NBA Playoff Previews: Cleveland vs. Washington

With the NBA playoffs beginning on Saturday, that means Foul Balls is allowed to start enjoying basketball again. So throughout the day today, I will be previewing each of the eight first round matchups.

Why You Should Watch This Series: Are you kidding? Do you remember the one-man show LeBron James put on last year to get the Cavs to the NBA Finals? Do you want to be the moron who misses the encore? Plus, both Gilbert Arenas and DeShawn Stevenson have been talking crap about LeBron already, and if there's anything better than regular LeBron, it's a pissed off LeBron.

Why Cleveland Will Win This Series: Because LeBron James has the ability to put an entire team on his back and carry them to postseason success. Plus these two teams have met the last two seasons in the playoffs, and Cleveland has emerged victorious in both series. So they know how to beat the Wizards.

Why Washington Will Win This Series: Because last year the Wizards didn't have Gilbert Arenas for the playoffs, and they didn't have him for most of the season either. Now Gil is back, and he's fresh. Plus Caron Butler's game grew to another level without Arenas around, and the two of them along with Antawn Jamison provide a tough trio for anybody to stop.

Who Will Win This Series: Wizards 4-2. I know LeBron James is phenomenal, and he's motivated, and the Cavs have beaten the Wiz the last two seasons, but he's hurting this year. His back has literally given out from carrying his sorry excuse of a supporting cast all season, and I don't see Daniel Gibson having the same kind of breakout performance he had last year in the playoffs. The Wizards talent wins out.