Playoff Basketball

Posted by Mike Giardi April 20, 2008 at 9:34 pm

We’ve had our first real surprise of the NBA Playoffs. That didn’t take long. The 76ers going into Detroit and stealing Game 1 of their first round series. In the grand scheme of this postseason, it may not mean much, but to me, it strengthens my belief that something is amiss with the Pistons. Its why - for many reasons - I think LeBron poses a bigger threat to the Celtics than anyone else in the East (and yes, I know the Cavs supporting cast is a grade better than my 12-and-under Travel Team). LeBron is a singular force. I put him in football terms. He’s built like a linebacker with a scatback’s speed and a fullback’s power. A freak of nature. If any one human being can beat a team almost singlehandedly, its Bron Bron. It doesn’t how many bodies you run at him, James can go 1-on-5 and still get a good look. Just ask the guys who have the unenviable task of checking him.

Back to Detroit…any team that Rasheed Wallace plays a critical role on will always be in question to me. Yes, the man is incredibly gifted. He can play go-to-guy on offense, and stopper on defense. His basketball IQ is at the top of the chart. But he’s a nut case. In that last meeting with the C’s, he got so annoyed that he wasn’t getting any calls inside that he decided to play outside the arc for the entire second half. How’s that productive? It wasn’t, and his coach, Flip Saunders knows it. ‘Sheed will probably cost Flip his job at some point. Trust me. Its bound to happen, just like his team under-performing in the playoffs yet again.