NBA Playoffs 2011: 5 Bold Predictions for Oklahoma Thunder vs. Dallas Mavericks
The second round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs are officially over.
Everyone has their eyes shifted towards the East, where the Chicago Bulls and the Miami Heat will be facing off for the right to play for the title in the NBA Finals.
Out West, there may be a better series brewing. Today, it was determined that the Oklahoma City Thunder, who defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in a hard fought seven game series, will face the Dallas Mavericks, who knocked off the defending champions, the Los Angeles Lakers.
Dirk Nowitzki will be going head to head with the league's hottest player and scoring leader of the playoffs, Kevin Durant.
The series can go ether way, and both teams match up really well.
Thunder Bench will Outplay Maverick Bench
1 of 5
If there was a post season Sixth Man award, James Harden would be the front runner for it. I just wanted to put that out there.
Dallas, too, has an amazing sixth man, one who was in the race for the award this season, and is actually a former recipient of the award.
His name: Jason Terry.
Both Terry and Harden are regarded as spark plugs off the bench, Terry being more of a shooter and Harden more adept at creating plays for everyone around him.
The Maverick's bench is widely regarded as the best bench in the league, and for good reason.
I'm not saying they aren't, but I see the Thunder's bench outplaying and out hustling the Maverick's bench.
With an energy player like Nick Collison, a pass first point guard in Eric Maynor, lights-out shooter Daqeuan Cook, a scoring punch in Nate Robinson, and of course James Harden, Oklahoma has the talent to win the bench match-up. But it should be really close in the end.
Dirk Will Outscore Durant
2 of 5
Yes, yes, I know this is Kevin Durant we are talking about, but hear me through. There's a reason they're called bold predictions.
Dirk Nowitzki is the greatest shooting big man in history. He's a proven scorer and he knows how to make it splash from anywhere on the court.
Think of Durant as a younger, more athletic version of Dirk with a less efficient jump shot. Oh, and minus an inch or two.
Durant is built to be a pure scorer, which is what he is.
He lights it up night in and night out, driving in, spotting up, creating for himself etc., but there is one clear advantage Dirk has that should help him outscore Kevin Durant.
That advantage is not playing alongside Russel Westbrook. Don't get me wrong, Westbrook is an amazing player, but lately, his shot selection has been horrible.
If someone who didn't know about the Thunder were to watch one of their playoff games, it would seem that Durant is the Pippen to Westbrook's Jordan (based on number of shots taken, not production), but it should be the other way around.
Westbrook's absurd amount of shots takes away opportunities from Durant, and the rest of the team, to score.
Dirk is the undisputed main option on his team, and no one on his team will ever take more shots than him in this series.
Nick Collison Will See More Playing Time Than Serge Ibaka
3 of 5
This one is really bold. Serge Ibaka is the most athletic big man on the team, and the team's best shot blocker (Sorry Kendrick Perkins), but Nick Collison has a distinct trait that Ibaka doesn't.
It's simple: hustle.
Collison is the Thunder's best bet to slowing down Dirk, just as he took the same role against Zach Randolph.
Collison's hustle and energy, combined with good lateral speed and footwork, makes him the best candidate for guarding Dirk.
Ibaka isn't really any good defending on ball, as he is more of an off ball shot blocker, and Kendrick Perkins isn't quick enough to guard Nowitzki.
Nick Collison may seem more playing time than Ibaka this series for the main purpose of defending Dirk.
They could possibly play side by side, as Collison isn't a good shot blocker, to mask each others' weaknesses.
Jason Terry Will Have a Shooting Night That Almost Matches His Game 4 Against LA
4 of 5
See that picture? That's what Terry does after every three-pointer made. Lakers fan know all too well, as they saw it nine times in Game 4 of the second round.
It could've been 10, but one of his 10 three-point shots decided to be different from the other nine.
I doubt he will match that night again in these playoffs (if he does, props to him) as it is a rare feat for even the best of shooters in the NBA, but he will come darn close to it.
I see him having a six or seven three-pointers made one night this series, and Dallas will probably get the W in whatever game that happens in.
The Thunder's best hopes to defending Terry are putting either Westbrook or Durant on him. Westbrook's athleticism should cause problems for him, as would Durant's size and length.
Dallas Will Advance to the NBA Finals, Then Take Home the Title
5 of 5
Dallas's two veteran leaders, Jason Kidd and Dirk Nowitzki, are both well over due when it comes to winning a title. Both have had their chances, but let them slip away. This, in my opinion, is the year they win it all.
They said Portland's youth and athleticism would help beat the Mavericks, but it didn't.
They said the skill and killer instinct of Kobe would stop the Mavericks, but it didn't.
So how will Oklahoma City be able to do it?
It will be a close fought series, in my opinion going to game seven, but Dirk Nowitzki's scoring prowess, combined with the lack of any player in the NBA who can stop him and Russel Westbrook's recent mind set in which he thinks he is Kevin Durant, will lead to Dallas winning.
The winner of the West is usually the winner of it all, and I believe Dallas will take home the trophy (and the rings for Kidd and Dirk) in a close series in the Finals, also.
