Four Eastern Conference teams advanced to the second round of the playoffs, while four teams will look forward to next year.
1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. 8 Detroit Pistons
Cavaliers win series 4-0
Lebron James and company took their first step in their quest for an NBA championship. As expected, the Cavaliers swept the Pistons and made it look easy. Lebron was great, as usual, Mo WIlliams played well, and the supporting cast was solid as the Cavaliers made short work of the Pistons. The Cavaliers just toyed with the Pistons and you never really felt the Pistons stood a chance.
The Cavaliers will now face a very deep and talented Atlanta Hawks team in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. As for the Pistons, they will look very different next year. Rasheed Wallace and Allen Iverson will not be back. With the money that will come off the cap, expect them to sign a quality big man in the off-season.
2 Boston Celtics vs. 7 Chicago Bulls
Celtics win series 4-3
This was, quite simply, one of the all-time great playoff series in NBA history. An NBA record four games went to overtime, one of which was 3OTs and another 2OTs. The series had intensity, physicality, drama, excitement, and great play on both sides. What more can you ask of a playoff series? O.K., you could have asked for a better finish in game 7. Nonetheless, if you didn't like this series, then you don't like basketball.
The Bulls' starters led by youngsters Derrick Rose, Ben Gordon, and Joakim Noah played well in the series. The Celtics starting five played great throughout the series. Rando almost averaged a triple-double, Allen was great after game 1, Perkins and Davis came up big inside in the absence of Garnett and Powe, and Pierce was steady if unspectacular. Their bench however was outplayed by the Bulls bench led by Kirk Hinrich and Brad Miller in the first six games. The Celtics bench stepped up though in game 7 led by Eddie House and Brian Scalabrine and helped lead them to victory.
The Celtics will now face a tough match-up with the Orlando Magic in the next round. Meanwhile, if the Chicago Bulls can re-sign Ben Gordon in the off-season and get a healthy Luol Deng back, they should come back even stronger next year.
3 Orlando Magic vs. 6 Philadelphia 76ers
Magic win series 4-2
Surprisingly, the 76ers got off to a 2-1 lead in this series against the heavily favored Magic, but in the end, as expected, the Magic came out on top. Andre Miller and Andre Iguodola played well for the 76ers, but they did not get enough help from the rest of the supporting cast. For Orlando, Howard was great before the suspension, Lewis played well, and Lee and Alson were solid. Turkoglu was quiet but he did hit a game-winner in game 4. Howard, though, needs to understand that as a dominant center, teams are going to be physical with him, and he can't let his emotions get the best of him. Against a better team, his suspension could have cost them the series.
Orlando will now look toward a match-up with the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics in the next round. Meanwhile, for Philadelphia, they need to find a way to incorporate Elton Brand into the offense effectively heading into next year. If they can, they will be even stronger next year.
4 Atlanta Hawks vs. 5 Miami Heat
Hawks win series 4-3
As expected, this was a long series. Unfortunately every game was a blowout so it was not a very exciting series. The Hawks depth proved to be the difference as they had a little more firepower than the Heat. They were led by their all-star Joe Johnson, Mike Bibby, and Josh Smith, who was their best player in this series. For the Heat, Wade was solid, but he was slowed by a back injury and wasn't his usual spectacular self. The supporting cast for the Heat was inconsistent.
The Hawks will now look forward to a very tough match-up against the Cleveland Cavaliers. For the Heat, looking ahead to next year, they will have to improve the talent around Wade if they hope to get past the first round of the playoffs.
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