still be hard for them to do so.
Spurs in 4
#1 Bulls VS #8 76ers (CHI leads 1-0)
Rose torn his ACL during game 1
Story of the series, D-Rose out with a torn ACL. He will not play in their future games. We all know Chicago is still a good team without Rose but I don’t think they will get pass Miami this year or maybe even the 2nd round. They’ll need strong plays from Watson and Lucas but it won’t be enough to carry them to the Finals. Rose is their MVP without him, it will be tough for them to go up against Boston, Miami and other teams with quick guards. But in this series I can still see the Bulls beating the Sixers because their tremendous D and they have a great coach and an effective system.
Maybe the White Mamba will come to their rescue?
Bulls in 5
#2 Thunder VS #7 Mavericks (OKC leads 2-0)
Kevin Durant hits the game winner in game 1
Game 1: Kevin Durant hits game winner.
Game 2: Thunder defeats the Mavs by 3.
Yeah, both games are close. Plays are getting chippy. This is the playoffs, what’s not to love?
This series is down to the wire, we know its a 2 and zip lead by OKC but they lead the Mavs just by a total of 4pts. Come on, how close can this series can be? This is an epic series you should not miss. Mavs should level up their play going to Dallas, Dirk and the Mavs will at least 1 game on their home floor. This series is unpredictable, but still we have a prediction.
OKC in 6
#2 Heat VS #7 Knicks (Miami leads 2-0)
Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James
The story of this series is not Jeremy Lin and Melo but Amare Stoudamire. He punched a glass, cut his left hand, got himself injured and stitched up. Another thing is, Iman Shumpert another key player of the Knicks suffered a torn ACL on game 1 and things are not going very well for New York.. AGAIN.
They lost by 37 in game 1 and by 10 in game 2.
This time no one can save them now.
Miami in 4
#3 Lakers VS #6 Nuggets (LAL leads 1-0)
Andrew Bynum blocks Ty Lawson
Andrew Bynum records 10 blocks most in Lakers history and tied with Mark Eaton and Hakeem Olajuwon for most in NBA history. He also had 10pts and 13rebs in game 1. Kobe led LA with 31pts while destroying Afflalo in the offensive end. Kobe kept on posting Afflalo up and eventually hitting tough jumpers. LA destroyed Denver in game 1 by I expect Ty Lawson to have a better game than he had the other day. Expect this series to be a little more physical even without “Metta World Heavyweight Champion” (AKA M.W.P./Ron Artest) on the court. At the end of the day, the Lakers are a lot taller and more talented inside the paint and with their championship experience combined with Kobe’s killer instinct the Lakers could be the dark horse of the playoffs.
LAL in 5
#3 Pacers VS #6 Magic (Series tied 1-1)
Roy Hibbert blocks Jason Richardson
Ok, for me this is the less talked about series this year. Why? Because of the absence of Dwight Howard. He won’t play in this year playoffs, perhaps, he played his last game as a member of the Magic this season. Orlando surprised Indiana in game 1 but in game 2 it’s all about the Pacers. Paul George is an up and coming star in the league and so is Roy Hibbert. Danny Granger on the other hand is an underrated star. Their starting line up includes, George Hill and David west as well their sixth man is Leandro Barbosa, talk about a deep roster. These Pacers are dangerous no doubt about that, they’ll be rolling over the Howard-less Magic that’s for sure.
IND in 5
#4 Grizzlies VS #5 Clippers (LAC leads 1-0)
Blake Griffin and Zach Randolph on the block
Memphis went to work early in game 1 and had a 27pt lead in the 1st half. Then the Clippers showed up to work late and took control on the last part of game 1 and came back to win and capped off their historic 27 point comeback win. This series is going to get a lot better when they meet up again on game 2. Memphis will surely bounce back better than what they did during the 2nd half of game 1. OJ Mayo will be a big factor for the Grizz. They need him to score 15-20 pts to win this series. Z-Bo and Marc Gasol are playing great. But the Clips still have CP3, with him they have a chance every game. This series is close to call but the absence of Butler and Billups will affect LA negatively.
MEM in 6
#4 Hawks VS #5 Celtics (ATL leads 1-0)
Rajon Rondo chest bumps the referee
Rajon Rondo is out for game 2 and so is Ray Allen. The Celtics need to step up their game, they need a lot out of Avery Bradley and Brandon Bass to pick up the load. They also need KG and Paul Pierce to carry their team just like in 2008 in order to have a strong push this year. This will be a tough series for sure and this will be also too close to call. Josh Smith is without a doubt the Hawks’ best player and he will have to play a big role maybe a stat-line of 22-15-7-3 could very well be carry Atlanta to the second round.
ATL in 6
Last Thoughts
OK so here you have it, our playoff preview of this year’s playoffs. We know we know, you’re waiting for our last predictions right?
Here it is.
LeBron James and Kevin Durant
Yes, it’s the Heat vs the Thunder in this year’s finals. These are the top-2 teams this season and they will fight their hearts out to get that ring. The only question is who will win it all? Who will get his first ring? LeBron or KD?
Let’s just wait and see..
After all, this is the playoffs..
Anything can happen.
J&J SPORTS TALK 