BSTFWNHO: The Weekend in NBA Playoffs

↵↵Big: Thicker than this year's MVP race. Let's go with the little man, Chris Paul, who was as raw as LeBron, methodical as Duncan, and fiery as Pau in his playoff premier. Change the question from "are the Hornets for real?" to "is Paul for real?", since that's what it boils down to. Now that we all know the answer to that, go ahead and wager with confidence.↵

↵↵Small: Come on, Pistons. You got out-hearted down the stretch by a nervous, spastic Philly crew that could barely keep its balance. Whether or not Sheed smiles isn't the issue here—it's about a team that, between this and last post-season, is getting dangerously close to Mavericks territory.↵

↵↵True: Pau Gasol has never been on a real basketball team. Lamar Odom has also suffered uneven circumstance. They are both very talented veterans. Ergo, expect them to have that same extra gear for the playoffs as bigger-named ring-chasers. That, and not some Nugget-induced illusion, is what Sunday was.↵

↵↵False: I love the idea of Dwight Howard going 20/20 for the next three weeks and swallowing the East alive. Sadly, he's just not that consistent, especially since the All-Star Break.↵

↵↵Wide: One game all around. It's actually harder now to make a prediction than it was before the post-season started, even though we've got some actual data to work with; now there's momentum and motivation crashing up against each other, not to mention huge games and sleeping giants both in the picture. All of which makes every series ready to go seven.↵

↵↵Narrow: Well, except for Hawks/Celtics.↵

↵↵Obama vs. Hillary: This weekend was totally inspirational and made everyone love basketball again. I'd say that bodes well for Obama, who does the same for politics.↵

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.