2009 NBA Playoff Race Heats Up
We are less than a couple of months from the postseason.
You read it, and that only means one thing, the 2009 NBA basketball season will just get interesting from here. Unless of course, if you’re a Piston fan like myself.
The second half of the season has already started and we have quite a handful of teams moving up and down the proverbial food chain. One of which is the Detroit Pistons.
The Pistons clearly has some 
serious problems, no matter how much the team (including their fans…) deny it or not. Detroit suffered the consequences of trading Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson, thinking that the young Rodney Stuckey was already ready to step in for Mr. Big Shot.
Enngggrrrkkk… WRONG! A lot of people thought the Allen Iverson deal was the move that could put the Pistons over the hump. After three straight losses in the Eastern Conference finals, losing to Miami, Cleveland and Boston in three straight years, Joe Dumars felt that the move will finally bring Detroit back in the NBA Finals and change the makeup of the team for the better.
The makeup did change, but it wasn’t anything better. From being one of the powerhouse teams in the East, the Pistons are just hovering above the .500 mark with Rodney Stuckey and Allen Iverson running the backcourt. All that is left for this team is hope that teams in the 9, 10, 11 spots won’t be talented enough to overtake them.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, on the other hand, is a team surging in the East. With the injury to Boston Celtics star Kevin Garnett, it seems the Cavaliers have used it to their advantage as far as the race for the overall no.1 spot in the conference is concerned.
The Cavs know too well Boston’s struggles away from home and by securing the overall no.1 spot in the East, LeBron James will be playing in Cleveland if it goes down once again to a pivotal Game 7 against the Cs in the playoffs.
In the Western Conference, it’s that time of the year again when the San Antonio Spurs live up to all the expectations. Winning seven of their last ten to secure the top spot in the Southwest is a testament to that. The Spurs continue to be the model of consistency in the NBA and is STILL a tough out once the playoffs get here.
Hell, they’re not even playing Manu Ginobili that much yet.
Of course, last June’s runners up, the Los Angeles Lakers, are still coming in strong heading for the playoffs. Sure, they lost Andrew Bynum again at the exact same point of the season last year. But the Lakers this season have become more physical inside the paint. Something that’s lacking against the frontcourt tandem of Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins back when they faced-off with Boston in the NBA Finals.
And as long as Kobe Bryant continues to share the basketball, there’s no telling how good Tinseltown can be this season.
Who will win the 2009 NBA Finals? Bodog sportsbook has the odds.
Boston Celtics 4.00
Los Angeles Lakers 4.50
Detroit Pistons 9.00
San Antonio Spurs 9.00
Want more odds? Visit Bodog for more basketball betting odds. Want to watch the NBA live? Get NBA tickets online now.
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