Cavs Win, Bulls Lose - Cavs get the #2 seed...

[Mr. MacPhisto]

...and secure 50 wins for the second consecutive season - barring a major miracle with the Nets 12 up with under a minute to go.

Special thanks goes to the New Jersey Nets. Who they play is likely to be the Wiz if they finish off the Pacers. If not they will play the Magic.

UPDATE: It's official. Cavs have the #2 seed. That also means that, should we beat the #7 seed, the Cavs will play the winner of the NJ/Toronto series in round 2. Detroit, should they win, will have to play the winner of Miami/Chicago.

For personal reasons I'm hoping Indiana pulls it off against the Wiz. Then I can go see Cavs playoff basketball in O-Town.

[neoleo]

Sorry Mac, but I really would rather see the Wiz in the first round.

As for the potential second round matchups, I really think Toronto would be a tough series, but I'm still super happy seeing Detroit and Miami in the other half of the bracket!

And thanks to New Jersey for giving me faith in this season again.

[consigliere]

Cakewalk 1st round against a depleted Wiz team.

2nd round could be interesting against either the Nets or Raptors....but absolutely no excuse to not win either of those series. Cavs are a very strong favorite to make the EC Finals. Get'r'done. Get there, and see what happens from there.

[Mr. MacPhisto]

From a matchup standpoint I did want the Wiz and that's who we've got.

I'll admit, my desire for Orlando was purely selfish. It's less than a 2 hour drive to Amway Arena in Orlando.

However, the Wizards are not even really a playoff team at this point. With no Butler and no Arenas they are just not good. We have the easiest first round matchup of any team in the NBA.

[RC]

Somebody send Ike Diogu a fruit basket for completely choking on those 2 free throws at the end of the Pacers/Wiz game.

Cavs vs Wizards then they play the winner of Nets/Raptors.

If the Cavs don't make the Eastern Conference Finals I'm going to be disappointed.

[Mr. MacPhisto]

Cakewalk 1st round against a depleted Wiz team.

2nd round could be interesting against either the Nets or Raptors....but absolutely no excuse to not win either of those series. Cavs are a very strong favorite to make the EC Finals. Get'r'done. Get there, and see what happens from there.

And they shouldn't be anywhere near as worn out as their opponent should they get there. Detroit should be able to handle Orlando without much problems, but the second round matchup will be tough either way.

Toronto and New Jersey are tough but I'd rather play them over Miami, Detroit, or Chicago any day of the week. Let those guys beat each other up.

Anybody else think that it would be best for us if Chicago made it to the EC Finals (if we make it - I don't want it to seem like it's a shoe-in; the Cavs should get there, but you never know)?

[neoleo]

Anybody else think that it would be best for us if Chicago made it to the EC Finals (if we make it - I don't want it to seem like it's a shoe-in; the Cavs should get there, but you never know)?

Yes, although I would like to see Detroit so we can try to get over that hump. Maybe a part of me is old school and I want to see LeBron get his the way MJ had to, or maybe I just think the Cavs could use the extra motivation of being the underdog again vs. the Pistons as opposed to stolling into a series with Chicago as the overwhelming favorite. Either way, I'm happy right now and as stated above, anything less than the EC Finals would be a disappointment to me (I wouldn't have said that 2 hours ago).

[consigliere]

And they shouldn't be anywhere near as worn out as their opponent should they get there. Detroit should be able to handle Orlando without much problems, but the second round matchup will be tough either way.

Of course, the flip-side is we will not have been tested, while whoever comes out of the top half of the bracket will be in full playoff form.

Like I said, when we get to the EC Finals, let's go from there and see what happens. Right now, anything short of an EC Finals berth would be an EXTREME disappointment.

[RC]

Toronto and New Jersey are tough but I'd rather play them over Miami, Detroit, or Chicago any day of the week. Let those guys beat each other up.

Anybody else think that it would be best for us if Chicago made it to the EC Finals (if we make it - I don't want it to seem like it's a shoe-in; the Cavs should get there, but you never know)?

Toronto is really tough, it depends how Bargnani's health is and TJ Ford is one of the small quick guards that always gives the Cavs fits. I'd rather see the Nets in the 2nd round than the Raptors.

I have a feeling we'll see the Heat in the EC Finals. You know Stern is just drooling for a Wade/Lebron showdown. Hell, the happiest guys in the NBA right has to be their Marketing department.

Bulls/Heat rematch of that good series
Up and coming Orlando with Grant Hill coming back to Detroit against the Pistons
Vince Carter and the Nets back in Toronto
Hell, the most boring series is probably going to be Cavs/Wiz without Agent Zero or Butler.

I'm just giddy with this seeding.

[Mr. MacPhisto]

Yes, although I would like to see Detroit so we can try to get over that hump. Maybe a part of me is old school and I want to see LeBron get his the way MJ had to, or maybe I just think the Cavs could use the extra motivation of being the underdog again vs. the Pistons as opposed to stolling into a series with Chicago as the overwhelming favorite. Either way, I'm happy right now and as stated above, anything less than the EC Finals would be a disappointment to me (I wouldn't have said that 2 hours ago).

I'm not as concerned about getting over Detroit. I don't think that they are clearly the best team in the East anymore. They got the #1 seed but they're flawed just like all the top teams in the East. It'd be great to beat them but I figure we'd be heavy underdogs if we won the EC and got to the NBA Finals. That's enough for me.

And a matchup against Chicago would give us homecourt. So would a matchup against Miami. I think Miami has a better chance of making it. Chicago's away record makes me think that they are less likely to make it through the second round. It's possible but only likely to happen if Orlando gets a miracle and knocks out Detroit - not gonna happen.

[StewieG]

Detroit isn't dominant anymore. They're still very good, but they're not dominant. There's not one team in the east that we're incapable of beating. But, Miami is a very bad matchup for us. We don't have anyone that can guard Wade, and Shaq is still capable of having very good games. Call me crazy, but I'd put our chances against Detroit in a 7 game series at no worse than 50-50. If it's Chicago, we should win, but it wouldn't be an easy series. If they have a couple players get hot, they're very hard to beat. And the problem is, they have so many guys that CAN get hot, it's not a stretch to think 2 or 3 of them will be on in every game, especially Ben Gordon.

Our first round series will be the most boring. No doubt about it. In the West, every matchup is potentially a good one, even the Warriors vs. the Mavs. Heck, the Warriors swept the Mavs in the regular season. Even if the Mavs sweep the Warriors out of the playoffs, it at least has the potential to be interesting. Orlando should be able to win at least one from Detroit, with Howard inside.

In any case, the only team that I truly fear this season is the Suns. I think they're the only team in either conference that we'd have no chance against. Now, don't get me wrong, I doubt we'd beat the Mavs, Heat, Pistons, or Spurs in a 7 game series. Anyone else? We've got a good shot at beating.

[jdrake10]

The best part is that LeBron is well rested due to taking the Boston game off!