Who Do We Want To See in The Playoffs? (v2 w/ Poll)

by thankyouforblaze on Mar 15, 2010 5:33 AM PDT

Now that the Blazers are playing arguably their best basketball of the season, we could conceivably make a push as high as 5th place in the Western conference standings. We're only a couple games back from the fourth/ fifth seed, so the most interesting question to me is:

Who do we want to see in the first round of the playoffs?

Lakers had their three game losing streak recently, so they're not infallible (by any means), and Blazer fans for the most part want nothing more than to put L*ker nation in their place. Is our match-up, especially at the guard position, something desirable?
Denver has recently jumped ahead of Dallas in the standings, and has been playing good ball even without Kenyon Martin. Billups and Carmelo are one mean tandem in the fourth quarter, especially if JR Smith is spreading the defense out, and we tend to not match-up extremely well.
Dallas just came off their 10+ game win streak, yet we've beat them a couple times in Dallas and they have the smallest margin of victory of Western conference playoff teams. We play them two more times at the Rose Garden.
Utah has lost two in a row and is only 6-4 in their last 10. They had to come back from 20+ points down to win in our most recent match-up, but that means that we could play them well in the playoffs if we don't have another meltdown (thanks in part to a bad match-up against Boozer).
Oklahoma City is on fire right now, winning more games than anybody could have predicted last year due in large part to a Westbrook/ Durantula combo that is one of the best in the league. A loss in the playoffs to OKC could devastate the Blazer mentality of being an "up-and-comer."
Phoenix is playing decent ball behind Nash and Amare, but they're a streaky team that could potentially lose 4-5 in a row, or win 8 in a row. We beat them @ Phx last time we faced them, but Amare has been at his best since the all-star break, not to mention Channing Frye has finally upped his physical game since leaving Portland, having served a one-game suspension for throwing a punch recently.

Western Conference

Team		GB
1.	* LA Lakers	--
2.	* Denver	3.0
3.	* Dallas	3.5
4.	Utah	6.0
5.	Oklahoma City	6.5
6.	Phoenix	7.5

Poll

Who do we want to see in the first round of the playoffs?

Oklahoma City

52 votes

Phoenix

31 votes

Utah

7 votes

Dallas

58 votes

Denver

3 votes

L*kers

42 votes

San Antonio (just kidding)

7 votes

200 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

i dont know

I still want Dallas.

Lover of everything Batum.
#88

by RyanRTE on Mar 15, 2010 6:23 AM PDT reply actions

I'd love to get the Nets in the 1st round

That would be awesome. I’m sure the Blazers would sweep.

Andre Miller is an Anachronism

by tominhawaii on Mar 15, 2010 6:33 AM PDT reply actions

yeah, that would be nice

I’d even take the Clippers, Timberwolves, 76ers, or Wizards.

How am I not myself? How am I not myself?

by thankyouforblaze on Mar 15, 2010 6:38 AM PDT up reply actions

Clips scare me

C*mcast sucks!

by Blazermaniac77 on Mar 15, 2010 9:51 AM PDT up reply actions

Don't be skirred

"Oh, and Ted, give my love to the Princesses. Ted2: Who? Ted: You'll see." - Ted, to himself on his and Bill's excellent adventure.

by RedUniInLA on Mar 15, 2010 4:03 PM PDT up reply actions

maybe not thought

Nets in 5?

How am I not myself? How am I not myself?

by thankyouforblaze on Mar 15, 2010 6:39 AM PDT up reply actions

i wouldn't be too disappointed

the nets are the second greatest team of all time

Awesomeness (ô'səm-nes)
1. n. Something that inspires awe
2. n. Nicolas Batum

by thomasikehara on Mar 15, 2010 8:26 AM PDT up reply actions

I say either Phoenix or OKC.

by jenstcy on Mar 15, 2010 10:01 AM PDT reply actions

I just want the team to be playing well..

I think we will know in the next 2 weeks where this team ends up being seeded, and who it will match up against in the playoffs. The Blazers are currently 2 losses behind the Suns, and 3 behind the Spurs. Over the next 2 weeks the Blazers play the Wizards at home, (should be a win), then @ Phx, where a win could Tie them with the Suns if they slip up against Utah on Friday, followed by home a game against Dallas and a game at NO. That should be 2 wins minimum, hopefully 3-1, putting the Blazers at 44-29.

The Suns play 5 games in that span, with 2 tough games against Utah and Portland, and 3 cupcakes against, The Wolves, Warriors, and Knicks. Losses to Utah and especially against the Blazers would put them at 44-28.

The Spurs have a brutal couple of weeks. While the Blazers are playing 4 games, and the Suns are playing 5, the Spurs are playing 7, including 2 back to backs! Of those 7 only 1 game is against a non-playoff team, and the games against playoff teams are not the “bottom of the East” type of teams, accept one. They play @ Miami, @ Orlando, @ Atlanta, @ OKC, and home against the Lakers and Cavs. Even if the split those tough games, which their seasonal record against playoff teams suggests they will not, that is 3 losses, and puts them at 43-28 after the next two weeks.

However the Spurs could easily lose 4 or eve 5 of those tough games, and drop below the Blazers in the standings. Looking at the remaining schedules that Jscot has put up for us all, I believe the Blazers will end the season as the 6th seed and play Dallas in the 1st round.

Ben II Blazersedge.com || New to Blazers' Edge?

by usmcr3049 on Mar 15, 2010 10:03 AM PDT reply actions

I don't see us staying the 8 seed with our favorable schedule and the Spurs brutality in the coming weeks.

Whether we climb to 7 or 6 is not really a big deal yet as we don’t know who 2 and 3 will be. Dallas is not the same team we beat twice, but still I think the best match-up for us. LA is not dominating the way they were earlier, but still would be a nightmare in a 7 game series. But Denver scares me. They are just so overwhelming on the offensive end. Their inside game is relentless. I just don’t see any way we beat them in 7 games, barring either a Batum explosion, Greg coming back hungry, or another Denver injury.

"What people need to know is that those pictures were taken a year and a half ago, and I've grown since then." - Greg Oden

by dario argento on Mar 15, 2010 10:56 AM PDT reply actions

There should probably been an asterisk next to Phx and OKC

We aren’t going to see either team in the first round. It’s possible, but unlikely.

Of the teams we’re likely to see in the first round (Fakers, Nuggets, Mavs) I want the Mavs. We’ve beaten them twice at home this year (crucial in a playoff series w/o homecourt) and they’ve been very lucky in close games. Their point differential (which, surprisingly, is a better predictor of success than W/L record) is worse than ours and we match up well.

"In Batum's case he must realize he is very likely the first Blazer to successfully fight over a pick all season..."
-Ben

by Magnum on Mar 15, 2010 10:58 AM PDT reply actions

This is my answer too

every bit of it.

Although our wins in Dallas came before the trade deadline, we did pretty good at the trade deadline too. We have a younger crafty vet PG to match their vet PG (small advantage Dal). We have a stud offense with OK defense SG to match their stud offense with OK defense SG (our guy is just much better at it, big win Por). Batum has a similar game as Marion, but works harder and is more willing to play his role (small edge Por). Aldridge is almost custom built to match up against Dirk (still advantage Dal, but not as much as most would think)… and Camby are a pretty good match on the defense/rebound front and both contribute offensively in their own ways (tie).

I like those odds.

by Gargen on Mar 15, 2010 11:25 PM PDT up reply actions