The NBA playoffs begin today on April 18th, 2009. This has been an interesting season in the NBA especially in the Western Conference. The LA Lakers had the best regular season by far of any Western Conference team. However, upsets happen every year in the NBA playoffs. It looks like there will be a few upsets again. The different style that teams play and matchup problems are some of the reasons why upsets can occur. For example, the huge upset on March 3rd, 2007 when the 8th seeded Golden State Warriors defeated and upset the #1 seeded Dallas Mavericks. However, what NBA teams are ready to make a deep run in the Western Conference playoffs?

Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz is a versatile team. They will be extremely hard to beat this year. Their best player is Deron Williams who is one of the best point guards in the NBA. The Jazz has good shooters such as Mehmet Okur and Kyle Korver. They can stretch out defenders by making three point shots. They also have guards that can penetrate and take it to the hoop with Deron Williams and Ronnie Brewer. Likewise, they have the always dangerous Carlos Boozer who can rebound and score inside. Hall of Famer Jerry Sloan is one of the best coaches in the NBA.

Their main problem is that they have trouble winning games on the road. They only beat two playoff teams on the road all seasons the New Orleans Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers. It will be extremely hard to make a deep run in the playoffs if you cannot win on the road especially when you do not have home court advantage. In addition, Boozer has not been playing at the level he played at before he was injured since he came back from the injury. Nonetheless, if Utah can gets over the mental block of winning on the road. Then, they could definitely make a deep run in the playoffs. They are the 8th seed matched up against the LA Lakers. But, they are not a good enough defensive team to stop the offensive firepower that the LA Lakers have. They will lose in the first round to them.

Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks have clinched a playoff spot. Dallas Mavericks biggest strength is their offense. They are ninth in the NBA at scoring. They averaged 102.02 points per game. Dirk Nowitzki is having a great season. He is having his best season since when he won the NBA MVP in 06-07 season. He has been meshing well with Jason Kidd. Besides, Jason Terry is having a great season as well. He is averaging 19.6 points per game off the bench and is a front runner to win the Sixth Man Award. They play a full court high tempo style. They very hard to beat when they are playing in sync.

However, they lack a good defense which will be a big issue in the playoffs. They can score a lot of points. Nevertheless, they have problems trying to stop their opponents from scoring. They are mainly a jump shooting team and they sometimes go through cold streaks. Equally important, they do not have a true shooting guard or center. Their centers are Erick Dampier and Ryan Hollins. Neither one of them are having good seasons this year. This is why they do not have much inside scoring. Likewise, they have problems when they play big physical teams. The Dallas Mavericks will be playing the San Antonio Spurs in the first round. The Dallas Mavericks will not have enough defense to stop the San Antonio Spurs and will lose to them in the first round.

New Orleans Hornets
New Orleans Hornets future in the playoffs is in the hands of Chris Paul arguably the best point guard in the NBA. He is having another great season and is trying to become the first player in NBA history to lead the league in assists and steals for consecutive seasons. Equally Important, New Orleans Hornets have improved a lot defensively this year. They have improved defensively because of the additions of James Posey, Antonio Daniels and Devin Brown. They are a well- balanced team. They have a good offense too. They have several good three pointers such as Rasual Butler, Peja Stojakovic, Morris Petersen, and Chris Paul.

The New Orleans Hornets have had problems with inside scoring. David West is a good player. But, since he came back from injury he has been more of a jump shooter then a low post player. Tyson Chandler is important for the team. He has been out for a while and no one knows if he will be 100% when he comes back. Injuries have been running rampant throughout the team. Chris Paul has an injured groin, David West has an injured back, Tyson Chandler has an injured ankle, Peja Stojakovic has an injured back, and Morris Peterson has a bad leg. No team wants this many injuries going into the playoffs. The Hornets will meet the Denver Nuggets in the first round. The Hornets will not be able to stop the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets are a more consistent team. The Hornets injuries problems will hurt them throughout this first round playoff series.

Houston Rockets
Houston Rockets have once again made the playoffs. But, will they get past the first round? They play a half court style of basketball. Their style is based on defense. They have the two great defenders in Ron Artest and Shane Battier. Equally important, Yao Ming has a good low post defense. They are good at rebounding too. They are also good at making teams plays their slow-paced and controlled half court style of basketball. In addition, they have an good inside scoring with Yao Ming and most of their big men can score around the basket too.

The Rockets do not have a go to player in clutch situations without Tracy Mcgrady. Ron Artest is not a big shot taker or closer. Yao Ming does not yet have the killer instinct to demand the last shot opportunity. Moreover, Tracy Mcgrady being hurt creates a missing link at the shooting guard position. They do not have any elite shooting guards now. They are mainly a defensive team. But, if they have a bad defensive game they do not have the offensive power to come back from a large deficit. This season they have somewhat struggled with more athletic teams. They will be playing as the fifth seed against the fourth seeded Portland Trail Blazers in the first round and their lack of athleticism is why they will lose to the Trail Blazers in their playoff series with them.

Portland Trail Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers have clinched a playoff spot. They are a young and energetic team with a lot of talent. They are led by Brandon Roy one of the best shooting guards in the NBA. Brandon Roy had a great season averaging 22.9 points per game. Besides, he has been involved in consideration for the MVP award. Brandon Roy can score from the outside. LaMarcus Aldridge provides them with a good inside scoring. They play a fast and uptempo style of play. They use their athleticism and youth to out-hustle teams.

Their biggest weakness is their inexperience because of their youth. They do not have much playoff experience. They also do not have an elite point guard or a dominate center. For instance, Greg Oden is very injury prone player. But, he has not developed much of an offensive game yet. Steve Blake is an average point guard at best. He is not spectacular at anything. He can be outplayed by other Western Conference point guards such as Deron Williams and Chris Paul. But, they have enough talent to beat the Houston Rockets in the first round. They will be able to tire out the Rockets. The Rockets are not good against very athletic teams that play a uptempo style. However, they will lose in the second round to the LA Lakers.

San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs once again have clinched a playoff spot. They have the most championship experience out of any playoff team in the NBA today. The Spurs still have a good defense with players such as Bruce Bowen, Jacque Vaughn and Kurt Thomas. They also have the plenty of good shooters with Roger Mason Jr., Matt Bonner and Michael Finley. Besides, Tim Duncan is still one of the best post players in the NBA. Tony Parker is in his prime and is having a great season. He has carried the team on his back some games this year such as when he had a 55 points game to beat the TWolves on November 7th, 2009 to help the Spurs win the first game of the season.

Spurs have more issues than their teams in the past. For instance, they are the oldest team in the NBA. This is leading to their players getting injured more. Tim Duncan has been having knee problems all year. Manu Ginobili will miss the rest of the regular season and playoffs because of the ankle injury. They also have a problem with depth this year. Likewise, Ginobili being out they will have even less depth. Therefore, Tony Parker and Tim Duncan is going to have to put the team on their shoulders. There the only two players that have been playing great all year. The Spurs because of have had problems keeping up with younger and more athletic teams all season. The Spurs will be playing against the Dallas Mavericks. They will win in their first round
match-up against the Dallas Mavericks. The Mavericks have a good offensive. But, the Spurs are too strong defensively for the Mavericks. They will outplay them throughout the series. However, they will lose to the Nuggets in the second round. The Denver Nuggets are are too young and athletic for the aging and declining San Antonio Spurs.

Denver Nuggets
Denver Nuggets clinched a playoff spot this year. They are looking to get out of the first round for the first time since 1994. They are a good offensive team with a lot of options such as Carmelo Anthony, J.R. Smith, Linas Kleza and Chauncey Billups. They are the sixth best offensive team in the NBA. They averaged 104.67 points per game this year. Chauncey Billups is the leader of the team. The acquiring of Chauncey Billups have helped make the Nuggets a more efficient team. He has helped make them better defensively too.

Their main weakness is their frontcourt. They have a lack of frontcourt depth. They do not have much of an inside scoring game. Nene Hilario provides some inside scoring. But, he is not a true center. Additionally, Kenyon Martin is a decent frontcourt player. However, he is very inconsistent. This is part of the reason that the Nuggets are mainly a jump shooting team. Yet, this can be a problem because even good shooting teams go on cold streaks. Billups has made the team better defensively. Nevertheless, defense is still one of their main weaknesses. Denver Nuggets are seeded second in the playoffs. They have enough chemistry and offensive firepower to win their first round match-up with the New Orleans Hornets. They will also win their playoff series in the second round too. Yet, they will ultimately lose to the LA Lakers in the Western Conference Finals.

LA Lakers
The defending Western Conference Champion LA Lakers are back to finish what they could not last year. They are looking to win an NBA Championship. They are a great offensive team. They can out score anyone. They create matchup problems for teams with Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol. Odom has the talent to take his game all the way out to the three point line. Likewise, Pau Gasol is a player that can does a lot well. He is very good at passing, shooting and rebounding. The Lakers will be even more dangerous in the playoffs this year with Andrew Bynum coming back from injury. He gives them good inside scoring and a good post up game. Equally important, Kobe Bryant is still arguably the best player in the NBA. He is never afraid to take the big shot to win the game. He has the killer instinct to win any game no matter what it takes.

LA Lakers have improved somewhat defensively. But, their defense is still an issue. They try to outscore teams instead of depending on their defense. However, they are still very inconsistent defensively. They need to show that they can play a slower more physical style of basketball. That is something they could not do in the NBA Finals versus the Boston Celtics last year. Besides, they have a lack of inside scoring. Bynum is their only true inside scoring threat. Still the Lakers have the experience, offensive firepower, depth, coaching and talent to beat any team in the NBA. They are the number one seed in the Western Conference playoffs. They will win every playoff series they play in this year and win the 2009 NBA championship.