I happen to agree with yours. I also happen to think that it's the most intriguing combination of match ups we could ask for.
i doubt the jazz will be the 5th seed looking at the road games they have coming up. a lakers/jazz first round would REALLY be something to see. i'd love for them to knock each other out. i think a rockets/blazers matchup would be fun and interesting as well. tough, but manageable.
1. Los Angeles Lakers vs. 8. Dallas Mavericks 2. Denver Nuggets vs. 7. Utah Jazz 3. Houston Rockets vs. 6. New Orleans Hornets 4. San Antonio Spurs vs. Portland Trail Blazers Alas, things won't work out as well as that.
Two matchups are easy to predict. The Jazz and Mavs will battle for #7 & #8 and the tough schedule will sink the Jazz. The Nuggets will get#2 because it will be a shock if they don't finish the season 4-2 in their last 6 games. So: 1 Lakers vs. 8 Jazz 2 Nuggets vs. 7 Mavericks (I can see the Spurs possibly finishing ahead of the Nuggets because it's really hard for me to put any faith in the Nugs). The other two series are harder to figure. The Spurs have 26 losses while the Rockets, Hornets and Blazers have 27. The Hornets have 4 tough road games left they will be favored to lose and each of 3 of their home games could be tough. Their closing schedule is almost like the Jazz. They will finish #6. The Spurs have the advantage with only 26 losses. They will lose Sunday @CLE. All of the other games are either (1) at home or (2) on the road against inferior teams. While I don't believe they will close the season 7-1, I choose them to grab the #3 seed and matchup against the Hornets. The Spurs just aren't playing well enough to keep up with Denver IMO (but I feel a little shaky picking the Nugs). So: 3 Spurs vs. 6 Hornets The deciding factor between home court in a Rockets/Blazers matchup is the next 3 games for Portland. Their last 3 games have been 20 point home wins. If they take that secret sauce on the road and beat the Rockets and Spurs, they could even challenge for #3. If they lose both games, pencil them in at #5. They also have a likely home loss to the Lakers on the schedule. I wouldn't miss that game for anything. The Rockets will probably lose tonight @LAL, which makes the next 2 games (home against ORL & POR) very crucial. Rockets need to hold serve and protect the Toyota Center. I'm going to predict the Blazers will finish ahead of the Rockets because the Rockets seem shaky after the Phoenix lose. That game shook me up and I'm not over it yet. The last 10 or so games, the Blazers seem to be raising it up a notch but I don't know if they are mature enough to keep it going. If they smack OKC tonight in a revenge game, that would be a good omen. If they lose, same old Blazers who just can't put 48 minutes together on the road. 4 Blazers vs. 5 Rockets
I'm glad Utah is plummeting in the standings. I think we'll be playing New Orleans, and Aaron Brooks will have to do a better job against CP3. I would absolutely love to host the Blazers though. We match up with them pretty well.
I wouldn't be too interested in playing the Blazers if I were Adelman. They have a lot of weapons on that team.
I'd rather play the Nuggets, Hornets, Mavs and possibly even the Spurs before the Blazers. Blazers are young and have no fear and they're going to be extremely hard to beat at home. I'm predicting an Oracle Arena type atmosphere from a couple years ago in Portland. If they steal a game on the road against whoever their first round matchup is they're probably going to advance.
Were looking at playing the Blazers if everything holds right..... the main thing left to decide is which team gets home court.... i think the back to back in sacramento and golden state may BE REALLY TOUGH to go 2-0
Totally agree. I don't know if we have the firepower to match up with them, and they're going to be playing hard and tough. If they get out of the first round, watch out for them.
