Lakers vs. Heat and 10 Most Anticipated Matchups Remaining Before NBA Playoffs
The pairings of these super teams is making for some excellent regular-season games. We as fans love to see the big stars and best players go head-to-head.
A game with Memphis and Minnesota would not excite people as much as one involving the Heat and the Lakers. No matter how many rebounds Kevin Love pulls down, we'd rather see a team with several solid players than just one big-name guy.
With that said, which games should we be looking forward to the most? The list will no doubt feature the super teams of the Eastern Conference, but some Western Conference teams make the list as well.
Here are the 10 most anticipated games left this season.
10. Miami Heat Vs. Orlando Magic
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These two teams will battle it out one last time this season on March 3. The Heat own the season series 2-1, but this Thursday Orlando has the chance to make it even.
The first two times they met, it wasn't much of a contest, but their most recent meeting on Feb. 3 was a very close game. I think Thursday will be the exact same kind of game.
This game is very important for both teams, as Miami just came off a heartbreaking loss to New York and Orlando will have just had a tough battle with New York (they play tonight).
A win here will give one of these teams some much-needed confidence down the stretch.
9. Boston Celtics at Chicago Bulls
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This will be a very important game when it finally happens on April 7. Each team will only have about a week left in the season and this could be a matchup of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference.
Chicago is currently in third place and two games out of first place. The Bulls have only beaten the Celtics once this season in three tries. With a win here the Bulls would be feeling great heading into the playoffs.
The only win in the season series came at Chicago, so the Bulls have to like their chances come April.
And who knows, this could be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals.
8. Miami Heat Vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
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Yes, the Heat are here again and this won't be the last time they make this list. When the newest big three formed over the summer, everyone knew that in any big game, all eyes would be on them.
On March 16, we will once again see some of the youngest stars battle the big three of Miami.
By the time this matchup happens, the Thunder should be grooving with Kendrick Perkins and the Heat should be finding chemistry with Mike Bibby, who is expected to join the team tomorrow when he clears waivers.
Kevin Durant versus LeBron James is a matchup we should all look forward to. They are two of the best scorers in the league today and I can only hope they face off many more times in their careers.
7. Boston Celtics Vs. San Antonio Spurs
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A matchup of the NBA's top two teams will happen again on March 31. The Spurs have a commanding lead in the Western Conference and will no doubt be in the same position at the end of the month. They're a very good team. Even with the loss of Tony Parker, they will hold their lead.
However, the Celtics only hold a one-game lead over the second-place Heat. By the end of the month they may not be the top team in the Eastern Conference.
It won't matter if they are or are not in this game, because it will be all about the possibility of an NBA championship matchup.
The first time they met, the Celtics won by two points. By the end of the month, what kind of team will they be with Jeff Green and the addition of Troy Murphy?
6. New York Knicks Vs. Orlando Magic
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Tonight will be the first of three matchups between the new New York Knicks and the Orlando Magic. The Knicks have proven they are a team to worry about, having just beaten the Heat.
With a win tonight against another team they're trying to catch in the East, these Knicks will have tons of confidence in the last couple months of the season.
Their previous matchup doesn't matter, because New York is a completely different team. They're currently in sixth place in the East and six games behind the Magic.
Can Carmelo Anthony, Amar'e Stoudemire and Chauncey Billups get it done tonight against Dwight Howard and the Magic, as well as two more times in the month of March?
5. Miami Heat Vs. San Antonio Spurs
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One night after the Heat take on their division rivals, the Orlando Magic, they host the best team in the NBA. Ten days later, they travel to San Antonio.
All eyes are on the Heat this season and this will be a good indication of whether LeBron James and Dwyane Wade can hang with the NBA's best, the Spurs.
The Spurs will be without Tony Parker, but I believe Manu Ginobili, Tim Duncan and Gary Neal will step up in his absence.
They will no doubt be bringing their all against the superstar team, the Miami Heat. Is this perhaps an NBA Finals preview on Friday night?
4. Miami Heat Vs. Boston Celtics
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On April 10, the Miami Heat will have one more chance to beat the Boston Celtics. Boston has beaten the Heat three times this season, but each game has been close.
Can the Heat finally close one out against the original big three? The addition of Mike Bibby could help them in providing another solid three-point shooter. However, Bibby will struggle in guarding Rajon Rondo.
How will the new-look Celtics fare in this game? The first two times they met, Kendrick Perkins didn't play, but one has to wonder how much Jeff Green will contribute in this game.
3. Los Angles Lakers Vs. San Antonio Spurs
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The Lakers have yet to beat the Spurs this season, but they have two more chances. One will be on Sunday, March 6 in San Antonio, and the other will be at home on April 12.
Sunday, they could have a good shot since Tony Parker is out. The most important one will be the game in April, because each team will only have one game left in the regular season.
A win there would give the Lakers great assurance right before the playoffs that they've still got it.
However, if the Lakers get swept by the Spurs this season, one has to wonder: Are the Lakers poised for any type of run in the playoffs?
2. Boston Celtics Vs. New York Knicks
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Can the new-look Knicks compete with the best team in the East? Well lucky for us, they get two chances: one at home on March 21 and the other on the road in the final game of the season on April 13.
Carmelo Anthony has done what we expected him to do and more in New York.
We know he can score, but he proved a lot of people wrong when he stepped up and delivered defensively in the clutch moment against the Heat.
With no Perkins for Boston, do they stand a chance against Amar'e and the Knicks?
1. Los Angeles Lakers at Miami Heat
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Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol versus LeBron James and Dwyane Wade: Does it get any better?
We saw them battle it out on Christmas Day and the Heat won that with ease. Ron Artest and Andrew Bynum weren't much of anything in that game, and neither was Kobe, who was 6-of-16 from the field.
On March 10, we will see the NBA's biggest stars go head-to-head once again. Kobe has to step it up in this game and you know he will.
He knows LeBron and Wade will bring their A-game. Therefore, Kobe will want to show them up, especially since he played so poorly they last time they met up.
We're just nine days away from the most exciting game remaining on the NBA schedule.
