So it all comes down to LA Lakers vs. Orlando. Not a huge surprise for me, as Orlando seemed the second most likely team to advance - albeit a distance second to Cleveland.
The Lakers have struggled against both Houston, in particular, and Denver at times, yet somehow they manage to escape through the West and even avoid having to face Cleveland. Likewise Orlando looked like they might lose in the first round to Philadelphia, just barely beat Boston in seven and then finally everything started working at the right time, against Cleveland.
Based on that, the Magic sound like the team carrying the momentum into the finals, but given that the Lakers have the first two games at home, they'll really need to win one of the two I think, otherwise they'll have a heap of pressure on themselves to win three straight at home.
I think the Howard vs. Gasol matchup probably goes about even, with Bynum perhaps giving Gasol just a little assistance. From there you have Kobe and Odom vs. Hedo and Rashard. With the way Hedo plays the first 45 minutes of games, I just can't see the Magic playing well enough each night to beat the Lakers.
LA Lakers 4 - Orlando 2
Friday, June 12, 2009
NBA 2008-09 Round 3 Playoff Review
Finals bound !
Cleveland 4 - Orlando 1 was Orlando 4 - Cleveland 2
Well, not sure where to start with this one. The Cavs seemed to be going to LeBron on just about every play - even more than in previous rounds. Simply give it to LeBron at the top of the key, and everyone else clear out. I suppose, in hindsight, such a strategy can only take you so far, and with Orlando having big contributions from several players on offense each night, they simply were reliable enough to hold off the Cavs.
LA Lakers 4 - Denver 3 was LA Lakers 4 - Denver 2
Close call on this one, the old away win in game six I hate to pick shows up once more. To be fair though, this was the 3rd win by an away team in six games, rather than the 1st.
Was a bit of a surprise that the Lakers split the first two games - the Nuggets showed a lot of promise, but in the end they didn't seem to have that bit extra, in order to show up every night. Billups in particular dropped off during this series.
Cleveland 4 - Orlando 1 was Orlando 4 - Cleveland 2
Well, not sure where to start with this one. The Cavs seemed to be going to LeBron on just about every play - even more than in previous rounds. Simply give it to LeBron at the top of the key, and everyone else clear out. I suppose, in hindsight, such a strategy can only take you so far, and with Orlando having big contributions from several players on offense each night, they simply were reliable enough to hold off the Cavs.
LA Lakers 4 - Denver 3 was LA Lakers 4 - Denver 2
Close call on this one, the old away win in game six I hate to pick shows up once more. To be fair though, this was the 3rd win by an away team in six games, rather than the 1st.
Was a bit of a surprise that the Lakers split the first two games - the Nuggets showed a lot of promise, but in the end they didn't seem to have that bit extra, in order to show up every night. Billups in particular dropped off during this series.
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