Melanie's Bulls dynasty... start a new Bulls dynasty?

yes Kings win....hope we can win in game 7...

Playoffs seem intense...good luck and keep going!

2005 Playoff Scoreboard, Game 6

Western Conference
91
102
Warriors handle the Spurs, forcing a deciding Game 7 back in San Antonio.
-----------------------
93
81
The Mavs won their third in a row to even the series, 3-3. Now Dallas goes home for the deciding Game 7.
-----------------------
96
108
Another series headed for Game 7! Minnesota holds court against the Kings and heads to Sacramento for the deciding game.
-----------------------
105
99
Once again, T-Mac fails to advance past the first round. Denver finishes off the Rockets at Houston to close out the series 4-2. The Nuggets now await the Game 7 winner of the Sacramento-Minnesota series.
_________________________________________
Eastern Conference:
121
82
There will be a new champion in 2004-05 because the Pacers knocked the defending champs out with a convincing win in Indiana. Rumors have it that Larry Brown is now looking to be the Cavaliers president. But with the Cavs doing well in the playoffs, Brown may talk to Knicks president Isiah Thomas about their coaching vacancy.

The Pacers now face the Bulls, whom they stomped in the regular season finale.

Oh man Kings going to game seven...just like the 2004 playoffs...wow Dallas came back from 3-0

I really like the Play-off Coverage. Looks interesting.

Playoffs seem intense

yeah, they do. and realistic, too, with t-mac being bounced out in the first round like in real-life

2005 Playoff Scoreboard, 1st Round - Game 7

Who goes on and who goes home?

Western Conference


So San Antonio survives the Warriors to advance to the Western Conference semi-finals. They meet the upstart Grizzlies, who finally dispatched Dallas after jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the series against the Mavs.

And Kevin Garnett once again fails to lead his team past the first round of the playoffs as Sacramento wins at home in Game 7. The T'Wolves will be looking for a new coach in the wake of yet another first-round disaster.

Sacramento will face Denver in the other West semi-finals.

Yess Kings did it...surprised that Dallas got beat by Memphis and that GS took it to game seven with SA....I predict Kings will win 4-2

Yess Kings did it...surprised that Dallas got beat by Memphis and that GS took it to game seven with SA....I predict Kings will win 4-2

you got one prediction right, SAC-1 (the kings in 7)

cwebbiverson got two right (the kings in 7 and the bulls in 4)

i got one right (the 76ers in 5)

2005 Playoff Scoreboard: Conference Semi-finals Tree




Predictions, anyone?

Round 2 predictions:
San Antonio vs. Memphis 4-1
Sacramento vs. Denver 4-2

Chicago vs. Indiana 4-1
Philadelphia vs. Cleveland 4-2

Come on Philly! And Chicago.

Predictions Race After First-Round:

cwebbiverson
2 x 3 = 6
2 x 1 = 2
4 x 0 = 0
-----------
Total = 8

{SAC-1}
1 x 3 = 3
3 x 1 = 3
4 x 0 = 0
----------
Total = 6

colickyboy
1 x 3 = 3
3 x 1 = 3
4 x 0 = 0
-----------
Total = 6

If anyone else wants to jump in, feel free.

cwebbiverson, waiting for your predictions for the conf semi-finals...

o wooops sorry man...........

spurs over grizzlies 4-1
nuggers over kings 4-3
bulls over pacers 4-0
sixers over cavs 4-2

good luck in 2nd round.

cool...

my predictions...
spurs over grizzlies in 5
nuggets over kings in 6
bulls over pacers in 6
sixers over cavs in 5

I didn't make predictions for the 1st Round but oh well...

Spurs 4 Grizzlies 1
Sacramento 4 Denver 3
Chicago 4 Indiana 1
Philadelphia 4 Cleveland 2

thanks for jumping in, sensation... the more, the merrier

latest fake ESPN Insider article:

Playoff preview: Bulls vs Pacers


Chad Ford
ESPN Insider

2004-05 history:
The Bulls won the season series 3-1, although in the last two games, the Bulls only won by 1 and then lost by 21.

Key injuries:
Pacers - none.
Bulls - none. Dwyane Wade (broken wrist) is declared 100% and ready to go.

Matchups:
Center
Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal is really a power forward but head coach Rick Carlisle wants his most athletic players on the floor, so that means Dale Davis grabs some bench. O'Neal can score inside, rebound and block shots. The Bulls' Amare Stoudemire can do the same and (since joining the Bulls) has shown to be adept passing as well. This figures to be a war in the paint.
Advantage: Even

Power forward
Indiana's Jonathan Bender is athletic but still unpolished. His biggest strength is shot-blocking and is an average rebounder. However, he has not developed a shot yet. Height-wise, he matches up with the Bulls' Dirk Nowitzki but gives up 26 pounds. Nowitzki poses matchup problems for Bender defensively.
Advantage: BULLS

Small forward
Ron Artest was reinstated by Commissioner David Stern and is a physical lockdown defender for Indiana. He'll need to be because he'll face the Bulls' LeBron James. Offensively, Artest is sufficient and he'll need that as well because James himself is a lockdown defender, although not as good as Artest. Artest is also effective in playing mind-games and that could affect the young James.
Advantage: Even

Shooting guard
Only one other person personifies the Bulls-Pacers rivalries like Indiana's Reggie Miller, and that guy retired. Miller is still an excellent perimeter shooter and can keep up with the Bulls' Colicky Boy in outside scoring. One thing Miller has in his favor is he takes good care of the basketball. And without Colicky Boy being able to steal the ball as easily, that means fewer transition hoops and momentum swings for the Bulls. That veteran savvy could come in handy in these charged-up playoffs.
Advantage: Even

Point guard
Jamaal Tinsley is an enigma for Indiana. He might play fantastic one game and turn the ball over a million times the next. Dwyane Wade is consistent and an explosive scorer. Now that Wade is 100% healthy, this figures to be the Bulls' only other matchup advantage.
Advantage: BULLS

Bench
Indiana has Sixth Man of the Year Stephen Jackson as well as Fred Jones. The Bulls bench combined wouldn't match Stephen Jackson's talent, much less Jones.
Advantage: INDIANA

Coaching
Rick Carlisle is an experienced playoff coach for Indiana while this is the first time Scott Skiles has made it past the first round of the playoffs.
Advantage: INDIANA

Intangibles
The Bulls looked beatable in its last two games with the Pacers. And the Pacers just eliminated the defending champion Detroit Pistons in impressive fashion. The Bulls may be rested after waiting for Indiana to go six games to oust Detroit, but that could also cause some rust.
Advantage: INDIANA

Predicted winner: Bulls in seven.

latest recap on the fake ESPN site:

Opening statement
Bulls ride hot shooting to rout of Indiana, lead 1-0
Wed, May 11, 2005


Jermaine O'Neal doesn't like this Malik Allen layup

-------------------------
Game 1
84
108
-------------------------

Last time these teams met, the Bulls were run over by the Pacers.

Tonight, the Bulls repaid the Pacers with a 108-84 victory at the United Center to open the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

The Bulls shot a sizzling .794 from the field. The Bulls were so hot that they scored 15 consecutive field goals at one point during the game.

"This was a one-of-a-kind game," said Dirk Nowitzki, who had 16 points. "We'll never shoot like that again."

The Pacers featured five players in double-figures and still lost.

"We have to get stops," said Indiana's Reggie Miller, who tied for game-high scoring honors with 25 points. "We scored but forgot to play defense."

Jermaine O'Neal scored 10 points but had only 2 rebounds. His counterpart, Amare Stoudemire scored 25 points and grabbed a game-high 6 rebounds.

"I'll play better next game," said a defiant O'Neal. "I guarantee it."

Jamaal Tinsley chipped in with 14 points and 5 assists, Ron Artest had 17 points, and Sixth Man of the Year Stephen Jackson had 11.

"We wanted to let them know that we're still a good team even though they blew us out last time," said Player of the Game Colicky Boy, who was one steal short of a triple-double with 11 points and a game-high 11 assists.

Dwyane Wade returned from a broken wrist injury to post a double-double with 15 points and 10 assists. But the Bulls got only seven minutes from LeBron James, who suffered a leg injury with 2:57 to play in the first. He did not return and is day-to-day.

"The reason we shot well was because LeBron left the game," deadpanned Colicky Boy.

Wow, you killed the Pacers in Game 1. Good luck in Game 2.

Wow, you killed the Pacers in Game 1.

yeah, i was shocked when the screen said i made 15 shots in a row. i've never seen anything like that before.

2005 Playoff Scoreboard, Conf Semi-finals - Game 1

Western Conference

74
97
Spurs lead series 1-0
---------------------------------
93
111
Nuggets lead series 1-0

===============================
Eastern Conferencee

84
108
Nuggets lead series 1-0
-------------------------------------
92
90
Cavaliers lead series 1-0

Oooh, Philly lost by 2 points.

Great win in game 1....oh man Kings lost...oh well...good luck next game

Good win!