NBA Playoff Predictions: Western Conference Round 1

We've been waiting 82 games for this, and finally the NBA Playoffs are here. So many story lines to be written, so many rivalries to be created, and so many questions to be answered. 
I will be predicting the playoffs round by round with a little bit of reasoning behind each pick.

1. Oklahoma City Thunder vs. 8. Houston Rockets
Why must you do this to me Houston? After having the 6th seed within their grasp and a chance to advance to the second round, the Rockets lost their last two games and fell to the 8th seed to face a dreadful match-up against the Thunder. I will have a more in-depth look at this series in another post, but it's ridiculous to think the Rockets will win this.
Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and Serge Ibaka will destroy the Rockets and it will be a merciful death. Don't count out James Harden to win a game by himself though with a crazy 50 point night or something along those lines.
Prediction: Thunder in 5 (Only because I'm a giant homer for the Rockets)

2. San Antonio Spurs vs. 7. Los Angeles Lakers
Everyone thinks the Lakers new found offense with Pau and Dwight will mkae them a nightmare for San Antonio. That could be possible I suppose, but the biggest advantages I see more San Antonio are the match-ups they have with Tony Parker vs. Steve Blake, and Greg Popovich vs. Mike D'Antoni. 
D'Antoni is an idiot who couldn't coach a YMCA team to a championship. This is a man that has gone from failing in Phoenix, to failing in New York, to now failing in Los Angeles. At this rate he will have coached the Thunder and Heat by the end of his career. How this man has a job is beyond me, and once the Spurs silence the Lakers he will no longer have one. 
Prediction: Spurs in 5  

3. Denver Nuggets vs. 6. Golden State Warriors
With Denver without some essential players in their lineup, I could see an upset brewing here. Steph Curry is on fire and David Lee is learning how to play defense (about damn time) and that makes the Warriors a dangerous team. If the home crowd can give them the boost like their 2008 upset of the Mavericks, then I'm giving the edge to the Warriors.
Prediction: Warriors in 6

4. Los Angeles Clippers vs. 5. Memphis Grizzlies
 These two dueled it out for a 7 game series last year and a repeat performance could be on the cards. The Clippers have gotten deeper since last year and Vinny Del Negro has learned how not to be the worst coach in the league, so I have to give the Clippers a good shot to make it past this round. 
Z-Bo, Marc Gasol, and Mike Conley may have something to say about that, but as a team they don't scare me. Without Rudy Gay they lack someone that can create their own shot in the 4th quarter, which is vital in the playoffs when everything slows down.
The Clippers have been looking forward to the playoffs for about 3 months now and Chris Paul has been on cruise control for the majority of that time. Expect him to ramp it up and take over the 4th quarter like we all know he can.
Prediction: Clippers in 7
 

Black Mamba Down

As Kobe Bryant sat on the floor Friday night grimacing in pain, every Lakers fans nightmare became a reality. The extended minutes and physical effort of this rollercoaster season had finally gotten to the Black Mamba and hit him with a knockout punch.
With the Lakers in the thick of a race for the 8th seed in the West, Kobe was obviously going to have to play more if the Lakers wanted to keep their postseason hopes alive. However, I feel that someone on the Lakers medical staff should have remembered the he (Kobe) was in his 17th NBA season and maybe playing an average of 45.7 minutes over a 7 game stretch would put some physical strain on his 34 year old body. Now the minutes may not have been the direct cause to the injury, but I will not believe that the increase in minutes was not at least a factor that left him more susceptible to this type of injury.

Kobe Bryant's left Achilles' tendon popped, and with it went the Lakers chances at a post season run.

The torn Achilles' tendon in his left foot will sideline Bryant for the rest of the season and until at least Christmas. Many athletes have suffered this type of injury and it has been know to be one of the most frustrating injuries that can occur in a pro career because, besides the physical recovery,  the mental recovery to trust that the tendon won't pop again whenever they need to jump or cut on the court or field is hard to overcome.
So when will we see Kobe Bryant back at full strength again? At 34 years old and with a career that spans the equivalent of 20 NBA seasons (including postseason and international duty) it is hard to imagine ever seeing him back to 100 percent fully fit. And if we know Kobe Bryant as well as we like to think we do, then he won't allow himself to come back until he is convinced that he can perform at an elite level and live up to the high standards that he has set for himself the past 17 years in his basketball career.
And if all else fails, at least he could try to reignite his rap career.