Eastern Conference
(5) Boston Celtics vs. (2) Miami Heat
The Heat are clicking on offense after an early scare from the Indiana Pacers in the last round. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are willing Miami forward with solid play from the supporting cast. Chris Bosh being out hasn't hurt the Heat yet. Boston is banged up (Ray Allen with bone spurs; Paul Pierce has his usual nagging injury; Avery Bradley is out for the remainder of the playoffs) and struggled to get past an improving Philadelphia squad.
If both teams were at full strength, this might be an interesting series. They aren't. Plus, the Heat appear to be much tougher mentally than they were this time last year.
The pick: Miami
Western Conference
(2) Oklahoma City Thunder vs. (1) San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs winning streak continues. It's amazing how well they still play when their big 3 (Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili) are healthy. A solid, multi-faceted bench has been a strength this season. The Spurs are deep and not as old as their reputation. The Thunder outwilled Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. They used their team speed to overcome a size disadvantage inside. The home crowd is raucous in OKC making it difficult to play the Thunder there.
This should be a fun, exciting series between to two superior offensive teams that play solid defense. Likely to go seven games, I'll take the more experienced team and coach.
The pick: San Antonio
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