Finally, the wild West playoff picture is settled. Only two days until a new set of madness.
Three games in Texas on the last night of the regular season settled the final six spots in the Western Conference postseason - and set up some intriguing first-round matchups.
The best could be San Antonio against Phoenix, a rematch of a tense series from last year and this time with Shaquille O'Neal playing for the Suns.
"It's an unbelievable way to start off the playoffs, but that's how it is," Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni said.
The Spurs routed Utah 109-80 on Wednesday night, clinching the No. 3 seed. With that same seed, San Antonio beat Phoenix in six games in the West semifinals on the way to its fourth National Basketball Association title.
San Antonio won the final two games, aided when Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw were suspended for Game 5 after leaving the bench during an altercation in the fourth game.
The Suns won both meetings since acquiring O'Neal from Miami.
"Shaq slows them down a little bit," Manu Ginobili said. "So they gain a lot in one part, but they lose a little bit in another part. Still, Shaq is Shaq and you have to respect that."
In other NBA games on Wednesday night, it was: Pacers 132, Knicks 123; Magic 103, Wizards 83; Pistons 84, Cavaliers 74; Mavericks 111, Hornets 98; Bobcats 115, 76ers 109; Heat 113, Hawks 99; Celtics 105, Nets 94; Timberwolves 110, Bucks 101 (in overtime); Bulls 107, Raptors 97; Rockets 93, Clippers 75; Nuggets 120, Grizzlies 111; Suns 100, Trail Blazers 91; and SuperSonics 126, Warriors 121.
The playoffs begin on Sunday (Shanghai time), with no clear favorite in a conference where eight teams won 50 games. The Lakers are the No. 1 seed, but Denver's Allen Iverson is ready for his crack at Los Angeles and Kobe Bryant.
"Let's go. This is what it's all about for me. You can't draw it up any better," Iverson said.
"People say he's the best basketball player on the planet, so I'm definitely looking forward to the challenge. Especially with me believing that about myself, so let's go.
"This is what it's about. If you're scared, get a dog."
The deepest playoff race in league history wasn't settled until the final few games of the schedule. The Rockets wrapped up the No. 5 seed with their victory over the Clippers and set up another first-round series against Utah.
The Jazz are No. 4 automatically by winning the Northwest Division, but finished a game behind Houston. The home court didn't help the Rockets in the same scenario last year, as the Jazz beat them in seven games.
"I think home court is kind of overrated. You can't rely on home court to win any series, as last year proved," Houston's Shane Battier said. "We have to play good basketball, both here and on the road. We've been playing well at home and have a higher level of confidence here. We need to take that confidence on the road and be able to steal a couple. That's how you win in the playoffs."
Dallas set up a rematch of another sort with its victory over New Orleans. That gave the Mavericks the No. 7 seed and a first-round meeting with the second-seeded Hornets, the Southwest Division champions, instead of a trip to Los Angeles.
"This was definitely a win we wanted to get," Dallas star Dirk Nowitzki said.
"The Lakers are probably the hottest team in the West. We definitely didn't want to face them in the first round. (New Orleans) had a great year, but I think we match up pretty well," he added.
The East pairings had already been determined. Top-seed Boston faces No. 8 Atlanta; No. 2 Detroit opens against No. 7 Philadelphia; Southeast Division champion Orlando is the third seed and meets No. 6 Toronto; and defending East champ Cleveland and No. 5 Washington hook up for the third straight year in the first round.
(Agencies April 18, 2008)