- The only teams to truly dominate their opponents in the first round have been the #1 seed from each conference.

With the Suns and Heat already in the second round and set to play the winners of the 4/5 series?, which both appear to be heading towards seven games, they will be battling worn out teams, making their trek to the conference finals that much easier.  

In the West, with Tim Duncan visibly hurt, there is no reason to believe the Suns won?t be able to advance to The Finals.

With Duncan injured, Amare Stoudemire is the most dominant frontcourt player in the West, though his game remains rather one-dimensional, you can almost make an argument that he is better than a healthy Duncan.  

As evidenced by their struggles versus Denver, the Spurs no longer have the frontcourt dominance they once held.  What makes San Antonio dangerous is the combination of Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, but Steve Nash and Joe Johnson are decidedly better than Andre Miller and DerMarr Johnson.

The Suns have become a scoring machine that will wear down San Antonio in the conference finals.

In the East, the Heat will in all likelihood battle the Detroit Pistons.  Before Damon Jones had a breakout first round, the edge was still with Larry Brown?s club because of the talent and experience they have in point guard Chauncey Billups, but Jones has taken it upon himself to prove that the Heat extend beyond Shaq, Wade and an occasional Eddie Jones jump shot.

- The Mavericks/Rockets series has had the closest games and is the most difficult to handicap.  At this point I would actually be surprised if Houston doesn?t win at Dallas in game 7 to give the road squads a sweep of the series.

- After taking Game 3 and with Antoine Walker suspended for Game 4, the Pacers looked poised to lead 3-1 when returning to Boston for Game 5, but the Celtics did everything right with Walker out and have the upper hand in the series.  The attacks on Jermaine O?Neal?s shoulder are dirty, but that is sport and the Pacers will have to lean on Reggie Milller and Stephen Jackson even more than they already are.  

The Pacers and Pistons have to play each other to give closure to the season and if they don?t then a prompt four-game sweep is on tap for the Celtics.

- Speaking of four-game sweeps, no matter how hard the Wizards and Bulls battle each other, they will advance to be swept by the Heat.

- The Nuggets have quickly gone from the driver?s seat with their Game 1 win to facing a Game 3 must-win.  If they head back to San Antonio trailing 3-1, there will be no possibility of Red Sox magic.  They would have to beat San Antonio twice at the SBC Center, where the Spurs only lost a total of three times during the regular season.

But if they do win Game 4, then the series will likely go seven games, with the winner being the favorite against whoever gets out of the Seattle/Sacramento series.

- With the Sonics and Kings games being played so late, those in the East have been waking up to box scores that show Jerome James becoming one of the league?s most dominant big men and wondering if a misprint has been going on undetected.