THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
EASTERN CONFERENCE
No. 1 BOSTON CELTICS (66-16) vs. No. 8 ATLANTA HAWKS (37-45)
Storyline: After rolling to the NBA's best record in the largest one-season improvement in NBA history, the Celtics are back in the playoffs against the Hawks, who ended the league's longest postseason drought with their first appearance since 1999.
Key Matchup: Kevin Garnett vs. Josh Smith. Garnett, a favorite for Defensive Player of the Year, against a player who should get some votes. Smith was in the league's top 10 in blocks and steals, but lacks Garnett's offensive skills and can get distracted yelling at referees, coaches or teammates.
No. 2 DETROIT PISTONS (59-23) vs. No. 7 PHILADELPHIA 76ERS (40-42)
Storyline: Picked to finish near the bottom in the East, the 76ers instead turned into one of the league's biggest surprises and made the playoffs for the first time in three years.
Key matchup: Chauncey Billups vs. Andre Miller. Miller averaged a career-high 17.1 points as the veteran leader on a young team. The 76ers will need him to be just as good against Billups, a clutch postseason performer who was in double figures in every game this season against Philadelphia.
No. 3 ORLANDO MAGIC (52-30) vs. No. 6 TORONTO RAPTORS (41-41)
Storyline: Despite their 52 wins, the Magic are the overlooked team in the East, not considered much of a threat to Boston or Detroit, and this is their first chance to prove otherwise.
Key matchup: Rashard Lewis vs. Chris Bosh. The Magic is without a true power forward, using Lewis as an undersized 4, and now they have to face one of the best in the East. Bosh averaged 33 points against Orlando and should put up big numbers in this series.
No. 4 CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (45-37) vs. No. 5 WASHINGTON WIZARDS (43-39)
Storyline: This is the third straight year these teams are meeting in the first round. Cleveland won the previous two, sweeping a Washington team missing Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler last year.
Key matchup: LeBron James vs. Butler. Butler averaged 23 points in Washington's two wins, but was limited to 10 in the one loss he played in, and he's anxious for a good performance after missing last year's series with an injury.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
No. 1 LOS ANGELES LAKERS (57-25) vs. No. 8 DENVER NUGGETS (50-32)
Storyline: A strong finish gave Bryant and the Lakers the No. 1 seed, but they get a dangerous first-round opponent that was only seven victories worse. Kobe Bryant (28.3), Allen Iverson (26.4) and Carmelo Anthony (25.7) ranked 2-3-4 on the NBA's scoring list.
Key matchup: Bryant vs. Iverson. They may not spend much time defending each other, but who cares? These two great scorers from the deep 1996 Draft respect each other, and both should put on a show.
No. 2 NEW ORLEANS HORNETS (56-26) vs. No. 7 DALLAS MAVERICKS (51-31)
Storyline: A year after losing in the first round as the No. 1 seed, the Mavericks are now the dangerous underdogs against a New Orleans team with little postseason experience.
Key matchup: Chris Paul vs. Jason Kidd. Paul had easily been getting the better of this matchup this season, both when Kidd was playing for New Jersey and Dallas, but the veteran collected his 100th career triple-double in the Mavs' victory in the season finale.
No. 3 SAN ANTONIO SPURS (56-26) vs. No. 6 PHOENIX SUNS (55-27)
Storyline: This is the second straight year these teams meet in the postseason. The Spurs won last year's tense Western Conference semifinal in six games, aided by suspensions to the Suns' Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw in Game 5.
Key matchup: Tim Duncan vs. Shaquille O'Neal and Stoudemire. Stoudemire was frequently in foul trouble trying to defend Duncan but now is free of that responsibility with O'Neal there to do it.
No. 4 UTAH JAZZ (54-28) vs. No. 5 HOUSTON ROCKETS (55-27)
Storyline: A rematch of a first-round series from a year ago, with similar circumstances. The Jazz is the No. 4 seed as a division champion, but the Rockets have home-court advantage because of their better record.
Key Matchup: Carlos Boozer vs. Luis Scola. Scola has played in numerous big games in Europe and the Olympics, where he helped Argentina win the gold medal in 2004. His first taste of postseason play in the NBA has him trying to contain Boozer, who led Utah with 21.1 points and 10.4 rebounds per game.
