The King VS The Answer, Who Will Come Out On Top?

Yesterday, April 15 marked the finale of the 2008-2009 regular season for the entire NBA. One season ends, the next season begins as the playoffs begin on Saturday as the No. 8 seed Detroit Pistons take on the No. 1 seeded team east team in the East, being the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Cavaliers are coming off their best season in a long time with a record of 66-16 which will give them the extra vote of confidence as they make a run at the Larry O’Brien trophy.

Even though it seems as they are going to be the clear series winner, the Cavaliers may not have as easy of a time as expected. The Detroit Pistons have been riddled with injuries throughout the season, as even their newly acquired point guard Allen Iverson has been out for a portion of the regular season with a back injury. This has not helped the Pistons as they attempted to make a push for the playoffs down the stretch run.

According to team doctors, Iverson will be healthy and ready to play for the Pistons in their first round match up. The question that arises with the return of Iverson is will his lack of play towards the end of the season make him rusty, as he try’s to help contribute to his new team?

He is nicknamed “the answer” for a reason but at the age of 33, I do not think he is as good as he once was in his prime and some of his “answers” have rubbed onto some of his teammates such as Richard “Rip” Hamilton who has been coming through in the clutch throughout the entire season.

Not only has AI been the only injured player for the Pistons but Rasheed Wallace had been injured quite frequently towards the end of the regular season which has not helped the team’s chances of climbing up higher in the Eastern Conference standings. Wallace who stands at 6'11" is unlike most other players at his height as he can knock down a 3-pointer from anywhere beyond the arch.

As he ages, so does his shooting stroke as just like Iverson, Wallace has little by little began to deteriorate as he gets older. There have also been many other injury notes to pass along when it comes to the Detroit Pistons; however Allen Iverson and Rasheed Wallace’s injuries were the most detrimental to the team.

On the side of the ball, the Cleveland Cavaliers, are of course led by their captain, LeBron James. James is in his own little world when he is on the basketball court as in my opinion no other player in the history of the NBA has possessed the skills that LeBron James does.

No matter what the play is, who is guarding him or who the opposing team is, LeBron James finds a way to get the job done. This is the main reason that the Cavs have had a great season and will continue to dominate throughout the playoffs unless they become prone to injuries as the Detroit Pistons have been for most of the season.

All in all, even though the series will be a lot closer then it seems to look like on paper, if the Cavaliers play the same basketball they have been playing throughout the entire season, there is no reason why they will not be able to win this series and go on to win the championship.