Raptors Nets Series Predictions

The Raptors are still going to have to make a believer out of me. The Nets are already responsible for delivering the Raptors one devastating blow, and they’ll likely hand them another one when they take this first round series.

If New Jersey would have went down to the Bulls in the last game of the regular season, Toronto would have got to face the battered Washington Wizards instead of the red hot New Jersey Nets.

We’ll get to see Vince Carter’s return north of the border in this series where he’ll be egged on to deliver blow after blow to the Raptors to silence booing fans.

The Toronto Raptors tried to bring Phoenix’s up-tempo game to the Eastern Conference this season to utilize its young athletes. The move paid off getting them an unthinkable three seed in the East when many experts didn’t even have a playoff spot reserved for this team, me included. The Raptors have thrived by forcing teams to play at their pace which has worked very well in a basically half court conference. However, the Nets have been running on teams since Jason Kidd came to town. This is a team which can match Toronto’s tempo. The Nets even picked up their fast break style of play down the stretch when they went 7-2 to close out the season.

I do have this one going seven games, but ultimately the Nets have the playoff experience and the Raptors’ youngsters are still unproven in the postseason. If rookie Jorge Garbajosa was going to be available for this series, I might have leaned the other way, but that’s not the case.  If you want a game-by-game breakdown against the spread then sign up for our NBA picks package.

Expect a show from Carter in his return to unfriendly territory. Vince really didn’t show us the high flyer of old until the final month of the season which was unexpected in a contract year. Carter may just make the Raptors his victims while he chases another big deal with unstoppable numbers in this playoff series.

All in all, Jason Kidd is the X-factor. He still runs the show better than the quickly improving T.J. Ford and he desperately wants to make another run at getting back to the NBA Finals. That goal seems a little bit presumptuous, but a first-round win over the Raptors really wouldn’t be much of an upset in my book. The Nets’ win over the Bulls in their season finale to boost them into the number six spot was huge. It had Carter and the rest of the Nets really thinking they can do something in the playoffs. I won’t go that far, but I will say that New Jersey should advance in round one.

• Mavs v. Warriors

• Suns v. Lakers

• Spurs v. Nuggets

• Jazz v. Rockets

• Heat v. Bulls

• Cavs v. Wizards

• Pistons v. Magic

Updated April 19th, 2007