I wrote this for the newspaper I write for, figured I would share it with you guys since I haven’t been updating as much sorry it’s late.
The NBA playoffs have revealed a significant change in the league with the top teams being ousted and/or struggling, and the underdogs shining through. For quite some time, there are certain teams who remained dominant such as the Los Angeles Lakers, and the Boston Celtics. Well this year things have changed.
In a shocking series against the Dallas Mavericks, the two-time defending NBA champions the Los Angeles Lakers were swept and booted from the playoffs in the second round. Though the Mavericks and Lakers entered the postseason with the same record of 57-25, the Mavericks have been known to come up short quite a few times when it comes to the playoffs. But now they are contending with what may be their best team yet. With the addition of center Tyson Chandler adding strength and defense to the Mavs frontline, Jason Terry and Peja Stojavick nailing shots from behind the arc including Terry tying an NBA post season record of nine 3-pointers, Jason Kidd playing with young legs providing facilitation on the offense, and the Mavs unguardable superstar Dirk Nowitzki all proved to be too much for the Lakers to handle. In game 4 of the series the Mavericks won in a shocking blowout of 122-86, not only ending the Lakers season but also sending the legendary coach Phil Jackson off on a bad note, as that was his last game as an NBA coach.
The Lakers rival, the Eastern Conference defending champions the Boston Celtics, also were eliminated in the second round. The Celtics lost to the new “Big Three”, Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat. Despite criticism of Lebron’s lack of a clutch gene, Bosh not being a dominant big man, and Wade not taking over as the go to guy, the Heat were able to get it together and oust the Celtics in a five game series.
Another surprise in the playoffs was the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks have proven themselves to be an inconsistent team with a lackluster star in Joe Johnson. After being swept in the Eastern Conference semifinals two years in a row, the Hawks finally got their revenge and eliminated the Orlando Magic in a six game series. With Joe Johnson proving his worth, Jamal Crawford providing brilliant offense off the bench, and the addition of Kirk Hinrich, the Hawks were able to neutralize the Magic, shutting down everyone but Dwight Howard. In the last game of the Orlando series Hinrich suffered a hamstring injury and was out for the rest of the playoffs. Inserted in his place was Jeff Teague who turned out to play extremely well, helping the Hawks to claim two games against the Chicago Bulls before they lost in a six game series.
The biggest shocker of the playoffs has to be the Memphis Grizzlies. The No. 8 seed from the Western Conference plays as if they should be way higher. They stunned many people by eliminating the San Antonio Spurs, who held the #1 seed in the Western Conference and the best regular season record in the league. The Grizzlies were the second No. 8 seed team in NBA history to defeat a No. 1 seed. Coach Lionel Hollins who managed to outcoach the great Greg Popavich led them. Hollins proved his ability to make adjustments and rotations, playing the strong points of his team and exposing the weakness of the opposition. The addition of Tony Allen proved to be great for the Grizzlies defense, as well as defensive help from Mike Conley. Their once weak bench became strong and incredibly helpful with big shots from Darrell Arthur, Greivis Vasquez, Shane Battier, and O.J. Mayo who became a starter. The biggest contributor to the team was no doubt Zach Randolph. Randolph made big shot after big shot, and showed superb decision-making ability. Consistently racking up double doubles and working both ends of the court, Randolph led his team to not only defeat the Spurs but also taking the Oklahoma City Thunder to seven games before they were eliminated.
This year’s playoffs have had no lack of excitement and surprises, and it’ll be interesting to see which team takes home the championship trophy and coveted rings. Four teams left to battle it out The Miami Heat, The Chicago Bulls, The Dallas Mavericks, and The Oklahoma City Thunder.
