2011 NBA Playoff Predictions: Round Two

After a day of rest, the second round of the NBA Playoffs are ready to kickoff with some great matchups. The best of them all is the Celtics/Heat matchup, which might be the best second round series we've had in many years. The first round had a number of great games but no series that went the distance so I'm hoping Miami and Boston give us an epic seven game series. After going 5 for 8 in the first round, here are my second round picks:

Western Conference:
Thunder (4) vs. Grizzlies (8)
Thunder in 5
The Grizzlies look like geniuses for tanking at the end of the season so they could face the Spurs. Unfortunately for them, they now have to play a team they don't match up well with in the Thunder. I scoffed at the idea of the Thunder making the NBA Finals when some were picking them in the preseason but now it appears that only the Lakers stand in their way.

Lakers (2) vs. Mavericks (3)
Lakers in 6
Dallas proved all the doubters (me included) wrong by handling the Blazers in the first round. Now, for the first time ever, Dirk will face Kobe in a playoff series. It's amazing to think these two have never faced each other but that doesn't mean I expect it to be much of a series. The Lakers big men are going to be more than the Mavs can handle.

Eastern Conference:
Bulls (1) vs. Hawks (5)
Bulls in 6
I'm not a big believer in the Bulls but I'm even less of a believer in the Hawks. Sure, they play great defense, but Chicago isn't going to get far if all they do is sit back and watch Derrick Rose go to work on offense.

Heat (2) vs. Celtics (3)
Heat in 7
The winner of this series will win the NBA Championship. Although they seemed to be sleepwalking through parts of their series against the Sixers, the Heat appear to be gelling together at just the right time. While they have zero bench, each player on Miami seems to have a better understanding of what their role needs to be for the team to win. In other words, LeBron is getting better about letting Dwyane Wade take over at the end of the game. I think the Celtics are going to run out of gas and the Heat are going to blow past them as the series goes deep.

Those are my picks for the second round of the NBA Playoffs. Let me know if you agree or disagree!