Eastern Conference Finals preview, and a thought or two about some other important shizz going down tonight.

So just about a year a ago, it looked like the NBA was dead. All of us had just sat through arguably the worst postseason of the last two decades (or just didn’t bother to watch… either way, it sucked), and as if people didn’t feel like the NBA playoffs were the biggest joke this side of Paris Hilton’s music career after Amare Stoudemire was suspended for Game 5 of the Suns/Spurs series, Tim Donaghy jumped on the scene and pretty much confirmed what we all suspected ever since Michael Jordan converted his first three-point-play without a defender within 5-feet of him: at least one referee, and probably more– though the NBA would sooner contract 20 teams than admit to it– was rigging games.

What a difference a year makes. The NBA better be careful, because it’s in danger of becoming relevant again after one of the most competitive seasons in league history– all 8 playoff teams out West won at least 50 games– has yielded the most entertaining playoffs since the good ol’ “Jordan’s Bulls/Ewing’s Knicks” days. And to top it all off, we now get the two best teams in each conference going at it for the right to move on to the NBA Finals…

Alright, my apologies for the somewhat long intro, but you have to understand– for an NBA junkie like me, this is about as good as it gets (short of the Knicks being competitive again, and I’ll get to that in a minute). I haven’t been this excited about a conference finals that didn’t involve the Knicks since… well, never. I’m not sure if it’s the NBA finally putting out a high quality product that’s worth watching, or more a case of the ultimate effect of the Knicks’ yearly suckiness finally kicking in and compelling me to watch good basketball, but I’m willing to give David Stern the benefit of the doubt here.

Before I forget… as you’ve probably heard, the Draft Lottery is being held from 7:30-8, and stands to be the best thing to come out of Jersey since White Castle if you’re a Knick fan… or the worst thing since Matchbox 20 (update: I confused dead Wendy’s mogul Dave Thomas for Rob Thomas. Happens every day, right? Thanks to devo for the tip. How bout’ this: the worst thing to come out of Jersey since emo music, and people who dress up like emo musicians) depending on how the ping pong balls fly up the chute tonight. Being the beleaguered Knick fan that I am, I’m preparing for the worst case scenario, which would be falling out of the five spot all the way down to eight. As it is, we’ve only got a 7.4% chance of winning the damn thing, which is another way of saying, “It ain’t happening.” But if it does? I’m pre-ordering my Derrick Rose jersey at 8:01pm.

Anyway, here’s how I see this Celtics/Pistons series playing out: in all honesty, I’m not sure how this thing goes back to Boston without the Pistons having an opportunity to clinch in Game 5. The C’s are basically giving tonight’s game away after they labored through another 7-game series, while the Pistons have just been chillin’, getting Chauncey Billups healthy enough to drop an enormous deuce on Rajon Rondo and Sam Cassell. Everyone’s talking about how in spite of Boston’s struggles on the road in these playoffs, no one has proven they can beat them at home, which still makes them a viable championship threat. Well that’s all about change real fast ’cause it wouldn’t shock me if the Pistons took Game 2 either (though I’m not actually saying it’ll happen). Garnett, Pierce, and that guy who claims to be Ray Allen have managed to survive by the skin of their teeth thanks to playing against guys that didn’t know how to get it done in a hostile environment– first the Hawks, and then every Cavalier not named LeBron James. And let’s face it: if you take away LeBron (I know you can’t, but just go with me here), it basically took the Celtics seven games to beat a team whose second best player had more turnovers (6) than assists (5) in Game 7, and he was the f#$king point guard (Delonte West)!!! Call me crazy, but I just don’t see guys like Billups, Rip Hamilton, and Tayshaun Prince having those kinds of issues. When my beloved Patriots lost like dogs in the Super Bowl, I said I’d be willing to make that sacrifice if it meant Boston teams would roll through their regular seasons and then choke on their own vomit in the playoffs, and it looks like I’m going to be rewarded for my faithfulness. Can’t wait to see what fate has in store for the Sox this year! Pick: Pistons in 6