Point guard: Rafer Alston vs. Andre Miller
Alston has done well in Orlando since he was brought over from Houston, replacing the injured Jameer Nelson in the starting line-up. But Andre Miller is just one of the better point guards in the League. He and Andre Iguodala are Philly’s most important players. His ability to score, but most of all his crisp passing to his relatively young teammates, really benefits players like Thaddeus Young or Marreese Speights. Advantage: Sixers.
Shooting guard: Courtney Lee vs. Willie Green
With these two I think they’re starters by default. If you would look at their numbers, there’s nothing that stands out and will blow you away. Lee is primarily used as a defender, while Green…. I just don’t know. He isn’t a great shooter, so that explains why he only plays 22 mpg. Both will not be the difference maker anyway. Advantage: Magic.
Small forward: Hedo Turkoglu vs. Andre Iguodala
They have a different playing style, but Turk and Iguodala can do it all. Turkoglu might the better shooter, and Iguodala is a better finisher on the break and far more athletic. They can defend, can make the pass, but there’s one huge difference: for Philly to have a chance, Andre must be the best player on the court. Advantage: Sixers
Power forward: Rashard Lewis vs. Thaddeus Young
Both aren’t power forwards, who are we kidding here? But both work well in the current make-up of their respective teams. Young is a slasher, and you could say the same for Lewis, but he’s even more of a true scorer. Lewis is one of the most prolific scorers in the NBA, and let’s not forget he almost shoots at a 40% clip from 3-point territory. Advantage: Magic.
Center: Dwight Howard vs. Samuel Dalembert
Dalembert has seems to have lost the trust of his coach, and isn’t seeing too much playing time at the moment. It will get increasingly more difficult to stay on the floor trying to stop Flight Howard. Howard is so athletic and such a ferocious rebounder, the Sixers just won’t have an answer for him. Howard will dominate this series from the start, on both ends of the floor. Advantage: Magic.
Bench:
This won’t matter in the first round, but whoever advances to the second round (Orlando), this will be a problem. Both of them have a bench that lacks depth. The Magic have Michael Pietrus, Marcin Gortat, No-Neck Johnson, Tony Battie and J.J. Redick who all get some minutes most of the time. But aside from Pietrus, there isn’t much of a difference maker in that group. This also applies to the Sixers. They have Lou Williams who one day could shine in this League, but other than that? The athletic Marreese Speights had a decent rookie season, but is not always reliable. Reggie Evans is Reggie Evans. He gets you some rebounds, and has a nasty-looking beard. That’s it. So who else has to defend Howard when Dalembert is out? Theo Ratliff? This isn’t 2001 anymore. Advantage: Magic.
Coaching: Stan Van Gundy vs. Tony DiLeo
SVG is one of the frontrunners for the Coach-of-the-Year award, and made it a magical (lame, can’t help myself) season with a team that performed better on defense than it should (much credit to Howard), but we also we also saw progress in Jameer Nelson as a true floor leader. Van Gundy keeps them levelled and if health allows it (since Turk and Lewis both missed some games at the end of the season), it will be interesting to see how far they can come. Advantage: Magic.
What I’d Say:
Magic in five. I like the Sixers, but again, what can they do against Howard? Turkoglu and Lewis are back, so you have three legitimate 20-point scorers out there. Good lucking stopping that.
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