NBA Playoffs 2011: Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade and Saturday's Game 1 X-Factors

Before tip-off, there was a general consensus that the Chicago Bulls' and Miami Heat's matchups in the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs would be the easiest of them all. The seventh and eighth seeds, with combined regular season records of 78-86, were not expected to compete like they were actually in contention for a Finals berth.

A majority of the world was shocked to see that neither team would back down from the challenges that faced them.

The Chicago-Indiana game was the most intriguing because of how young the Pacers are and how inexperienced the team is in a postseason setting. For Darren Collison to compete at such a high level while taking on the task of guarding Derrick Rose makes a person scratch his head and wonder exactly why New Orleans let him slip through their fingers.

Of course, the Hornets are set in their ways with Chris Paul as the starter in that position. However, with him on the edge of remaining or leaving the franchise, New Orleans should have considered making Collison’s position on the team a little more solid.

You can never count a team out that has a perimeter threat, and Indiana showed that it has more than one. Danny Granger’s comments sparked a little controversy before game 1, but in the second half he backed up his claims that he would be able to perform against Chicago, even with the home court advantage that the Bulls laid claim to.

He shot 50 percent from beyond the three-point mark and closed out the loss with 24 points and 6 rebounds. Even with all of Indiana’s effort, it was not able to shut down one of the league’s finest closers in Derrick Rose.

Rose had trouble on the perimeter, missing all of his nine three-point attempts. But when he switched to using his strengths in the paint, the game was over. With limited performance from Carlos Boozer, who allowed Tyler Hansbrough every offensive opportunity he reached for, Rose was counted on to control the team’s offense as well as the competitive edge under the basket.

He never allowed Indiana to get comfortable, no matter how many runs it put on the scoreboard. Rose’s spinning floater to the basket was a sign that trouble was brewing for the Pacers, and they failed to put the lid on the explosive talent that he has cultivated in the offseason.

At the end of the game, Indiana’s head coach, Frank Vogel, said this to reporters about Rose:

“He's got Allen Iverson's speed, Jason Kidd's vision, Chauncey Billups' shooting and Michael Jordan's athleticism. How do you guard that?”

He is right. How do you guard that?

Dwyane Wade made his point clear in the last moments of the game against the Philadelphia 76ers. He would not allow the Miami Heat to be knocked out of the first round by a team that is barely scratching the surface of .500.

There were so many questions surrounding how Erik Spoelstra would handle Miami’s performances in late-game situations. The Heat has been failing in that arena and as the game wound down, the 76ers battled back, and it was scary to think that this would end like many of the Heat’s regular-season close games did.

Wade controlled the game with such intensity that has not been seen since Chris Bosh’s and LeBron James’ arrival in South Beach. He was barely looking to dish the ball as the scrappy Philly team scored 12 consecutive points to close the lead to 88-87.

Bosh made a couple of free throws to spread the lead, and Wade was lights out from that moment on. Though the game was not played as it would have hoped, Miami can walk away knowing two things: It is the superior team and Wade will be more effective than any other player in these types of situations.

Vogel mentioned Kidd’s vision in his conference after the loss to the Chicago Bulls at the United Center. Jason Kidd’s ear must have been burning because he entered the home territory with one thing on his mind.

A championship for the Dallas Mavericks, who have become the underdogs in the series versus Portland, even though the Trail Blazers are the sixth seed in the Western Conference. Kidd came into the game understanding that in order to compete against such a deep team like Portland, he needed to be playing with elite vision and accuracy.

Kidd finished the game with 24 points, but what was so impressive about him Saturday in the first game of the series was how intimidating he became as a three-point shooter. He is No. 3 in the league’s all time three-point shooting category behind Ray Allen and Reggie Miller, and he proved exactly why he goes down in the record books for that one piece of his skill set as a point guard.

At 38 years old, no one anticipates the burst of speed or defensive sight of quick steals. Just because no one assumes that he will do it does not mean he will not surprise you and show how agile he still is after so many years in the NBA.

There is no doubt that his efforts are the sources of what pushed Dallas past Portland, but the question remains if he can keep up such games throughout the entire series and if the Mavericks move on to bigger and broader competition.