George Karl would say that the Clippers merely held serve at home in games one and two in the first round against his Nuggets, but Carmelo's offensive timidity, Kenyon Martin's injury-induced stupor and Denver's soft, stagnant, uninspired excuse for an offensive attack all suggest that the Avalanche may outlast the Nuggets in the Colorado postseason. Relying on Greg Buckner's three-point bombs and Earl Boykins' laudable but second-rate creativity will dash Denver's second round hopes in a hurry. The Clips, on the other hand, appear fresh, loose and in sync, thanks to Chris Kaman and Elton Brand's clogging of the paint, Sam Cassell's keen leadership and Brand's steady back-to-the-basket arsenal. Denver, with all its maladies, is no juggernaut of a first-round opponent, but the Clippers, having shattered the notion that severe playoff inexperience would impact their play, have resoundingly confirmed that they are for real.

Looking ahead

Because of the NBA's inane seeding system-wherein the three division winners in each conference automatically receive the top three playoff seeds, and the bracket stipulates that the second round features the winner of 1 vs. 8 against 4 vs. 5 and the winner of 2 vs. 7 against 3 vs. 6-the Clippers will play the winner of Lakers-Suns in round two. Either we will be treated to an all-Staples Center matchup in L.A. between Kobe and the Clips, or the Clips will face-off against Nash and Phoenix. Each would be intriguing-Clips/Lakers for the drama of a long-relegated underling struggling to escape its oppressor's shadow, and Clips/Suns for the promise of a fast-break-heavy display of offensive firepower. But, in truth, either series will reflect an injustice, for the Spurs and Mavericks-the two kings of the West, who shouldn't meet until the conference finals-will be slugging it out in the other second round series. Either the Clips or Suns should send Commissioner David Stern a thank-you note now for their free ride to the western finals. The NBA will doubtless change these senseless rules by next year, but while they last, the Clips' first real playoff run may well be helped along the path to the third round, which will be fun to watch, especially when the inevitable opponent is stoic, battle-tested, banal San Antonio.

Forward tosses guard

In an exhibition of at least as much playoff-worthy focus, discipline, and intelligence as Ron Artest's pre-game-one declaration that his eighth-seeded Kings would "win it all" (only to be decisively dispatched by the Spurs in a humiliating rout), Heat power forward Udonis Haslem, face-down on the floor after a hard foul under the basket, retrieved his mouthguard from his gums and hurled it with a trajectory and direction such that his intended target appeared to be the head of notoriously tight-ass NBA official Joey Crawford.

Then again, if Haslem really deserved a one-game suspension for the incident, (yes, it is the post-brawl era in the office of Stu Jackson) then Roger Clemens should have been summarily executed for zipping a weaponized broken bat at Mike Piazza in the Mets/Yankees Subway Series.

Points down, but maturity rises

As startling as LeBron's triple-double game one masterpiece was, Kobe's game one stat line was even more surprising: 7-21 for 22 points. True, Kobe missed 14 shots, but his dampened stat sheet is attributable mostly to an intelligent alteration in strategy. In several regular season meetings with the Suns, Kobe had filled up the box score only to have his Lakers lose. On Sunday he tried playing the role of maestro, setting up Odom, Brown, Parker and Walton (shocking 19 points).

After the loss, Kobe said, "We want to have everybody play to their strengths. So it's me putting the ball in the hole, it's Kwame being a monster on the boards, it's Lamar being the great all-around player that he is and everybody else contributing." This is not the Kobe of old, who would on occasion drastically limit his shot attempts, like a petulant child, to prove that the Lakers couldn't win without his offensive dominance. This Kobe seems genuinely interested in serving as a veteran leader, as the mature on-court caretaker. He will win more championships before retiring, and he will be mentioned in the same breath as Jordan. He was always too talented not to be, and now he is too smart not to be.

Heating up in the East

For months I have been condemning the easy Miami-Detroit East finals prediction, but it's looking increasingly likely with each passing playoff day. We always knew the Pistons would be there, but Miami, with its off-season retooling in the mold of the 2003-04 Lakers bust, with a decaying Shaq and questionable chemistry, was unproven. But in their first-round series against Chicago, the Heat have played a crisp, more cohesive and focused style than in the regular season. If Shaq plays even near his Laker-era capacity and demands double teams-and if teams oblige with the double-and if Jason Williams continues to ably fill Eddie Jones' shoes by knocking down open three-pointers off defensive rotations, then Miami will meet Detroit and has a chance to reach the Finals.

That reality takes nothing away from Chicago, which mounted noble comebacks in both games one and two. The Bulls have one of the best young cores in the league, and Nocioni has transformed from a passable role player into a serious three-point shooter. With Hinrich, Deng, Chandler and the future superstar Ben Gordon on board, and having been dealt the Knicks' 2006 first-round pick in a characteristically brilliant move by Isiah Thomas, the Bulls should emerge as a legit team in the East in the near future.

Friends, Romans, Countrymen

I've had fun writing this column over the course of the year. If you are reading this, thank you for your interest.