No. 3 Mavericks defeated Trail Blazers 4-2 and Lakers 4-0.
No. 4 Thunder defeated Nuggets 4-1 and Grizzlies 4-3.
Key matchup
Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook vs. Dallas’ Jason Kidd
Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki and Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant will pretty much cancel each other out. That leaves Westbrook with a huge chance to do a lot of what he did to Memphis — score, score and score some more. Jason Kidd is a surefire first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he’s an older player who can’t keep up with young, speedy guards such as Westbrook. Dallas must find a way to limit Westbrook’s impact on the series.
Up high:
Each team has a stud starting point guard, a defensive- minded starting shooting guard and firepower off the bench. The last we saw of Jason Terry, he was busy scoring 32 points in 21 minutes in Dallas’ series-clinching victory over the Lakers. OKC’s top reserve, James Harden, continues to gains steam as the playoffs roll along. One of the more interesting matchups will be the backup point guards — OKC’s Eric Maynor vs. Dallas’ J.J. Barea. Barea was a flat-out star against the Lakers, but he will find Maynor has the speed to keep up with him on the defensive end.
Down low:
The battles in the post will get heated. Dallas’ Tyson Chandler is a fierce rim protector. He will discover Thunder forward Serge Ibaka isn’t willing to let shots head toward the basket uncontested. Then there are the bruisers in Dallas reserve center Brendan Haywood and OKC starting center Kendrick Perkins. Neither is afraid to dish out a hard foul.
The Post’s pick: Thunder in seven.
Chris Dempsey, The Denver Post
