RealGM

Barring upsets and injuries the top five teams in the East will be:

Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, Orlando, & Toronto.
{in no particular order}

Top two:Boston and Detroit {either could finish first}

Next three:Cleveland, Orlando, & Toronto{your guess is as good as mine}

This could be a deep analysis of matchups, stars & leaders, statistics, and psychological warfare but let's try and keep our reasons somewhat basic. I want to get a feel from Celtics Nation on a few things.

If you would please state:
1) Your projected top five Eastern Conferance seatings.

2) Who you would most like us to play in the second round?

3) Briefly why it is to our benefit to play this team before Detroit?
*Remember playing a weaker team before a strong
opponent is not necessarilly beneficial. Perhaps in this
case it is. Let me know.

Long Live Red

I want Lebron & Co. They are too beatable.

How are the seedings this year? Are the division winners all automatically top 3? In that case I don't want Orlando, simply because it means we lost home court for the subsequent series.

Rather, the choices are Toronto and Cleveland, who will just have played each other.

I say Toronto. I don't see how they can defend us over the course of a series, even if somehow our guys get the yips for a while.

Cleveland could be scary good if they can work around pieces like Wally's defense and Wallace's O.

1st pref: Orlando - one dimentional.
2nd pref: Toronto - can get hot from the outside.
3rd pref: Cleveland - LeBron + any 4 bums scare me more than the above 2 teams, not to mention Cleveland is a strong defensive team, built for the playoffs. Wouldn't be surprised if this one goes to 7.

Regardless, I think Detroit is the only team that can beat us. But I'd rather have them battle Lebron in the Eastern semis (he's always given them trouble) and meet us a little spent.

The team I would least like to play is the Cavs. I don't want to have to play 5 against 8 counting the three with the stripe shirts and whistles .

Well, I think it will be:

Celtics
Pistons
Magic
Cavs
Raps

That lines Boston up with Cleveland. However, I'd much rather see either the Magic or the Raptors because I want the Pistons to have to deal with Lebron. I think Cleveland would actually give Detroit more problems than they'd give Boston anyway.

Whatever though, what I really want is home court over Detroit in the conference finals.

Raptors easily.

Magic are a good team (not great, but solid). Lebron is scary in close games; if he gets hot he can take over games.

I'd take my chances with the Raptors and just hope they don't go crazy from the outside against the C's again. I'd like to stay away from the Magic at all costs.

Definitely Orlando. But we get that only in two situations:

1. If we finish #1 and Orlando #4 or #5, and if they win their First Round series against either Cleveland or Toronto.
2. If we finish #2 and Orlando #3, and if they win First Round series against whatever scrub team.

I will focus more on who I don't want the Celtics to play.

Cleveland can wear teams out with there strong offensive rebounding (best rebounding team in the NBA). I'd rather that Cleveland square off against Detroit, and the beat up winner have to take on the Celtics. That very well could be Cleveland, they have the type of team that can win playoff series (and a star to carry them thru them). That said, I thought that Cleveland was more formidable with Larry Hughes and Drew Gooden than they are currently constructed with the slower Wally, Delonte and offensively limited BW.

I would also look forward to Washington getting eliminated, as when healthy they have been a thorn in the side of the Celtics, in part because everyone on that team, especially Caron Butler, Antwan Jamison, Brendan Haywood, and several other players ELEVATE their game whenever they have played the Celtics this season.

Toronto is not the pushover others describe them to be, they can shoot their way thru any team. That is not generally something that you can sustain over several series, but they are capable of upsetting anyone.

So, I guess for me, in Round 2, I'd like to see the Celtics play the Magic. The Magic fortunes seem to ride on the outside shooting of Jameer Nelson (who is quick enough to get his shot off anytime that he wants it against the Celtics), Carlos Arroyo and Keith Bogans. Rashard Lewis and Turkoglu are pretty much constants in what they do. But their not capable of having everyone on for as many games as Toronto. I'd like the Celtics chances in a series against Orlando more than Toronto.

Toronto only won their game against the celtics by shooting lights out from three point land. And they barely won that game. There is no way they will be able to do that four times against the celtics in the playoffs. Can they beat the Celtics? Of course, but they cannot rely on shooting 70% on three pointers to do it (which is the only way they have found to beat the celtics this year).

Toronto is the team we want to play second round. Teams cannot stay on fire from the outside for a whole series

i just hope that cleveland & detroit meet in the second round assuming they both win in the 1st round, & we get whoever.

i want the cavs & pistons to have a long 7 game series & meet us a lil fatigued.

greenkoolaid34 wrote:Toronto is the team we want to play second round. Teams cannot stay on fire from the outside for a whole series

Great point.



Toronto is also the team I want to play in the second round.

There style of play is closest to Detroit's and they don't have Dwight Howard or Lebron James. I also think it is important for Rondo to play against a tough PG in round two to get ready for Billups. No disrepect to Nelson or DWest. Not that I think this would be a sweep of a series for us but this series I believe helps us most against the Pistons.

Washington could be a DARK HORSE come playoffs if they maintain standing and get the boys back. Could be another epic first round 3-6 matchup CAVS v WIZ.

The problem with Cleveland is that they have the best player (or second best) in the game and the refs know it. Other then that they stink. Toronto is much deeper but they don't have any top tier guy like Cleveland.

So I think for safety's sake I like going against Toronto. No big stars to get ref love but probably still not enough overall talent to beat our big 3.

Pete

...I don't think people realize how dangerous Orlando is...

The Magic can defend as well as score and they've got 3 All Star caliber players as well as a dominant big man who plays inside on both ends of the court...they are probably the team i'd least like to face...

Toronto is a good 2nd round match up imo because they aren't great defensively and lack much of an inside game...Bosh is really good, but he's more perimeter oriented than KG by far and they've got no center worth a damn...

Cleveland still doesn't scare me much...LeBron is scary and I wouldn't want them in a 2nd round series purely from a standpoint that it would be a physical series that would take a lot to win before facing a Detroit...But Cleveland is still so reliant on James to win them games and count me as skeptical that he will average 18-22 ppg in the 4th quarter of ball games...

I fear teams with offensive and defensive balance more than teams that favor either one...Cleveland has LeBron, but they've got no offense...Toronto is defensively deficient..Orlando can do both...

No 2nd round series is going to be a barrel of monkey's...this is the playoffs...