The Three Point Play 05.03.08: Cavs top Wizards again, the Dallas situation, and Second Round Previews

Posted by Blake Lovell on 05.03.2008

Don't be alarmed basketball fans, but there has been a Wally Szczerbiak sighting! Also, what are the chances that the Hornets take out the defending champs? And what about the Magic against the Pistons? Plus, it's time for some big changes in Dallas.

Hello everyone, and welcome to the first ever edition of The Three Point Play here on 411 Mania! I want to jump right into the NBA playoff action, but I'll give you some ideas as to what to expect from The Three Point Play. Each column written will analyze three of the current stories/events going on in NBA land, thus the title The Three Point Play. I'll also have some odd and end notes at the end of the column that will quickly address some of the other stories in the NBA, as well as ask your opinion on certain issues in the league. All in all, this should be a lot of fun to write, and a lot of fun for you to read. And don't hesitate to comment below and give your thoughts on the bonus questions I ask, or just shoot me an email. I would also like to note that some of the columns that are posted will be shorter than others, especially during playoff time, in order to give thoughts on all the matchups taking place. Let's get started!

1. You Say Goodbye, I Say Hello

The Cavs dropped the Wizards for the third straight year in the first round, sending Cleveland to the Eastern Conference Semis, while the Wizards say goodbye to the playoffs. The best thing that could happen for the Wizards would be for them to put in an application to the Western Conference. It's tougher over on that side of the NBA globe, but at least they wouldn't have to see Lebron consistently until the NBA Finals. No ifs, ands, or buts about it, The Cavs own the Wizards.

Not only was Lebron involved in the beatdown of the Wizards, but so was Wally Szczerbiak. That's right ladies and gents, Wally Szczerbiak! Wally finished the game with 26 points, including 6-12 from three point land. If he can continue that type of production, the Cavs could make a run. When the Cavs are playing well, they can beat most teams in the NBA. But Lebron must continue to get help from his teammates, as they must have some type of contribution if the Cavs want to get past the second round of the playoffs.

Note: The Celtics-Hawks and Rockets-Jazz games were in progress as of this writing. I'll talk about those games in a future edition.

2. And the Scapegoat in Dallas is.....

Just like that, Dallas' championship dreams go up in smoke (no pun or disrespect towards Josh Howard). And who's to blame? That's right. The coach. It's how the business works these days. Now Mark Cuban must find a new coach, although the coach may not be the only problem he's got right now. Plain and simple folks, Dallas was not a championship team this season. Expectations were unreal in Dallas, and got worse once Jason Kidd came over. Kidd did not fit in well with that team and he clearly was not the answer to the postseason woes for the Mavericks.

Let's talk about the real reasons why Dallas didn't make it out of the first round. They couldn't guard Chris Paul. They couldn't guard David West. They couldn't guard Tyson Chandler. They couldn't guard Peja Stojakovic. They got absolutely no production from their bench, with the exception of the beastly Brandon Bass. Josh Howard decided to admit he smoked marijuana. Jerry Stackhouse continually ran his trap at Hornets coach Byron Scott. They were a seven-seed for a reason.

Now, Avery Johnson could definitely take some blame for the series loss. But he's not the problem in Dallas. The Hornets were much better than Dallas was, and they proved that. So what's the solution to these problems? Personnel changes. It's time for Cuban to blow up the team he brought in. It may be time for Josh Howard, Jason Terry, Erick Dampier, Jerry Stackhouse, Juwan Howard, and Eddie Jones to hit the road. Keep Dirk, J-Kidd (while he isn't the Kidd of old, he may be better with a full season in Dallas), and Brandon Bass.

If Cuban wants to think about winning a championship now, which it's obvious that he does, he has to bring in the players who can best achieve that goal. He has the choice to bring in solid veterans with playoff experience who may give the Mavs an edge come playoff time, or he could bring in young, highly-talented guys who can give them the energy to make a deep run in the postseason. Cuban also has to bring in a coach who has proven himself in the playoffs. If you're going to get rid of a guy with a 23-24 record in the playoffs, despite winning close to 75% of his regular season games, then you've got to stay true to your thinking and hire someone with playoff success.

Cuban has several options in this specific situation. But one thing is certain. The team he has now is not going to win an NBA championship.

3. The Young vs. The Old

I've been racking my brain over the Hornets-Spurs series (Game One, Sat., 10 PM ET, TNT) for several days now, ever since the Spurs and Hornets finished off their respective series. I've also started thinking about the Pistons-Magic series (Game One, Sat., 7:30 PM ET, TNT). The conclusion that I've came up with is that one of big dogs will fall. It just seems like the Hornets or Magic will get the job done, and move on to the Conference Finals.

Personally, I think the Spurs are still the favorites to win the NBA Championship. The series with New Orleans certainly brings about some matchup problems though. The Hornets are younger and more athletic than the Spurs, and Chris Paul is playing better than anyone in the league right now. But it's really hard to argue against the experience and pedigree of the Spurs. These guys have been here before, and know how to get the job done. The Hornets do have the home-court advantage, which is something they will have to hold on to if they want to win this series. Game 1 will go a long way in deciding who wins this series. If the Hornets have to go into San Antonio tied 1-1 or down 0-2, they may be finished.

As for the Pistons and the Magic, who knows what will happen. If the Pistons show up Saturday with the switch flipped on, they should be able to take the first game of the series, and ultimately take the entire series. But if the Pistons show up with the switch flipped off, as they did in Game 1 of the Philly series, we could be in for a lengthy series. The Pistons believe they can show up and play when they want to, and will have no problems. The Magic are a different team though. They may not have the playoff experience, but they've got Superman. The Pistons better figure out how to guard Howard, and make sure to stay away from watching tape from the Toronto series, because they couldn't get it done at all. The fact of the matter is, if the Pistons show up, they'll win the series. But I wouldn't count on these guys showing up for every game.

Despite the Hornets having home-court advantage, the best point guard in the game, and the NBA Coach of the Year, I still think the Magic have a better chance of knocking off the Pistons than the Hornets do of knocking off the Spurs. I've picked against Tim Duncan the Fightin' Longoria before, only to watch them coast to an NBA Championship numerous times. The Spurs have too much in their favor right now to pick against them. Meanwhile, if the Magic can steal the first game in Detroit, they will win the series. Mark it down.

The Bonus

I leave you with these questions and notes:

- The chances of this happening are very slim, but what if by some crazy occurrence, Mike D'Antoni goes from Phoenix to Dallas? And what if Avery Johnson goes from Dallas to Phoenix? Understandable or too weird?

- Is there a text-messaging rule in the NBA? Because if so, someone might want to have a talk with new Bucks' assistant, Kelvin Sampson.

- Anyone else think Larry Brown might be kicking himself right now? He's goes to the Bobcats, while Dallas, Chicago, possibly Phoenix, and possibly Toronto all have coaching vacancies. I'm confident that sooner or later, Brown will have coached every team in the NBA.

That's it for this installment of The Three Point Play. Tune in next time for more playoff coverage.