Suns win 4-1 (Right winner, wrong number)
Pelicans win 4-3 (Right winner, wrong number)
Heat win 4-2 (Wrong winner, right number)
Pacers win 4-0 (Right winner, wrong number)
Now that that's over, let's change things up a bit...
#3 NOLA Pelicans
(Yeah, I know they're Pelicans and not Robins, but you get the point)
Vs.
#5 Phoenix Suns
(Fun fact: Kevin's uncle is Mike Love, and the Wilsons are his cousins)
H2H: Pelicans 3-0
Key Matchup: Artest vs. Thornton
X-Factor: Damien Lilliard
Our sweet Love, indeed. If there was any doubt that Kevin's the best player in the league right now, this run has pretty much confirmed it. But now Love will have to contend with something he hasn't really seen yet in these playoffs - frontcourt beef. The Pelicans are on a roll, thanks in part to their impressive post tandem of Griffin and Monroe. Really, they have quite the balanced starting 5, which could give the Suns a lot of problems. Keep an eye on Artest vs. Thornton, as the Pelicans' best defender goes up against the only other Sun worth worrying about offensively. If Artest can slow or shut him down, Phoenix will need Love to dominate at a ridiculous level and DeMarre Carroll will have to show up and school the young Tobias Harris. Speaking of youngsters, Lilliard's poised to put the Pelicans over the top here, as opposing him is the wily but aged vet Jameer Nelson. The Jammer's still quick for his age, but containing Dame Dolla's a bit much to ask of him at this point. Really, the Pelicans are just a bad matchup for the Suns on nearly every level. They have too many things going in their favor, and the regular season head-to-head seems to validate that. I'm not expecting a sweep or anything, but I am expecting NOLA (no, not that Nola) to turn up for the Finals.
Pelicans win 4-2
#2 Miami Heat
Vs.
#1 Indiana Pacers
H2H: Heat 2-1
Key Matchup: Ibaka vs. Amare
X-Factor: Goran Dragic's injury
The Pacers have been straight-up dominant during these playoffs, with their only loss so far being their first game. Since then, it's been a perfect 8-0, but nobody expects that streak to continue in the Conference Final matchup. Their opponents, the Heat, have put together a respectable streak of their own, losing only once on their home floor. Unfortunately, it'll take more than that to win now that the Heat no longer have the benefit of homecourt advantage. Moving onto the players though, let's get one thing clear: LeBron and Deron are going to get theirs. Nobody's stopping the other, because both guys just aren't going to let that happen. The real key matchup is defensive specialist Serge Ibaka vs. 2-time champ Amare Stoudemire. The only thing Serge really has to do for Miami is defense, so there's really no excuse for him not being able to at least slow down Amare. Amare's the only other reliable source of points for Indy aside from Deron, and should he falter, the Pacers will lose the one clear advantage they have over Miami - a secondary scorer. Miami actually does have a running mate for LeBron, but he's MIA to start this series off. This means that the outcome of this series will likely be determined by the first two games. Shumpert will be waiting and ready to D up Dragic once he returns, and we don't know if Dragic will really be 100% at that point, either. A broken jaw isn't quite as damaging to one's game as say, a broken leg, but it's something to watch out for. So obviously, the Heat don't want to go down 0-2...which is exactly what the Pacers need to do. Dragic's impact is an unknown quantity that could give the Heat the edge later on just as easily as it could hurt them early on. Indy should beware of walking into Miami with a returning Dragic even at a 1-1 split. The Pacers need to treat the first 2 games like they're elimination games, because they very well could be. I have this going 7, but if Indy wants to seal a Finals berth, they need to finish this off in 6 or less.
Pacers win 4-3
