The first round of NBA playoffs is over. Two weeks ago I made predictions for the eight series, and since I like to hold myself accountable I'll take a look back to see how I did before making some more predictions tomorrow.
East
1 Chicago vs 8 Philadelphia
Prediction-Chicago in six
Reality-Philadelphia in six
Analysis-Got the length right, but messed up on the teams. I think we can all agree that the Bulls would have won this series had Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah been healthy, but for the Celtics' sake I'm glad the Sixers advanced.
2 Miami vs 7 New York
Prediction-Miami in five
Reality-Miami in five
Analysis-This one was a no-brainer. As expected, the Knicks were nothing more than glorified doormats for the LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, who are eyeing another NBA finals appearance after crumbling against the Mavericks last June. Not surprisingly, New York needed a monster game from Carmelo Anthony just to secure a win in this series. Miami should have swept.
3 Indiana vs 6 Orlando
Prediction-Indiana in five
Reality-Indiana in five
Analysis-Nailed it. Without Dwight Howard, I'm surprised the shorthanded Magic even won a game against a deep Pacers squad. If D-Ho had played, I think this would have been a great series, but we'll never know.
4 Boston vs 5 Atlanta
Prediction-Boston in five
Reality-Boston in six
Analysis-Josh Smith and Joe Johnson missed scores of open jumpers, while Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett delivered throwback performances. Al Horford's return late in the series made things interesting before he choked with the season on the line during the final seconds of Game 6. Speaking of missed free throws, what was going on with Ray Allen during this series? He looked like Blake Griffin at the charity stripe.
West
1 San Antonio vs 8 Utah
Prediction-San Antonio in five
Reality-San Antonio in four
Analysis-Thought Utah's frontcourt of Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap would give the Spurs bigs some trouble, but the duo couldn't overcome San Antonio's solid all-around play. Tim Duncan and co. will be well-rested for their upcoming series with the Clips.
2 Oklahoma City vs 7 Dallas
Prediction-Oklahoma City in five
Reality-Oklahoma City in four
Analysis-Dallas didn't have enough guns to defend its title. The Thunder are much younger and infinitely more talented. The Mavs, who got unlucky in the first two games, put up a good fight but didn't catch the breaks.
3 Lakers vs 6 Denver
Prediction-Lakers in six
Reality-Lakers in seven
Analysis-The faster Nuggets gave the Slow-Time Lakers a run for their money after Los Angeles jumped out to a 3-1 series lead, but in the end LA's size advantage with Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum was too significant to overcome. There was no chance in hell that Kobe Bryant was going to let his team lose a Game 7 at home, either.
4 Memphis vs 5 Clippers
Prediction-Memphis in seven
Reality-Clippers in seven
Analysis-Right length, wrong team. On the surface this looked like a great matchup that would go down to the wire, and the series didn't disappoint. LA took a 3-1 series lead, only to let the Griz come back and force a Game 7 in Memphis. Luckily for the Clippers, their bench dominated the Grizzlies' reserves, outscoring them 41-11 in the decisive game. I still think Memphis is the better team.
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