I tend to dispute the long-held notion that the NCAA college basketball tournament is the greatest sporting event. It’s not even the best basketball tournament in the country.
That title belongs to the NBA playoffs, especially now, when there has never been more talent or a greater diversity of styles.
If one were to derive entertainment satisfaction purely from the aesthetic qualities of basketball alone, there simply isn’t a comparison between the two.
The romanticized virtues that college basketball purportedly represents are more intrinsic in the sentimental minds of alumni than to the institutions themselves.
Both the NCAA tournament and the NBA are about making money.
Claims about NBA players not playing as hard or not being as team-oriented as college players are not just wrong — the complete opposite is true.
That being said, here are my picks for the best sporting tournament in the world:
Eastern Conference First Round
Chicago versus Indiana: The Pacers present more problems for the Bulls than many would like to admit. The Bulls, despite all of their improvements, are still an unproven playoff team that could struggle to consistently dictate their style of play against inferior teams.
The Pacers have enough scoring punch with the likes of Danny Granger, Darren Collison and Roy Hibbert, and enough versatility and toughness to extend the Bulls to six games.
Bulls in six.
Miami versus Philadelphia: The Sixers also pose a significant challenge to an overhyped and unproven squad.
The Sixers are a highly athletic team that plays hard and cohesive defense. Like many teams they struggle with size and interior scoring, something Miami completely lacks.
Expect a hard-fought, low-scoring series that will drain the Heat in its semifinals matchup.
Heat in seven.
Boston versus New York: The Knicks are peaking at the right time, having won seven in a row after a dreadful post-trade start.
Carmelo Anthony and Amar’e Stoudemire can win a game or two by themselves, and the Knicks have legitimate surrounding offensive talent and playoff leadership. However, their interior defense is the worst in basketball, and the scoring prowess will not be enough to overcome the most disciplined, selfless team in the NBA.
Celtics in six.
Orlando versus Atlanta: Despite the addition of Kirk Hinrich, Atlanta is still the most under-achieving team in basketball.
The Hawks lack of identity and purpose will make for easy-pickings for the real MVP of basketball, Dwight Howard.
Orlando in five.
Western Conference First Round
San Antonio versus New Orleans: The Spurs new emphasis on transition offense and their relative de-emphasis on transition defense will not be exposed by a David West-less Hornets team.
Spurs in five.
L.A. Lakers versus Memphis: Memphis will be troublesome for the Lakers, much as the Houston Rockets were two years ago.
Memphis has two elite perimeter defenders and a rugged, aggressive paint presence. Expect close games and at least one Lakers no-show, making for a seven-game series that will ultimately cost the Lakers a three-peat.
Lakers in seven.
Dallas versus Portland: The Mavericks have played awfully down the stretch and could once again be fodder for a first-round upset.
Expect the new-look Blazers to win all of their home games, but also expect the Mavericks’ Jason Terry and Dirk Nowitzki to make the big shots in Dallas.
Dallas in seven.
Oklahoma City versus Denver: Be careful what you ask for, and (in George Karl’s case) especially when you don’t get it.
By asking for the Mavericks in the first round, Karl allowed for fear and doubt about a Thunder match-up to build among his team. While this should be the best first-round match-up of many good ones for its intensity and crowd atmosphere, expect the team with the best players and biggest big-men to eventually prevail.
Thunder in seven.
Eastern Semifinals
Chicago versus Orlando: Dwight Howard versus Joakim Noah will be a heavyweight bout for the ages.
The Bulls are a too well-rounded team for the Magic’s more limited inside-out attack.
Bulls in six.
Boston versus Miami: Sure, Miami has the better big three, and yes, Boston lost a key component in Kendrick Perkins, who gave the Celtics an unmatched intimidation factor, but Rajon Rondo will be the deciding factor.
Celtics in six.
Western Semifinals
L.A. Lakers versus Oklahoma City: The Thunder are a much better match-up for the Lakers this year than last, with the additions of Perkins and Nazr Mohammed. Still, last year’s Lakers strolled through their match-up and won in 6.
Expect the Lakers’ best fight, and expect Ron Artest to once again slow down Kevin Durant.
Lakers in six.
San Antonio versus Dallas: This will be the 45th playoff matchup between the two teams, and the storylines still haven’t changed.
Expect Spurs coach Gregg Popovich to once again outwit his coaching opponent and for the Spurs to invent yet a new vexing strategy, leaving the Mavs frustrated and discombobulated once again.
Spurs in five.
Eastern Finals
Chicago versus Boston: The fresh legs against the aging vets.
Noah will be the best interior player for both teams, but the Celtics have too many fourth-quarter shot-makers in what will be an epic series.
Celtics in seven.
Western Finals
L.A. Lakers versus San Antonio: The Spurs are different, certainly a better regular season team, but they are a poor match-up against the Lakers’ length. This will be the easiest series of the playoffs for LA.
Lakers in five.
Finals
Boston versus L.A. Lakers: Excuse me for thinking outside the box, but c’mon, Lakers and Celtics one more time can’t be a bad thing.
I see Boston turning the tables.
Celtics in seven.
Reach Nick at nick.ruland@asu.edu
