Although not unseen in past 1st round NBA playoff series, a few players and teams this year are scrapping it up a little earlier than might be expected.  Not only are the games pretty physical, but they have also been extremely competitive and entertaining (btw… I know they aren’t as physical as the 80’s).

Most of the action is in the Eastern Conference, where the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls are trying to see if they can go into overtime every game of the series.  The Celtics came in as the favorite (#2 seed), but quickly found out that Derrick Rose & the Bulls are not push-overs.  Boston is lucky to have a series lead right now, especially considering they are missing Kevin Garnett and now Tony AllenLeon Powe.  Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo have played pretty well and they appear to be headed to the 2nd round.  The Bulls still have something to say about that, however, and will attempt to tie the series tonight in Chicago to force a Game 7 match-up.

The Boston-Chicago Game 5 earlier this week featured a questionable hit/slap by Rondo on Brad Miller, which was only called as a 2-shot foul, and likely cost the Bulls the game.  Many are questioning whether or not Rondo should’ve received a flagrant foul – giving the Bulls the free throws and the ball.  Sure, having the ball after Miller missed both FT’s would’ve given them a chance, but Rondo is freakin’ tiny and he “made a basketball move” resulting in no suspension or additional implications.

Further complicating the judgment on the Rondo hit, was Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard receiving a 1-game suspension for elbowing Samuel Dalembert the same night.  Howard deliberately swung the elbow and connected w/ Dalembert’s head, but the refs didn’t see the contact and only assessed Howard a technical foul – he finished the game w/ 24 pts & 24 rbs in the victory.  Had he been ejected from the game, as is standard in that situation, the Philadelphia 76ers may have won the game and gone up in the series.  In addition, Howard would’ve been out of the game and could’ve avoided elbowing his own teammate in the head (Courtney Lee) and losing him for possibly the entire playoffs.

The Miami Heat/Atlanta Hawks series figures to get a bit more testy after Josh Smith missed a showboat thru-the-legs dunk and the Hawks’ announcer dogged on Dwyane Wade.  These two teams have fought hard to be where they’re at, but Atlanta may have given Miami the motivation it needs to come back and win the series (ATL leads 3-2).

The Western Conference, on the other hand, looks tame compared to these playoff series.  The Denver Nuggets blew out the New Orleans Hornets en-route to the 2nd round for the first time in Carmelo Anthony’s young career.  The trade for Chauncey Billups has already proven to be worthwhile in so many ways.  The Lakers handily defeated the Utah Jazz in 5 games, as did the Dallas Mavericks over the Spurs.  The only remaining series is the competitive, back & forth battle between an experienced/defensive-minded Houston Rockets team and the young/upcoming Portland Trail Blazers team.

I am definitely looking forward to the 2nd round of the NBA playoffs – many great match-ups and a definite uptick in intensity across the board.  If you don’t bring your “A” game to the table, you go home… (ala the Hornets).

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