NBA Playoffs are just around the corner

With one game left to go in the NBA season, here are three predictions for the 2004 NBA… With one game left to go in the NBA season, here are three predictions for the 2004 NBA postseason:

1. The New York Knicks will win a playoff series.

This is obviously a biased pick, but the Knicks are catching the New Jersey Nets at just the right time. The Nets have just not been the same without Jason Kidd in their lineup, and there are no prospects for Kidd’s return in the near feature. And the injury problems don’t stop there for the Nets, as Kenyon Martin re-injured his left knee late last week against the Orlando Magic. Martin will most likely play in the first round of the playoffs, but there is no telling how effective he will be.

Meanwhile, the Knicks have won three in a row and five of their last seven. The New York squad, which has been overhauled numerous times this year, is finally starting to gel at just the right time. And, most importantly, the Knicks are winning as a team. Over their last five games, the Knicks have had six different leading scorers (DerMarr Johnson and Tim Thomas tied each other with 20 points each in an April 10 win at Washington). When Moochie Norris is a threat to go for 21, you know that there is some ball distribution going on. And that does not bode well for a banged-up New Jersey team.

There is still an outside chance of the Knicks stealing the sixth playoff spot, but Lenny Wilkens will be resting most of his starters in the Knicks closing regular season game at Cleveland. Meanwhile, the Hornets have to choke against the Wizards to slip to No. 7. That’s not likely, so I am sticking with this matchup and this pick.

2. Sacramento will not make it out of the first round.

If I had made this pick three months ago, I would have been laughed out of the building, but with the way the Kings have been playing lately, it doesn’t seem so far-fetched.

The Kings have lost seven of their last eleven games, including losses to the Lakers, the Mavericks, the Timberwolves and the Nuggets. Bobby Jackson is injured, and Chris Webber’s return has been disastrous. Webber is obviously not healthy enough to be playing, and he is only hurting his team by staying on the court.

At this point, I don’t think it even matters who the Kings play in the first round. Houston and Memphis both match up very well against Sacramento, and Dallas seems to have the Kings’ number. The Kings just don’t look like an elite basketball team, and until they can once again run the offense successfully through Peja Stojakovic, the depth of the Western Conference will rear its ugly head.

3. The Spurs and the Pacers will meet in the NBA Finals.

If you look closely at the Western Conference, there are really three teams that have legitimate shots at making the Finals. The Mavericks cannot play defense and have slipped into near obscurity, and the Kings’ unexpected late-season collapse, since Chris Webber’s return, means neither team has much of a shot. The lower-level teams in the West just don’t have the firepower to get the job done. Memphis and Denver are great stories, but they are young and have no playoff experience. Houston has a nice combination of wily veterans and young athletes, but they are too streaky.

That leaves the Lakers, the Timberwolves and the Spurs. When they are healthy, the Lakers are the best team in the NBA. Their veteran leadership and ability to win in the clutch is unparalleled, and Shaq and Kobe are still two of the best players in the NBA. The key is that “when they are healthy” part. Considering the increased intensity that the playoffs present and their physical styles of play, I don’t see Karl Malone and Shaq staying healthy for four straight playoff series. Without their four-headed-NBA-future-Hall-of-Famer monster, the Lakers are merely and above-average team.

The Timberwolves will be a hot playoff pick. They have a great inside-out game, and they play wonderful defense. Kevin Garnett can take over the game almost single-handedly, but he doesn’t need to anymore thanks to Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell.

They also will have a lot of pressure on them to win, which is something that they are not used to. This is their first season with a top-three seed, and I think that they will wilt as a result. Give this team a couple of years, but now is not their time.

The Spurs are the defending NBA champions. They have won ten games in a row. They still have an outside shot at a No. 1 seed. And, like the Lakers, the Spurs seem to bring out their best for the playoffs. Tim Duncan will earn postseason MVP honors once again, and the Spurs will win their third NBA championship in six years.

The Eastern Conference is, in a word, horrible. This makes it a much easier call.

Indiana is so well coached. Rick Carlisle has turned the Pacers around and, most importantly, he has Ron Artest under control. Jermaine O’Neal just seems to keep getting better, and Al Harrington is the best sixth man in the NBA. And of course, Reggie Miller has been known to hit a clutch playoff shot or two (arrrrgh!).

With 60 wins, the Pacers will have home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. And there is not another team in the Eastern Conference that can beat them at the Conseco Fieldhouse and defend home court.

Michael Cunningham is a senior staff writer at The Pitt News. Enjoy the playoffs!!!