Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
The Post - Athens, OH
The independent newspaper covering campus and community since 1911.
The Post

Playoffs heat up in quest for NBA crown

The Pistons better not be getting their hopes up for back-to-back championships because the San Antonio Spurs will be reclaiming the throne as NBA champions this season.

The Spurs have rattled off six straight impressive wins to become arguably the hottest team in the playoffs.

After dropping their first game against the red-hot Denver Nuggets, the Spurs waited for everyone to jump on the Nuggets bandwagon and then embarrassed them to win the series in five games. Everyone now seems to forget that the Nuggets went 23-4 in their last 27 regular season games.

Coming into the second round the Spurs have been given another tough draw in the Seattle Supersonics. In the first two games, the Spurs have made the Sonics look like a junior high team by beating them by 22 points in the first game and 17 in the second.

Many teams have tried to stop Tim Duncan but have usually ended up failing. He's too quick for most power forwards and centers, and he's too powerful for small forwards to match up against.

If opposing teams think they have an answer for Duncan, they most likely have no clue how to stop the Spurs' backcourt tandem of Tony Parker and Manu Ginobli. The two speedsters are averaging over 20 points and nearly five assists per game.

There is no team in the NBA right now that can beat the Spurs in a seven-game series -not even the defending champions.

Solid defense puts Pistons in place to win Unfortunately for Andy, there is no team he could pick to even stand a chance against the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Playoffs.

The one key factor Andy has forgotten is that defense wins championships. And although the San Antonio Spurs are considered the best team in the West, they still have no chance because they can't play defense.

The Pistons however, play the best D in the league and can rely on it to guide them to their second straight NBA Championship. And not only does Detroit have all the defense it could need including Defensive Player of the Year Ben Wallace, the Pistons have the offensive firepower needed to toast their opponents as well.

The Pistons don't rely on one or two star players like the Spurs and all other teams do, every player on the court contributes every night for the Pistons, and they usually have one standout per night.

Even if the Spurs could play defense, they can't stop Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups, Tayshaun Prince and Rasheed Wallace all on the same night. To top off their offense, Wallace has improved his scoring from last year as well, so not only will he shut down opposing teams' centers, they will have to guard an offensive threat as well.

And for the icing on the cake, Detroit has the best coach in the NBA. Larry Brown has won championships at the college level, the ABA and the NBA. The only question left now is which finger will he put this year's ring on.

17 Archives

The Post Staff

Spurs too hot to stop from taking glory

Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2016-2024 The Post, Athens OH