The NBA playoffs are here, with the matchups for the first-round determined just minutes ago. Out West, the Lakers and Kings are currently playing (not each other, yet) as they fight out the race for the 2nd seed but the final standings for the East have already been run and won.

Indiana finished atop the Conference with a team-record 61-21 season, as 4 teams qualified despite having worse records than the Utah Jazz, who finished out of the playoffs in the West. But enough of that.

Here’s Desipio.com’s patented preview the 1st round of the 2004 Playoffs, Eastern Style;

1. vs 8.

Under their renewed coach/GM combination, the Indiana Pacers have moved back to the echelon that brought them their first ever Eastern Conference Championship – and Finals berth – just 4 years ago. Except now they may be even better. All season Indy have been, record-wise, the best team in the League, yet the radar for all of 2003/04 has been switching between LA, San Antonio, Sacramento and Minnesota instead. Meanwhile, the Pacers have a deep squad full of toughness, explosiveness and youthful savvy, and are no longer the flakes they were shown up as this time last year against the same first-round opponent. Of course, this season’s Celtics squad is vastly different to the balanced, enthusiastic 44-win team that ambushed the Pacers at Conseco last postseason. In fact, this Boston team may be the NBA’s worst playoff team, ever. They lost 6 of their past 8 games to finish the season at 36-46, and appear woefully over-matched in this series. Since taking over from Jim O’Brien mid-year, John Carroll has done an impressive job – or should that be impassive? Each sound-byte consists of the same, safe interim fluff – mild positivity and no bridge-burning, Chris-Ford style. Under their circumstances, for the Celts to have actually qualified for the playoffs is something to be proud of, but really, they’re here more by virtue of the rest of the Eastern Conference cusp teams who decided 6 weeks ago it was vastly more sensible targetting the 9th pick in the draft than a first round dismissal (and the 15th pick). Last year, Paul Pierce’s offensive prowess was the difference between the 2 teams, but this time around, Ron Artest will shut him down, and although Ricky Davis will enjoy the playoff spotlight, no-one else in green can create their own shot, let alone stop Jermaine O’Neal and the rest of the swarming Pacers offense. Despite winning an abject 36 games, it’s notable that Boston actually finished with the 4th best road record in the Conference. They’ll need it, as not getting swept here will be a major achievement. Pacers 4-0

4. vs 5.

Before this season started, Miami would not honestly have considered themselves contenders for home court in the first round of the playoffs, yet with their win over New Jersey today, it’s capped off a remarkable campaign. The Heat, with Pat Riley abandoning ship just as it was about to disembark, took to the oars together and were determined not to sink, despite that woeful 0-7 start. Now, 5 months later, behind Lamar Odom, a remarkably durable Eddie Jones and fast-forwarding rookie Dwayne Wade, Miami not only have made the playoffs but have finished above .500, which is a far more significant achievement in the East. The Bugs’ season has been the reverse of Miami’s; a fast start (17-7 at December 13, good at the time for the 2nd best record in the Conference) which gave way to a spluttering finish to the season, although by winning 3 of their last 4 games they gained the 5th seed and thus avoided the merciless Detroit Pistons in the first round. In fact, with their frontcourt corps of Jamaal Magloire, PJ Brown and George Lynch – plus Robert Traylor and rookie David West – New Orleans will fancy themselves against the skinny, inexperienced Heat. And that’s not even mentioning the mercurial Baron Bavis, likely to be fully fit, even if he does run an offense which only shoots a tick over 40% from the floor. Miami, for their part, don’t utilise a traditional point guard strategy, as the Heat were 2nd last in the league in assists as they shared around the ball-handling duties; 4 players handed out more than 3 dimes a game but no-one more than 5. Under Stan Van Gundy this season, long gone are the old Miami Heat team that lurched from one slow-ball slugfest to another. Through the month of March, when they won 12 games and went from out of the playoff race all the way up to the 5th seed, Miami averaged 102ppg in the victories. They may not have the size to compete with the Hornets (ideally, Brian Grant would come off the bench, and at half the cost) but they’ll run, shoot and score the ball, in what will be an entertaining series for the right to get knocked out by Indiana in the 2nd round. Bugs 4-2

3. vs 6.

The Detroit Pistons have a different feel about them than every other team in the league. It’s a dark, dank, blue-collar vibe, one started way back by Chuck Daly and Bill Laimbeer and continued on today by Joe Dumars and Ben Wallace, a legacy that bypassed Grant Hill’s rainbow of beauty inbetween. As always, when playing the Pistons you know it’s a fight, both physically and spiritually. They attack you in so many different ways, most of them via brutally executed fundamentals, and Milwaukee will certainly deserve it if they can somehow get away with this series. Under Larry Brown’s watchful eye, this season’s Pistons team isn’t that much better defensively than its 2003 counterpart, but they’re now a much more well-rounded unit on the offensive end, capable of out-scoring opponents when they have to, although they obviously prefer 83-71 victories. Brown is the only coach in league history to take 6 different franchises to the playoffs, so don’t expect him, or his players, to meet with any surprises here. All up, it’s been an impressive effort by the Bucks to finish the season at 41-41, after such low expectations coming into it, and they’ve earnt the right for a minimum of 2 more games at home. With a scrambled-egg roster, a rookie coach and an injured point guard, most teams to throw in the towel, but Terry Porter has proved himself to be the anti-George Karl; encouraging the ebullient Bucks to over-achieve their way into the playoffs. A rarity in this conference, the Bucks are blessed with a glut of big men, as Brian Skinner, Joe Smith, Keith Van Horn and 6th man Toni Kukoc all give different, yet effective, looks and this big-man rotation will challenge the Wallace twins in the paint. Contrary to some speculation, Milwaukee will not add the still-not-100% TJ Ford to their playoff roster, and although Damon Jones has played sensationally in Ford’s absense, the Bucks have been a sub .500 club with him at the point. This gives Detroit a huge advantage, as without a true one, Milwaukee’s offense will subsist on a diet of Michael Redd jumpers, something Detroit shouldn’t have much trouble devouring. Pistons 4-1

2. vs 7.

This is the match-up the New York Knicks, and the New York media, desperately wanted. Knicks and Nets, Marbury and Kidd, the winningest coach in NBA history against the man with the best ever start. Game on. But as much as this series will be decided by the players on the court, the X-Factor may well be the organisation with the best medical staff. The Nets’ modest record of 47-35 this season is a long way behind the pace set by Indiana and Detroit, but it’s vastly skewed due to the amount of time lost by Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin, and now Kerry Kittles has been favouring his right knee this past week. All 3 are expected to be right for tip-off this weekend though, re-joining the continually impressive Richard Jefferson in what will be an intense, no-holds-barred contest. Since coming to Gotham, Isiah Thomas has assembled a physical and confident crew that, despite their frequent personnel changes and consequently fluid team chemistry, believe they can knock off their arrogant cousins from across the Hudson. The Knicks have injury concerns of their own, with noted playoff sharp-shooter Allan Houston on ice with knee and/or forleg woes, depending on which injury report you read, and former Net Dikembe Mutombo has only recently come off the IL himself. Even if Mutombo’s not a factor, New York’s starting frontline of Nzar Mohammed, Kurt Thomas and Tim Thomas – backed up by the recently acquired Vin Baker and impressive rookie Michael Sweetney – matches up better than a typical 7th seed. But by far the Knicks’ trump card will be Starbury. He lives for games played on this stage, where his passing, shooting and all-round clutch play will make this series by far the most enjoyable Eastern Conference match-up. The Nets are battle-hardened at this level and Jason Kidd steps his game up in the playoffs at least as much as Marbury, but the Knicks know that, over the past 2 seasons when the Nets have gone all the way to the Finals, they’ve almost stumbled in the first round (to Milwaukee and Indana respectively). They’re vulnerable early. Nets 4-2