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NBA Playoffs: Eastern Conference Matchups
With the Cleveland Cavaliers winning on Wednesday and the Chicago Bulls falling to the New Jersey Nets the Eastern Conference playoff picture took on a new look. Cleveland jumped to the number two seed while the Bulls dropped all the way to the number five seed. Wednesday night also provided the Washington Wizards with the opportunity to seal the number seven seed, keeping the Orlando Magic in the eighth spot.
The number one seed Detroit Pistons will face the Orlando Magic in the first round. The Pistons beat the Magic in all four of their meetings this year. Detroit used a balanced squad to win the Central Division this year and found they hadn’t missed a beat with the departure of Ben Wallace. With Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Chris Webber and Rasheed Wallace playing strong the Pistons are the clear favorite to make their way to the NBA finals. Orlando is back in the playoffs for the first time in four years and it will give Dwight Howard his first taste of the post season. Orlando won six of their last seven to get into the playoffs and they’re not looking to go out quickly.
Detroit (26-15 at home) Orlando (15-26 on the road) Series begins Saturday
Cleveland’s victory on Wednesday coupled with the Bulls loss could have been the most significant shift in the NBA playoff picture. The Cavs now get the two seed and play the most banged up team in the Eastern Conference in the Washington Wizards. The Wizards limped into the playoffs after dropping eight of their last ten. Cleveland took two of three from the Wizards this year and have been getting strong play from not only LeBron James but Larry Hughes and Sasha Pavlovic as well.
Cleveland (30-11) Washington (15-26) Series begins Sunday
The Toronto Raptors enter the Eastern Conference playoffs as the number three seed and will face the New Jersey Nets in what could be the most entertaining first round matchup in either conference. The two sides split their four-game series this year. Toronto had won nine of ten before dropping their final two games of the season while New Jersey won six of their last seven to reach the .500 mark and earn the six seed. Both teams started the season slow with the Raptors opening up at a 7-14 clip while the Nets were 11-18 at one point. The Nets will look to keep Vince Carter and Jason Kidd hot while Toronto will lean heavily on Chris Bosh to push them through to the second round.
Toronto (30-11) New Jersey (17-24) Series begins Saturday
Despite being slapped with the five seed the Chicago Bulls will host the number four seed Miami Heat because of a better record. The Bulls had a great chance to lock up the number two seed in the playoffs but they lost a home game to the Cavaliers in overtime on the last day of March and then fell to the Nets on Wednesday. Chicago beat the Heat three out of four this year, including an opening game 42-point blowout that is still fresh on the minds of Miami players. Most though Miami would fade out of the playoff picture after Dwyane Wade went down in late February but Shaq and the rest of the team responded by winning eleven of their next twelve and taking control of their season.
Chicago (31-10) Miami (17-24) Series begins Saturday
