By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer
Utah Jazz (4) vs. San Antonio Spurs (3)
Comments: The teams split the season series 2-2, with each team winning its two home games. The Jazz have lost their last 16 games in San Antonio, dating to 1999. Still, this Utah team is no pushover, and anyone completely writing them off for this series hasn’t been paying attention. This team is versatile, as they can run in the open floor and also pound you inside. Maybe the best rebounding squad in the NBA, the Jazz are peaking at the right time. San Antonio, meanwhile, just came off an extremely physical, hard-fought series against the Suns. The Jazz last played Tuesday, while the Spurs didn’t eliminate Phoenix until Friday night, giving them just one full day of recovery time before Sunday afternoon’s matchup.
While a Phoenix vs. Golden State meeting would have been more exciting, it’s hard to argue against these two teams being unworthy of fighting for the rights to the NBA Finals. Carlos Boozer may be the most underrated player in the game, and he’ll need to play up to those standards for Utah to have a chance. It’s doubtful Deron Williams can keep up with the super quick Tony Parker, but Mehmet Okur should be a headache of a matchup for the Spurs. This series comes down to homecourt advantage. Spurs 4-3.
Cleveland Cavaliers (2) vs. Detroit Pistons (1)
Comments: Detroit has reached the conference finals for the fifth straight year. In more than two decades, just five NBA teams have advanced to five straight conference finals. The Cavs, on the other hand, are making their first trip to the Eastern Conference finals since 1992. The Pistons won the season series 3-1 by limiting the Cavaliers to 83 points per game. Cleveland’s only victory came in overtime on March 7, when LeBron James scored a season-high 41 points. Every Pistons starter averaged in double figures against Cleveland, something the Cavs simply can’t counter against with their lack of options on offense.
Cleveland has impressed so far, but Detroit is a whole different beast compared to Washington and New Jersey. The Pistons may lose focus from time to time, especially looking ahead to an inevitable trip to the finals, but this series should be a fairly easy one. Pistons 4-1.
Leave a Reply