Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 27, 1994 TAG: 9404270042
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Jack Bogaczyk
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
If the Chicago Bulls are going to add to their string of titles, they'll have to do it with an inside job, four-peat's sake. However, Michael Jordan isn't the only familiar face missing as the NBA gets serious this spring.
There are no Celtics or Lakers, either. Los Angeles' streak of 17 playoff appearances has ended. Boston had appeared in 14 consecutive postseasons. The last time neither reached the playoffs in the same year was 1946-47.
That was the NBA's first season. The Lakers weren't even in Minneapolis, much less LA. Boston's coach was Honey Russell. Matt Guokas played for the Philadelphia Warriors, the league champions. That was Matt Guokas Sr., the father of the coach-turned-TV analyst. The Pittsburgh Ironmen, Toronto Huskies and Providence Steamrollers also played that season.
This season, Charlotte's 41-41 finish made a statement. For the first time in the 11 years since the NBA went to a 16-team postseason, it took better than a .500 record to keep playing. Only one other time in that span - 1989-90, when the NBA grew to 27 teams with expansion to Orlando and Minnesota - did the playoffs not include at least one team with a losing record.
In historical terms, the 16-team playoffs that begin Thursday night could be very significant. In 1992, teams with the home-court advantage won 14 of 15 series. Last year, the team with the home edge won 11 of 15.
No team in NBA history has a winning road record in playoff competition.
That said, the home-court strength in the eight best-of-five, first-round series this year appears to be as creaky as the Boston Garden parquet. "I don't think there's ever been a playoff series where the first round looked so competitive," said former NBA coach Hubie Brown, a TNT cable analyst.
For example, Brown's fellow TNT analyst, Doug Collins, likes New York to win the Eastern Conference. Brown isn't sure the Knicks - who miss Doc Rivers and need John Starks to play well after knee surgery - will get past seventh-seeded New Jersey in the first round. The Nets won four of five against their neighbors during the regular season.
Some of the seeded favorites are less solid because of the matchups. Orlando, the fourth seed in the East would have much rather played Cleveland than torrid Indiana. In a series in which talk will be cheap, the Nets have the inside muscle to handle the Knicks and in point guard Kenny Anderson have the kind of dribbler to foil New York's trapping defenses.
In the West, San Antonio would have much preferred seeing Golden State instead of Utah, which was 5-0 against the Spurs this season. San Antonio has the league's leading scorer in David Robinson and best rebounder in Dennis Rodman, but its guards can't corner the Jazz's penetrating playmaker, John Stockton.
Phoenix-Golden State matches the highest-scoring teams in the league and is a push. Portland, a No. 7 seed, could upset Houston, because although the Rockets have the MVP - it says here - in Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston's bench strength and perimeter game have been strained by injuries.
Is the NBA looking at a final four of Indiana, New Jersey, Seattle and Portland? The networks hope not. Improbable, sure. Impossible, no.
The great thing about the playoffs this year is that fans will be able to see them as never before. Turner Sports is expanding its coverage to two networks, and TBS and TNT are in more than 60 million homes each. NBC will air weekend doubleheaders and tripleheaders.
In the first 76 hours of the playoffs, 16 games will be aired nationally. In the first week of the playoffs, through the first three games of all first-round series, 23 of 24 games will be televised. Game 3 of the Atlanta-Miami or Chicago-Cleveland series Tuesday will be the exception.
At the end of what could be the most upsetting playoffs in NBA history, the favorite has to be the pick. Seattle has a nine-man rotation, with each averaging more than 20 minutes per game. The SuperSonics have one of the toughest home-court crowds in the NBA. They're 37-4 at the Seattle Center Coliseum.
George Karl has quieted the detractors who wondered after his years with Cleveland and Golden State whether he could subtract enough of his overflowing emotion from his bench work to let his coaching ability rise. And in Shawn Kemp, the Sonics have the best player rarely mentioned among the Hakeems, Admirals, Shaqs, Patricks and Scotties.
In the past 15 years, the NBA champion has been among the top four in the NBA in per-game point differential, has had one of the two best road records and has averaged more than 100 points per game. Only one team hit that triple this season.
However, Seattle doesn't tower over the rest of these playoffs like the Space Needle looms over its home arena.
Keywords:
BASKETBALL
by CNB