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Posted 05/13/2008 at 10:38 PM
This is the first blog I have written in over four months, and I apologize for not keeping it up, but on a night like this, someone needs to hear my thoughts.
I had a tremendous regular season in the NBA. In fact, I was the sides leader on Vegas Insider, at over 4000 units. Life was good. Until the playoffs started.
Following tonight's loss, I am now 1-7 in the NBA Playoffs. Have there been some bad picks? Sure. Have there been tough losses? Absolutely. But, a three-game stretch over the last two weeks has me scratching my head. What else can you do after looking back at these three defeats that were lost by a total of three points.
The first one began with the New Orleans Hornets, who were laying six points at home, with a chance to close out the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the 1st round. The Mavs were hanging around for most of the game until the Hornets opened things up, and held a double-digit lead late in the fourth quarter. Until Dallas somehow went on a run that is tough to explain. Actually, it's simple. They didn't miss one shot. New Orleans led by 11 points with 2:09 remaining. The Mavs drilled four treys, but the killer was Jannero Pargo missing a pair of free throws, then Devean George going down and hitting a three. The Hornets would go on to win by five, and not cover.
Fast-forward to the second round of the playoffs, where the Magic tried to tie up their series with the Pistons at a game apiece, when the two teams battled at the Palace of Auburn Hills. I had Orlando +6.5, as they were a team that was known for bouncing back after losses during the regular season. The Magic had gotten down early, but took the lead at the end of the third quarter, if the clock would have started. You have seen by now the disputed three-pointer Chauncey Billups hit, which should have been after the horn, giving the Pistons the lead after three quarters. Down the stretch, the Pistons hit free throws to seal it, and win by seven, thus another a close loss.
Now onto tonight, in which the Pistons were favored by six, and despite Billups not playing with a strained hamstring, I still liked Detroit to close out Orlando. It was a back-and-forth affair, until the Pistons opened a ten-point lead in the final minutes. Orlando stayed close, but Detroit led by seven with ten seconds left. Jameer Nelson, who guaranteed a Magic win, did get a Magic cover, when he went in for an easy layup to give Orlando the backdoor cover, as the Pistons win by five.
There are many fine handicappers on this site, and many that excel during the postseason. Maybe I've had some bad breaks, but this postseason has not been easy, and hopefully most of you did not get burned on these games. Best of luck the rest of the playoffs.
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