NBA Western Conference Playoff Notes...

The first round of the NBA playoffs has already come and gone, with the Mavericks (as they always seem to do in the first round), Blazers, Nuggets, and Thunder all heading home earlier than they wanted to. The four remaining teams have all been there before, with each playing each other as recently as two years ago. Unfortunately, for any Jazz and Suns fans, the results haven't been too kind, as the Lakers and Spurs respectively have owned the head-to-head matchups. Should this year be any different? The Lakers have already beating the Jazz in Game One, but they definitely needed to work for it, using a late run by Kobe Bryant to rally for the win. If the Jazz were completely healthy, I'd say that they could not only give the Lakers a run for their money, but the rest of the Western Conference. This is a team that just took care of a talented Nuggets team fairly easily, boasts a bevy of talented players in Deron Williams, Andrei Kirilenko, Carlos Boozer, and Mehmet Okur. But Okur is out for the postseason with an achilles problem, and Kirilenko won't be at full strength at any point in this series. Playing against a team with Kobe Bryant, and that is hungry to prove doubters wrong and repeat, just doesn't add up to the Jazz doing much damage, even if the Lakers haven't been totally clicking recently. But hey, maybe the Jazz are hungry to win too. At the very least, they've got some ammo in the form of Kosta Koufos:

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