Earlier this week I posted the 5 teams from the NFC I feel will reach the playoffs plus 1 that I wasn't so sure of. I will now attempt to do the same for the AFC teams. Now, for some reason I found this one a lot more challenging than the NFC. Some may say that's because the AFC is much stronger. If you look back at it, from a conference standpoint, the same top teams remain at the top in both conferences. I just have a much harder time picking winners in the AFC because so many teams are improving there, whereas the NFC still has the same standout few each year no matter what things look like on paper during the off-season. Anyway, with no further ado, here are my picks for the AFC playoff picture in no particular order.
Very soon training camp will start for the NFL. We will get our first real feel for what is now undisputedly America's game. I know that there are a lot of "experts" and "real" sports writers out there who have already made some predictions as to which teams will be in the superbowl this year. Well, it's my turn. I'm going to write one for the NFC and the AFC. My format will be simple, 5 teams I'm sure will be in the playoffs, a 6th that I'm not so sure so I'm just picking them and the team I feel will represent that conference in the big game. So without further delay, here are my picks from the NFC in no particular order.
Kobe Bryant is, at worst, the second-best player in the NBA. In thirteen seasons, he's won three NBA Championships (yes, they're HIS, too), an MVP award, two scoring titles, been an eleven-time All-Star, and owns all kinds of NBA records. He is universally recognized as the best closer in the game, and is three wins away from another NBA Championship (and first Finals MVP, if they win).
Yet, Kobe Bryant is probably the most hated player in the NBA, and has been for some time.
Since he's come into the league, he's been accused of being aloof, arrogant, vain, self-centered, out for dolo, and every other way that a player can be described as "selfish." People say he shoots too much or that he's not a good teammate; people throw in his face that he's not Michael Jordan. And they're right. Michael took way more shots than Kobe did.
But still, let's not discount the Cleveland Cavaliers or the Denver Nuggets. As we've been doing since the first round (which seems like months ago), let's do a quick recap of what we saw in the third round of these incredible yet inconsistent playoffs.
While we get ready for the Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic this coming Thursday, there's still much to talk about when it comes to the rest of the league, and namely the runner ups of each conference.
The refs? Horrendous. The Cavs? Offensively incapable. The Magic? Potentially and fearfully crumbling. The Lakers? Inescapable inconsistent. The Nuggets? Sporadic Combustion.
We have heard all of that already. And quite frankly, I am tired a) tired of talking about it and b) tired of hearing about it.
The refs will continue to control both series for some odd reason. If the Lakers win, the refs are bad. If the Nuggets win, the refs are bad. Same goes for the Cavs and Magic tomorrow. There's no way to find a positive unbiased light about it. We'll side either way, to the fact that the refs are slightly changing the outcomes of these games. But nonetheless, take the refs away, and superstars like Kobe, Lebron, Billups and Dwight have continuously made costly mistakes in close games. From endless turnovers to forced shots to just not taking the shot and giving up the ball.
But through it all, there have been some positive lights for all teams.
So the Lakers DO have the energy of someone younger than 60 years old.
For most of these playoffs, we have watched the Lakers sleepwalk through games like a team that has already won three or four championships. Luke Walton had me thinking he was actually a spy from the other team, and I wasn't sure Lamar Odom was even alive anymore.
Then, the Denver Nuggets smacked LA clean in the mouth during a 120-101 loss in Game 4. They had to stomach watching J.R. Smith tap-dancing, mean-mugging, and generally being a stereotype as they went down in flames in Denver. Not only that, they let a guy who actually answers to "Birdman" shut them down.
Maybe that was enough to finally wake the Lakers up. Lord knows I was tired of seeing them play like they'd automatically be in the Finals just because it's been prophesied by the Kobe/LeBron commercials. I think for most people, escaping Houston like they did would be enough for a team to realize that it's not gonna be a cakewalk.
Where did the Kobe Bryant story go wrong? Ok wait, don't answer that. We know that answer. But where did it go wrong, again? As the playoffs have gone on this year, the doubt, the smack and seemingly most of all, the hate continues to pile up on one man; Twenty-Four.
There's always been haters, before the whole Colorado incident. And then it only grew afterwards. When he was going in between trials in Colorado and hitting game winners the same day in another city, some applauded him for his efforts while having a big trial in the back of his mind. Others continued to try to defame Kobe. He slowly brought it back up, and now you see him on Nike and Vitamin Water ads. Whether he's on a horse or a puppet, he's back in the social culture and succeeding. He's got the number one jersey sold this year (yes, a number change helped) and he finally took home a MVP trophy last year, something that definitely shows that both us, the consumer and the media alike have slowly begun to bring him back to acceptance.
And then all of a sudden (or was it?), we didn't. What happened?
I think we've all gotten tired of the Kobe and Lebron comparisons. Some of us may already be tired of the puppet commercials...Ok, maybe not. The defending champions are gone, and so are the underdogs. Now, all we have left...is four teams that truly are playing the best basketball in the league. Boston has too many injuries. The Rockets, could have been up here, but they too, had too many injuries. The Spurs and Mavericks? Well, I think we'll be seeing some changes in all of Texas this summer. But right now...it's down to four...and there's a lot of thoughts going around.
So let's wonder...
I may upset some Laker fans, maybe even some Cavs fan...but hey, why the hell not?
I am going to be honest I am a little tired of the Lebron/Kobe debate. It has been overkill as of late especially considering they are two totally different players at two totally different times in their career.
But I was Twittering it up this morning (http://www.twitter.com/BlkSportsOnline) with my friend mrsFAB (http://www.twitter.com/mrsFAB) about Lebron/Kobe which she made an interesting point that got me to thinking. She was pointing out how she would like Lebron to get his ring, but she thinks Kobe will. I think that is the sentiment of a lot of people and since a lot of people ask me all the time what do I mean when I say they are totally different players and different times in their careers it inspired me to write the comparisons in terms that everyone could understand.
Another full two weeks gone by, and the second round has come to an end. Which arguably also means there is only about one month left of professional basketball left this season. A little bittersweet.
But were there surprises this round. With the depleted defending champions finally knocked out, and last year's runner-up taken to the brink of an elimination game, there are a lot of things we still learned from this enigmatic second round of the playoffs.
Was Dwight Howard wrong for calling out his coach after the Orlando Magic's Game 5 loss to Boston? We can debate that forever and in truth, he probably was. After all, it's not like he did anything to step up to stop the bleeding during that fourth quarter collapse. Plus, calling out people is the press isn't for everyone, because he's not Phil Jackson.
But I do believe that this is a step in the right direction in the evolution of Dwight Howard. It wasn't that long ago that he planned on converting all of his teammates.
Dwight Howard has always been accused of being too nice. He's always joking, smiling, and laughing; enjoying himself. What's wrong with this guy? He's out there, having fun playing basketball, when he needs to get serious about this kid's game that he's paid millions to play. He should have never let Nate Robinson jump over him to win the slam dunk contest. He should have put his boot heel on Robinson's throat to assure that he won this exhibition that will do as much for his career as it did for Harold Miner's. The kid's just got no killer instinct, no competitive drive. He's just having too much fun.
That nameless kid in Orlando wasn't the only one hurt during Glen Davis' celebration Sunday night in Orlando. Dwight Howard's and Rashard Lewis's feelings were hurt by all of the celebrating and joy on their court because none of it was theirs.
Lost in the controversy surrounding Glen Davis' flying shoulderblock on a kid standing courtside in Orlando is Dwight Howard's and Rashard Lewis's distaste for post-game celebrations. Dwight Howard was shown with his face all frowned up and calling for a technical, while Rashard Lewis said the following:
"It most definitely adds fuel to the fire," Lewis said. "We don't like that type of stuff. You have to be professional about the game of basketball. We're a professional team and we expect them to be the same way.
"Those guys were jumping up and down, waving their hands at us, saying bye, but it's not over yet; it's just 2-2," Lewis added. "We could have done the same thing when we won on their court, but we're more professional than that. They still have to win ballgames. The series ain't over yet."
I remember back in the days of playing ball at the playground and we had that rule in one-on-one where if one guy got up 7-0 over another guy to start a game, the game was over. We called it the "7-0 Skunk." I'm sure everyone is familiar with this rule, and if not, I don't know where you played ball.
The point of the rule was to clear the court for the next guy, because what's the point in watching a guy fail to come back from an 0-7 deficit? Everyone watching knew he wasn't going to back a 10-7 run. If a guy gets up like that on you, the point is made. He's killing you. So let's get to the next game. Do we really need to sit here and watch you keep losing?
It's a rule that the NBA could stand to adopt to help speed things along sometimes. Clear Cleveland's court to make room for the Celtics or Magic.
As I type this, the Cavs and the Hawks are playing Game 4 of their semi-final playoff series. The Cavs are on fire right now, while the Hawks are simply outclassed. The Cavs have won all seven of their playoff games by double digits and are playing on another level than the Hawks. It's not the Hawks' fault, because there isn't much they could have done to stop the beating that they're catching right now.
a) A strong desire or craving; a need for food.
b) The discomfort, weakness, or pain caused by a prolonged lack of food.
We all know this definition. We know that when the lion, the king of the jungle is hungry, he goes and gets what is rightfully his...well what he believes is his. The lion goes and gets whatever he desires. And rarely do we see any one thing or object stop the lion, unless it's...well, the ultimate end result, death. But in it's efforts, the lion is ruthless. Fierce. Vigilant.
But hunger also brings a further refined definition, come this time of year.
c) The aspiration for something more, the chance to begin a legacy; the thirst for an NBA championship.
I know a lot of people think that the Rockets will give the Lakers problems I do not. This version of the Rockets are no longer 1st round virgins, but they beat an inexperience and young Portland Trail Blazers team by brute force, but that won't happen with the Lakers. They will try to get under the Lakers skin and make it into a dogfight, but it simply will not happen. The Lakers are too skilled of a team from top to bottom to be bothered by the Rockets.
4-1 Lakers
#2 Denver Nuggets vs. #6 Dallas Mavericks
The Mavericks took out an old San Antonio team, but handling Denver will be a whole different story. Chauncey Billups have given the Nuggets a ton of confidence and in a way I believe they would prefer to play the Mavericks over the Spurs because the Mavericks still have a reputation of being soft. As long as the Nuggets keep up their hot shooting they should win a fairly competitive series.
Goodness, it feels like the playoffs have been going on for months. Thirteen days to be exact. But wow, some of these series just kept going. In a perfect world, every series would have been a best-of-five, but the Bulls-Celtics series would be a best-of-seventeen. And I think we'd still be going into over-time every night.
The first round is ALMOST done, but we've already seen some things that have opened some eyes. The Rockets finally won a series! the 76ers have some kick to them. The Hornets are a disgrace to basketball, and quit on a good man. Byron Scott will be fired this summer because nobody on that team listens to him. Lebron is a beast. The Detroit Pistons are desolate (at least they have hockey). Tim Duncan lost his first ever first round series. Jerry Sloan might finally say goodbye to the NBA. Jason Kidd in Dallas worked out after-all. The Nuggets are scary. Brandon Roy is a top five guard in the NBA. Dwayne Wade is a G. So is Ray Allen. Oh, and Rondo was the first player to drop 19 assists and no turnovers since Norm Nixon...and they still lost. And the list goes on.
But let's take a look at some pretty interesting themes revolving the first round of the NBA Playoffs.
As I type this, the Cleveland Cavaliers are mercifully taking the Detroit Pistons out behind the barn to put them out of their misery. It's about as merciful as a 20 point blowout can be.
It's the kind of game that makes me wonder if there's any hope that the NBA will take the playoffs back to a five-game series in the first round, because there's no need to even play this game. In fact, the only reason why I'm still watching it is because my remote is too far away from my computer.
Really, from Game 1, the Pistons have played like they didn't even want to be here. I understand that Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace are hurt, but they haven't even really tried to win this series. The only reason to keep it going is because there's always the chance that LeBron is going to give the NBA some more highlights to play in slow motion, but when a lower-seeded team is down 0-3 in the first round, they should be given the option to save face and forfeit instead of suffering another blowout. After all, they're not coming back, because if ESPN has taught us nothing, it's that 85% of teams down 0-3 lose the series.
The series is 1-1, but the Boston Celtics couldn't be in more trouble.
I know, I know; The Celtics did something like this last year, and that was with a healthy Kevin Garnett. They went to seven games with the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks, of all teams, right? Why, they might as well have played the Washington Generals. And they still came out of it with a championship.
Thing is, that Hawks team last year is better than this year's Bulls team. I would like to say that it's hard to say that, being a Bulls fan, but the truth is, this is a Bulls team with a rookie point guard, an undersized shooting guard, and no post scoring. These Chicago Bulls should not be in this position. Garnett or no Garnett (Gar-nott? *rimshot*), the Celtics are still the World Champions.
And yet, here we are with a series at 1-1, that could have easily been 2-0, going back to Chicago on Thursday. The Chicago Bulls are playing the Celtics in Boston better than anyone in last year's playoffs did.
If everyone is really honest with themselves they know the NBA Finals will be the Cavaliers vs. Lakers, but I am going to pick every round of the playoffs because I know that is what the people want and I am being harassed on Twitter about it (http://www.twitter.com/BlkSportsOnline
. 1st Round Record: N/A
Overall Record: N/A
The NBA Playoffs are upon us and although the majority of us, including your sexy model-writer, are salivating at a clobbering in Cleveland and a looting in LA showdown between the Cavaliers and Lakers, the NBA has other plans in store. Mr. West and the NBA have paired up to give you something so amazing with a NBA playoffs commercial featuring the song "Amazing" from Yeezy's hit album 808's and Heartbreaks.
From Dwyane Wade's reverse layup to a Dwight Howard monster jam to LeBron catching an alley-oop and a buzzer beater by Kobe, prepare to witness amazing happening this year. Let the playoffs begin!
Yesterday, I broke down the Western Conference, and the possibility of teams breaking through and getting past the two best in the West - the Lakers and Spurs. Today, it's the same story, only in the Eastern Conference. Can anyone actually beat Lebron and his Cavs or the defending Champions?
For the longest time, Orlando was right there, and many said they had the right pieces to be playing side by side with Cleveland and Boston. But Jameer Nelson's injury has put them in limbo. True, Rafer Alston was a great replacement, but Jameer Nelson was built to run this Orlando team. Like the West, the East too has dealt with huge injuries to players (Jameer Nelson, Ben Wallace, Kevin Garnett, Josh Smith, Elton Brand, Michael Redd, Allen Iverson, Devin Harris). But it's a long season, and teams have worked their way up to this point. Thus far, we've had a unanimous three teams at the top.
After that, we have four teams fighting for the 4rd seed through 7th seed, and arguable six teams fighting for the final 8th seed. But all that aside, is any one better or able to beat the Cavaliers or Celtics?
Among many NBA followers, both on the East and the West... there is a large consensus that the Western Conference Finals is already a given. It will be between the Los Angeles Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs. Early on in the season, many teams were discussed. New Orleans was said to be the front runner in fighting Los Angeles for the Western Conference Champion title this year. San Antonio is there every year, but with Ron Artest coming to the Rockets, they too, looked like they were ready to step to the next level of competing and fight both the Lakers and Spurs to the Finals.
Alas, the season is finally coming to an end, and it still isn't clear which eight teams will be in the playoffs to begin with. While Phoenix looks like it's finally on its way out, the inconsistencies of other teams could give Phoenix a small boost. Injuries have hurt the West considerably with many high-profile players being injured (Andrew Bynum, Manu Ginobili, Tracy McGrady, Tyson Chandler, Josh Howard, Amare Stoudemire, Greg Oden, Carlos Boozer). Practically every playoff team has had to deal with a major injury at some point this year, and for the most part, it has hurt them.
But injuries aside, can anyone:
A) dethrone the Lakers as the Western Conference Champions?
B) get past the preconceived notion that the Spurs and Lakers will be battling it out to get to the NBA Finals at the end of May?
Your Bona Fide Sports Expert and Super Model Supreme Amber Fox engage in our latest test of prognostication skill in what is shaping up as possibly the most exciting NBA playoffs ever. Amber did topple me in our March Madness Tournament, but I will exact my revenge. We will be picking every NBA Playoff series all the way to the NBA Finals.
The Bon Fide Sports Expert vs. Model NBA Playoff Challenge Presented by RhoPhotos, the photographer that will make you famous.
1st Round:
Robert Littal - 7-1
Amber Fox - 7-1
2nd Round:
Robert Littal 2-2
Amber Fox 4-0
Overall:
Robert Littal- 9-3
Amber Fox - 11-1
EASTERN FINALS:
Celtics vs. Pistons = Amber - Pistons , Robert - Celtics
A few thoughts on the 1st round of the NBA Playoffs since we are about half-way through the 1st round.
• Detroit and Boston should be ashamed of themselves. I have already spoken on this, but it is an embarrassment that these so call beasts of the east can't even take care of two below .500 teams. I can forgive losing one game, but two? Come on how can I take you seriously?
• The Nuggets are horrible. Carmelo Anthony is not a legendary player. He is a good player, and if they are ever going to be a great team, they are going to need to bring someone else to come in and no that isn't A.I.
• Maybe we should start paying attention the the Orlando Magic who is actually took care of business in the East. At this point, I believe they could make the NBA Finals since they are taking the playoffs seriously, unlike some other teams in the East.
• Waiting on the Soulja Boy diss song to Lebron. You know it is coming.
• Lebron does need to stop whining. After all, you are Lebron James.
Washington vs. Cleveland: The Wizards couldn't score in crunch time, and the Cavaliers did. The game was even throughout, but when it came down to the last minute of the game, the Cavs gave it to their go to man and he delivered. The Wizards tried to score but weren't able to make any baskets. If you want to know what is needed from a true franchise player, look at what Lebron did. 30 points, including six big ones when they were needed most. The Wizards guards, other than Gilbert Arenas, were terrible. Deshawn Stevenson, Antonio Daniels, and Roger Mason Jr. shot a combined 3-for-17 from the field; if they'd done anything the Wizards could have pulled off the win here. Brendan Haywood played very well (15 points, 10 rebounds) but was limited by foul trouble. Even though they won, this game doesn't offer much hope for the Cavs long term playoff hopes. Ben Wallace wasn't much good (zero points and six rebounds in a very telling 23 minutes), and no one outside of Lebron, Zydrunas ilgauksas, and Daniel Gibson were able to hit their shots with any consistency. If the 'Zards can keep Haywood on the floor and hit a few more shots they should win this thing.
Phoenix vs. San Antonio:
Timmy added to the legacy yesterday with his game saving three pointer; who'd have predicted that? For anyone who thought he was starting to slip, this was your notice otherwise. Duncan's 40 points and 15 rebounds led the way to victory while Manu Ginobli sunk the game winning shot with less than two seconds on the clock in double overtime. The Suns may view this game as a missed opportunity if they lose the series; they had three to five point leads on several occasions and flat out could not hold them. Foul trouble was a problem; Shaq and Amare had eleven fouls between the two of them, and once Amare fouled out the Suns had problems scoring. He'll have to get better with that if they want to pull the series out.
New Orleans vs. Dallas
The Mavericks were looking like the experienced old hand laying down the young upstart for a little while....then the second half happened. The Hornets outscored them 64-40 in the second half and won by twelve. The Maverick trio of Jerry Stackhouse, Josh Howard, and Devean George shot a combined 7-for-32...yikes. That was enough to undo Dirk Nowitzki's 31 point, 10 rebound day and Jason Kidd's near triple double. For the Hornets, Chris Paul showed he wouldn't shrink under the spotlight by going for 35 points, 10 assists, 4 steals, and only one turnover. Depth is still a concern, though; only two Hornets reserves got any real minutes and if Tyson Chandler or David West get in foul trouble, that could be a real problem for them.
Utah vs. Houston
If the Rockets don't start shooting better, this could be over really quick. The Houston guards shot a combined 12 for 45, and the entire team shot an abysmal 36.7%. Take away Shane Battier's 7 for 7 and it drops to 30.6%. That's how you get swept, ladies and gentlemen. With no Yao Ming to get them easy baskets you can expect more where that came from. On the flip side, the Jazz got 20 points and 16 rebounds from Carlos Boozer to go along with 21 from Andrei Kirilenko and Deron Williams' 20 points and 10 assists. The Rockets look to be done here. It's only a matter of how long it will take.
Your Bona Fide Sports Expert and Super Model Supreme Amber Fox engage in our latest test of prognostication skill in what is shaping up as possibly the most exciting NBA playoffs ever. Amber did topple me in our March Madness Tournament, but I will exact my revenge. We will be picking every NBA Playoff series all the way to the NBA Finals.
The Bon Fide Sports Expert vs. Model NBA Playoff Challenge Presented by RhoPhotos, the photographer that will make you famous.
News Flash!!! News Flash!!! The NHL Playoffs have started!!!
What? You didn't know? You should be ashamed of yourself. There is nothing more exciting than NHL playoff hockey. Just because it is on channel 9202 on sports tier 7 gives you no excuse not to know it is going on. I know you haven't watched a game all year and you probably think Wayne Gretzky is still playing. But I am implore you to take time out of your busy weekend schedule to sit down and watch at least one game (and make sure it is in HD). You might like what you see.
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Earlier this week I posted the 5 teams from the NFC I feel will reach the playoffs plus 1 that I wasn't so sure of. I will now attempt to do the same for the AFC teams. Now, for some reason I found this one a lot more challenging than the NFC. Some may say that's because the AFC is much stronger. If you look back at it, from a conference standpoint, the same top teams remain at the top in both conferences. I just have a much harder time picking winners in the AFC because so many teams are improving there, whereas the NFC still has the same standout few each year no matter what things look like on paper during the off-season. Anyway, with no further ado, here are my picks for the AFC playoff picture in no particular order.
Continue reading AFC Teams For Superbowl.
