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The Marvelous NBA Playoffs in April

Every April the NBA season really heats-up when the playoffs begin. Suddenly teams and players play with an urgency that is rarely seen during the regular season. Players play like every game may be their last of the season, and it just might be.

This year the Dallas Mavericks seem to have the inside track for winning the Championship. The Mavericks are led by all-world player Dirk Nowitzki. Also wearing the Mavericks’ jersey and contributing to their success is Jerry Stackhouse, Josh Howard, and Jason Terry.

Sure to challenge the Mavericks in April are a handful of teams. They include: the Phoenix Suns, the Utah Jazz, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Detroit Pistons, and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

A couple of these teams have such huge stars on their team that they can’t be counted out of any game or series. The Lakers have Kobe Bryant and the Cavaliers have LeBron James. These two players are capable of raising their games and beating a team almost single-handedly.

Of course, if we consider teams with a very talented player then we can’t count out the Washington Wizards or the Denver Nuggets either.

As long as the Wizards have Gilbert Arenas wearing their basketball jersey and playing on the court, they always have a chance. Arenas is a pure scorer who can takeover entire games when he gets hot.

The Denver Nuggets have their own talented player, Carmelo Anthony. Although Anthony was suspended earlier in the season for fighting, he’s back on the court now. He’s helped along by another great player, Allen Iverson. As long as the two of them can learn to play together, they will be a tough team to beat in April.

The Detroit Pistons will be a team that’s difficult to beat in the playoffs as well. They have the experience of winning it all just a couple years ago. They also have some great players like Richard “Rip” Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, and Chauncy Billups.

When it comes to talent, the Phoenix Suns are certainly no slouchs either. Appearing in Suns’ jerseys during the playoffs will be Amare Stoudemire, Steve Nash, Shawn Marion, and Leandro Barbosa.

Any team would like to have an All-Star player pulling on their basketball jersey when it comes playoff time. But ultimately the outcome of a playoff series may come down to how well the entire team plays together.

The playoffs begin in April and stretch on for many weeks. It’s not uncommon for one star player to get worn down in that amount of time. Therefore, it’s important to have role players who can step-up and make shots during crunch time.

It will be interesting to see if the Mavericks can continue their winning ways and win a championship or if they will be upset by some other team that is primed to pull-of an upset during the playoffs.