[Izulde]

My initial hunch is that the Kings aren't going to pose much of a threat, but we'll see what the preview article says.

"And here we are, with the Raptors and Nuggets again the top seeds in their respective conferences and the NBA and network execs praying for a third straight Toronto/Denver Finals.

The two-time defending Western Conference champions open with an opponent that at first glance appears to be a cakewalk in the Sacramento Kings, but let's take a closer look and see.

Point Guard
Zelipe Gama vs. Kevin Martin
Gama was second in the league in assists during the regular season and he averaged 10.3 points, nearly 4 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 1.4 steals to boot. An All-NBA 2nd Team selection last year, there's no better floor general in the entire league, with the exception of perhaps Detroit's Kenny Graham.

Martin's better suited to SG, but he's not a horrible PG selection or anything. He averaged 16.3 points, 6.8 assists, 4 rebounds and 1.1 steals in the regular season. Very good defender whose size is going to create major matchup headaches for Gama with some nice outside shooting and scoring instincts.

Advantage: Draw

Shooting Guard
Mateen Yeaton vs. Justin Barnes
Yeaton's the unquestioned face of the Nuggets, averaging 24.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.6 steals in the regular season. He's a do-everything SG whose size and height make him a real bear to go against and help compensate for his only average defense. Denver will need him to again be a playoff warrior if they want to go to the Finals a third consecutive time.

Justin "Firefly" Barnes is electric on the court. At 6'2, opponents tend to underestimate him.. until they realize he's got 205 lbs of solid muscle on him and he's powered his way to a regular season of 21.1 points, 5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.2 steals. He hasn't shown much in the postseason, though and he draws a tough opponent in one of the NBA's biggest stars in Yeaton. That said, Barnes has been the steal of his class at the 12th overall pick and the third year pro still has more room to develop.

Advantage: Nuggets

Small Forward
Ron Collier vs. Tracy McGrady
Collier's a streaky shooter who experienced a slump after being dealt to Denver midseason that sent him to the bench in favor of David Jackson, but then he amped his game up again. When he's on, he's really on and when he's cold, he jacks up shot after shot trying to compensate and it hurts the team. That inconsistency and ballhogging make Collier a prime candidate to be gone at the start of next season.

McGrady's lost a lot off his glittering prime, but the man's 38 years old. That said, he's still got a shot you have to respect, as he averaged 12.2 points and he can catch you napping for the steal as he averaged 1.4 swipes a game. Both play good, but not exceptional defense, so this is going to be an interesting matchup to watch. McGrady knows his role better, though.

Advantage: Draw

Power Forward
Marcelino Augusto vs. Mike Vines
Not since Kelvin Moody has a PF had so sensational a rookie season as Augusto, who looks to be an absolute lock for Rookie of the Year. How good is this 19 year old? So good that one scout raved, "He plays like he's 29, not 19 and he doesn't play like he's 6'9, 217. He plays like he's 7', 297." Furthermore, he's so good that he's second on a championship contender in scoring (16.8 points), first in rebounding (7.2), third in steals (1.1) and second in blocks (1.7). Even more frightening? The Nuggets coaching staff say he just keeps getting better and better with every game and every practice.

Vines doesn't come with nearly the salivation that Augusto does, but the 28 year old is a fine player in his own right. Another steal of a selection at 12th overall by the Kings (2010 draft), he's one of the league's top shutdown defenders and has a nice post game, averaging 14.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in the regular season. At 6'11, 245 lbs, he's got the bulk to contest Augusto and he's also got the intangibles edge, because he's one of the most underrated and underappreciated players in the NBA. Still, it's doubtful he can truly contest Augusto's brightly burnishing star.

Advantage: Nuggets

Center
Tim Davis vs. Sean Griffin
Last year, Davis lit up the Nuggets after he was traded to the Lakers. This year, he's back on the Nuggets and determined to prove his 2016 postseason and his 2014 championship-winning playoffs with the Pistons were no fluke. His numbers were down in the regular season, averaging just 12.8 points and 5.2 rebounds between the Lakers and the Nuggets, but that's just more fuel for the fire.

He also has a huge size advantage as Griffin is just 6'8, 244 lbs compared to Davis's 7'3, 294 lb body. That's a difference of 7 inches and 50 pounds and Griffin's going to get hammered this series. Griffin was the Kings' 15th overall pick in the 2013 draft and he's an average all-around C, averaging 9.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.1 blocks and 1.3 steals in the regular season.

Advantage: Nuggets

Bench
Denver's most cocky player, fan favorite David Jackson, calls himself 'The Best Damn 6th Man in the World'. While we don't know about that, Jackson's shown in his sophomore year that his rookie season was no abberation, averaging 8 points and 6.2 rebounds in the regular season as a part-time starter, largely 6th man. 38 year old Michael Redd was signed in free agency to provide offensive punch for the bench and he's done exactly that, contributing 6.9 points a game. Kirk Hinrich, another greybeard, is putting up 6.1 points and 4.4 assists at 36 years old. Team captain Emeka Okafor is the defensive stopper.

Hilton Armstrong is precisely the kind of veteran security blanket you want as your 6th man. Averaging 7.2 points and 7.1 rebounds a game in the regular season, he does everything pretty well, standing out in none. But he's steady. Quincy Douby's postseason performances are well known and Steven Caspers, a former Nugget, is the defensive stalwart.

Advantage: Nuggets

Final Thoughts
This looks to be an out and out blowout. The Kings have some nice individual pieces, but the sum parts can't stand up against this Nuggets powerhouse. Sacramento's currently stuck in NBA purgatory. Just good enough to make the playoffs or just bad enough to get a lottery pick not worth mentioning. A sweep is in the offing.
Prediction: Nuggets in 4

Nice to know they're so confident. For what it's worth, I privately agree with their assessment.

Game One
The first game of the series was exciting... if you like watching blowouts. Mateen Yeaton scores 28, Tim Davis adds 21 points and Michael Redd and David Jackson both score 10 points off the bench. Game effort by Justin Barnes with 20 points and Sean Griffin had 10 points and 17 rebounds because Davis's one Achilles heel is his inability to rebound, but we still won box to wire in this laugher.
Final - Sacramento 79 Denver 118

Game Two
Sequel's virtually the same as the original. Mateen Yeaton is on fire again with a great all-around game 30 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks and 4 steals, Tim Davis scores 20 and we've again two bench players in double-digit scoring. Kirk Hinrich has 10 points, David Jackson backing up his 6th man claim with 15 points. For the Kings, Justin Barnes works his tail off for 23 points and Mike Vines scores 22, but even that plus 14 bench points from Quincy Douby can't avoid another Sacramento embarassment and a 2-0 series hole.
Final - Sacramento 85 Denver 111

Game Three
Will the series get more exciting when we shift to Sacramento? My guess is yes, but nowhere near enough to make a difference. The Kings come out fired up on their home court and Justin Barnes continues to show why he was such a steal in scoring 24 points. Kevin Martin finally comes untracked for 22 points and Quincy Douby hits 12 points to lead the Sacramento reserves. The Kings also shot a series high 45.6%. But then Mateen Yeaton and Zelipe Gama neutralize their counterparts with 25 points and 20 points and 17 assists respectively (a near double-20 from Gama! Wow!), Tim Davis finds a rebounding touch and grabs 14 boards to go with 10 points and our reserves out-point the Kings' seconds, led by 13 points from Michael Redd and 12 points from David Jackson. Close for Sacramento, but no cigar as they're staring down the business end of a 3-0 gun.
Final - Denver 106 Sacramento 99

Game Four
My suspicion is that all the fight's gone out of the Kings. They put on a damned good show last night, but I think that was it. Sure enough, it's good night Sacramento, as 6 Nuggets score 12 points or better. Mateen Yeaton led the way with 23 points, Zelipe Gama garnered 13 points and 14 assists and Tim Davis had arguably his best game of the series with 18 points, 15 rebounds and 4 steals. David Jackson completes the double-digit bench point superfecta with 13 points. What a hell of an opening series he's had! Justin Barnes nobly scores 24 and Sean Griffin scrapes together 18 points and 13 assists, but it's just not enough. The Sacramento Kings are dethroned in precisely the predicted sweep, interestingly enough by the exact same score both nights on their home turf.
Final - Denver 106 Sacramento 99

I'm stunned to read in the paper the next morning that we were the lone team to sweep. Not that I mind, of course. We escaped the opening round mostly injury-free, although Mateen Yeaton, true to form, banged up his foot.

A lot of series ended in the fifth game. Toronto over New York, where the Knicks never even should've won a game, Atlanta surprisingly over Orlando, as I figured that'd be a closer series. I still don't think the Hawks are for real, but they keep proving me wrong. The 76ers punt the Pistons in five as well, along with the Spurs over the Timberwolves and the Grizzlies over the Supersonics. That Memphis/San Antonio matchup is going to be a damned fun one to watch.

The remaining two contests go the full seven games and in the end, Charlotte upends Milwaukee and the Mavericks beat out the Lakers, sending the Purple and Gold to their second straight first round playoff loss. I'm breathing a huge sigh of relief on that one, because the thought of facing Andrew Bynum and Austin Buller terrified me.

Then again, we wouldn't have had to play Buller. He broke his leg in the first game of the series.

But on the other hand, I feel safer playing the Mavericks than I do the Lakers, even that means playing against the one guy I would've traded Marcelino Augusto for.

Yep, that's right. The rumors about trading Augusto a couple months ago? They were true. And it was Jonte Jones I almost dealt for.

I'm damned glad I didn't, though. I've grown quite fond of Marcelino. He's a great player and I think he could be in the Hall of Fame some day. He's that good, even if he hasn't broken out in the playoffs yet.