Originally posted on 04/02/2012:

Quote Originally Posted by mikea33 View Post
Lta from a basketball mind to another who is ur pick to win it all? I bet youll say Bulls.
But i think the NBA has one more Lakers Celtics matchup to deal with and i think both teams have a good shot to surprise people
I think the Heat should win it. They have too much talent in a 7 game series for most teams, plus they play efficient basketball on both ends of the court. They are an elite defensive team that takes pride in their defense and as long as they can defend the three point line, which is their weakness, they should win. Now, if Rose is 100% healthy and the Bulls have some time to gel with a healthy Rose and Rip, which is unlikely because the Bulls only play 8 more regular season games, then I could see the Bulls taking the Heat to a game 7 in the ECF where anything can happen.

However, I think the Rose injury is much worse than people think. There's a lot of rumblings from people close to the team that say he won't be ready by the playoffs. Even if he is ready, with only 8 games left in the season, he won't have the conditioning to play a ton of minutes. I heard that at best, he comes back 2 games before the playoffs in hopes of getting his legs under him and getting in playing shape. However, the more likely scenario is that he is limited to about 20 minutes per game to start the playoffs. You can take all this with a grain of salt, because it's all just rumor. However, this information is coming from someone connected to the team so you never know. I do believe that Rose would not miss this much time voluntarily so I am convinced he really is hurt unlike some others out there. Only time will tell.

I also like OKC and San Antonio. I would not be surprised to see either team come out of the West. Both teams have superior offenses with improving defenses. I think that would a really fun WCF as well.

As far as a darkhorse, I really like the inconsistent Magic simply because of Howard and their ability to shoot the 3. If the Magic make their 3 point shots, they are unbeatable. If they miss, they might not break 70. However, if they could get into a late season groove like the Mavs did last season, I think the Magic could make some noise. It's all about hitting their shots because Howard's production is a constant and if they start playing well he will become more motivated. Just like every sport, it's about getting hot at the right time.