Over the past couple of weeks we’ve collected predictions on the upcoming baseball season from the smartest people we know (our members), the coolest people we know (like Jeff Miller from Caedmon’s Call), and also Andy Osenga.

If you haven’t blocked it out yet, Andy won our NFL Predictions contest this past season despite thinking football is a joke. And he enjoyed his coronation so much he’s back to embarrass us all again on the baseball diamond.

Will it happen? You never know. But in the spirit of making truly asinine predictions (he predicted Sam Madison as NFL MVP last year) Andy has chosen a New York Yankee as his pick to lead the Majors in homers this year. Teixeira? nope. A-Rod? uh-uh. Jorge Posada??? Not even close.

His pick for MLB Home Run king this year is

…wait for it…

…Chien Ming Wang!!!

If you didn’t get a chance to submit your picks for our contest, leave your selections in the comments.

Good luck to everyone this year, should be a great season!

Here at PFB we love to let our members spout off their opinions on anything and everything.

This week we we asked them for their predictions of Super Bowl 43.

Here’s what they said…

First, the chalk-lovers who like the Steelers to win.

	Steelers 31 Cardinals 17. I’d like to see the Cardinals win because I know it would make a lot of the “but they sucked during the regular season” fans and Kurt Warner haters angry, but it seems highly unlikely Pittsburgh won’t be picking up Super Bowl No. 6 on Sunday.
	3-0 Steelers. They’ll get a field goal on their first possession and the rest of the game will be dull, making football fans everywhere realize they should be longing for baseball season instead of getting all hyped up for (what’ll turn out to be) a rather boring Super Bowl.
	Defense wins championships, so we’re going with the Steelers. I’d say Steelers 24-14 because I like the number 4, and because I don’t think Troy Polamalu can stop Fitzgerald every time. Plus Fitz played at Pitt, so I’m sure they’ve got some film on him and stuff.
	Pittsburgh wins 24-17. (It will be close, but Pittsburgh’s offense is much better than people think.)
	27-24 Steelers. The Cards proved they can still score a few points against a good defense, so they’ll put up a few. I think it’ll be close, and I’d like to see Arizona win, but I think Pittsburgh prevails.
	Steelers, 27-19

…and here are your riders of the Arizona Cardinals bandwagon.

	30-27, Cards in the 1st O.T. in Superbowl history. Are you going to get sued if people use the word Superbowl on here? Superbowl.
	31-17 Cardinals. I just think Kurt Warner is going to pick the Steelers apart and the Steelers can’t win a high scoring game
	Cards 28, Steelers 17
	The final score will be Cardinals 24, Steelers 23. Kurt Warner will throw for around 250 yards & 3 scores, but will only complete 20 of his 41 attempts. 13 of those (and 2 scores) will go to Larry Fitzgerald, who will subsequently win the SB MVP award. In general, the Steelers keep the Cardinals locked down, but Fitzgerald is simply a beast who can’t be denied.
	34-31, Cardinals; Hey, why not?
	Cardinals Eleventy Billion – Steelers 0 (as a Cowboys fan, I’m still a bit chuffed about Super Bowls X and XIII and don’t want them to become the first team to win 6)
	28-21 Cardinals. Two words… Larry Fitzgerald
	My prediction is that the Cardinals win the Super Bowl in stunning fashion 32 – 14, Arizona. I think that the offensive line of the Cardinals will step up to the challenge of protecting Warner. This will expose the weakness of the Steelers, and I use weakness very loosely b/c their defense is incredible, but the weakest part of their defense is their corners. The only answer the Steelers have for Fitzgerald is putting Warner on his back. Cards win, Warner goes to Disneyworld with the MVP trophy. My real reason for picking the Cards is, being a Browns fan, I rue the Steelers and the day they became a franchise!
	Cards- 16, Steelers – 15
	I really have no idea what’s going to happen on sunday between the Steelers and the Cardinals. Will Kurt Warner continue to keep his eyes down the field and keep finding Larry Fitzgerald for ridiculous amounts of yardage? Or will the speed of Pittsburgh’s defense be too much for the Cards’ O-line to protect? Because I have to make a pick here, I’ll go with Arizona in the huge upset, 24-16 Cardinals.

Now that the Super Bowl is set and the Eagles are playing golf, it’s become clear who came through with the best preseason predictions of 2008. He’s the only guy with 3 check marks in his row of prognostication.

Let’s look at this busy graphic one last time…

By my calculations, our NFL King for 2008 is none other than singer/songwriter Andrew Osenga, who described football to us last week as “millionaires in tights playing games“.

I will now tie anchors to my legs and drown myself in the Kankakee River. (and if you don’t get that joke, go get yourself some free Andy Osenga music right now.)

Here he is ladies and gentlemen: praise him, congratulate him, or mock him. Your NFL King for 2008:

Oh wait,one last thought. I was walking out of the grocery store last weekend and I saw this display. Take a close look at which 2 teams they have playing in their Super Bowl advertisement:

Hmmm, could it be the Jaguars and Cowboys! The 2 teams that I predicted would be in the big game! You know what, maybe I need to take that crown off Andy’s head and stick it on The Schnoz. He might have bested me in the prediction game, but I had Frito-Lay and Pepsi craft a multi-million dollar advertising campaign around my picks!

Take that toothbrush boy!

Way back in August we ran NFL Predictions from Mark Batterson, Andrew Osenga, and the writers here at PFB.

Let’s take a peek, shall we?

+ The Cowboys and Patriots missing out on the playoffs really hurt everyone’s conference championship predictions.

+ Exactly 2/3rds of us figured out which team would regress out of the playoffs this year (myself not included).

+ Only Andy Osenga knew that the Detroit Lions would be as bad as they were. Good on ya, Andy!

We’ll take one last look at this in 5 weeks to see who did the best psychic Dionne Warwick impression.

And while we’re here…have you heard that the NFL plans on playing the Pro Bowl during the off week between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl at the Super Bowl site? It’s a brilliant move that will elevate the Pro Bowl from irrelevant to mildly interesting. Good move by the NFL.

So the rumors are true. The NBA is back, and action starts tonight with the World Champion Boston Celtics taking on the Cleveland Cavaliers, followed by the Los Angeles Lakers squaring off against Greg Oden and the Portland Blazers of Trails.

When I first sat down to write this NBA prediction piece I had a great idea: tonight’s TV match ups are actually previews of the Conference Finals! It’s brilliant. The defending champs from each conference battle it out against two of the biggest young stars in the league! Kobe Bryant vs. Greg Oden in the Western Finals!. Boston’s Big 3 vs. LeBron James in the Eastern Finals! The match ups that opened the season would also close them! Wow, what symmetry! This will be the best prediction piece ever!

There’s only one problem: those match ups aren’t going to happen.

But here’s what will:

5 Predictions for the Eastern Conference

1. The Celtics WILL make it back to the playoffs, but WILL NOT make it back to the Eastern Conference Finals. I just don’t see the Big 3 Old 3 staying healthy all year. And yes, losing James Posey hurts them. It hurts them like it hurt when your junior high girlfriend broke up with you, only she did it by sending her friend over to your locker to tell you she didn’t want to go out with you anymore. That was the worst, wasn’t it? Before the friend even said a word, you knew it was coming. Please tell me I’m not the only once this happened to?

2. LeBron James can carve a turkey with only a dull knife and his left foot. He can find a a bible verse in the minor prophets faster than any pastor. He can set a basketball on his buttocks and break wind to force it up into the hoop (off the backboard, no less!). I don’t know…I’m just trying to say things about him that haven’t been said yet. It’s not that easy.  - insert clever segue here - and it won’t be easy for James to get to the Eastern Conference Finals this year. But he will. Oh yes, he will.

3. The Orlando Magic are THIS close. But they’re not there yet. Dwight Howard needs a little more help in the back court before they’re ready to challenge for the title. Then again, if Dwight Howard prays like he never has before, there is a chance. So really, this season for the Magic comes down to Dwight Howard’s prayer life. There’s something you won’t read in SLAM Magazine.

4. The Pistons are done with a capital ‘O-L-D’. So is Larry Brown, who, as you may have forgotten, is the new coach of the Charlotte Bobcats.  Neither Charlotte nor Detroit will be the worst team in the East, however. That role will be played by the Knicks or the Nets. (I tried to decide on one of them, but it gave me an instant migraine. So let’s go with both.)

5. The team that the Cavs will play in the Eastern Conference Finals? None other than the Toronto Raptors. That’s right, the red raptors, led by Bosh and Calderon, will play their way into the Semi-Finals to face off against LeBron and the Cavs. Will it be enough to beat them? Find out in 3 minutes…

5 Predictions for the Western Conference

1. The Spurs WILL NOT be playing in the Western Conference Finals. Why not? Because this is my preview column and I don’t want them in there. In an unrelated note, Manu Ginobili just walked by an elderly woman at a grocery store and flopped in the cereal aisle trying to draw a charge. This guy’s work ethic is amazing! Always working on his craft, that Ginobili.

2. The Lakers really are as stacked as everyone is saying. They’ve got the talent, especially with Bynum coming back, but what sets them apart this year to me is the chip on their shoulder. They were embarrassed in Boston in the Finals, and if you don’t think that’s going to play on the screen of Kobe’s mind in HD over and over again, you don’t know the power of the black mamba. I think the Lakers will finish the year with the best record, and make a beeline through the playoffs to the Western Conference Finals where they’ll play…

3. The Grizzlies. In the Finals? No. I’m crazy, but I’m not an idiot. The Grizzlies will be the worst team in the league this year. (We’ll get to the other Western Conf. Finals team in a minute.) The Grizzles, as I like to call them, are so bad, they will go through 4 coaches. They will average an attendance of 543 people. They will be shutout 6 times and no-hit once. They will be blamed for high gas prices and a struggling economy. They will beg Isiah Thomas to coach them and he will say no. They will play 1-on-5 against Rick Warren in a pick-up game and lose. They will find Osama Bin Laden and then lose him. They will hire Tim Donaghy as their team president. They will make it onto the next season of Survivor and immediately try to be the leader of their tribe and get voted out in the first episode. They will forward every chain email they get to everyone they know. They will lose. A lot.

4. The Blazers, Mavericks, Suns, and Rockets will be in the mix in the playoffs. But they won’t be the team who tries to take down Kobe in the Western Conference Finals.

5. That will be the Hornets, who will ride Chris Paul like Amtrak all the way to the semis. All Aboard the CP3 Train!

And for the Finals?

How about Kobe versus LeBron? No? Well, too bad because that’s what I’m going with. I like the Lakers to beat the Cavs in 6 games in NBA Finals.

Phil Jackson will win his record 10th NBA Title and smoke a cigar during the trophy presentation just to get under Red Auerbach’s skin, which is pretty sick considering Auerbach is dead.

Kobe wins the Finals MVP Award and asks Shaq to kiss it and tell him how it tastes.

Other Predictions

League MVP – Chris Paul (runner-up Dwight Howard, Kobe, or LeBron)

First Coach Fired – Lawrence Frank, Nets (though I don’t wish unemployment on anyone)

First Coach to Start Salivating Over other Jobs – Larry Brown (he’s already started)

First Person to Tell Me the Blazers Will make the West Conf. Finals – Jordan Green

Your Turn

So those are my predictions. Not very sexy, I’m afraid. In fact, this might be the worst season preview ever. But you can help! Make some educated guesses in the comments. Give us your matchups for the Conference Finals and who you think will win it all this year in the Finals. Throw in a league MVP if you’re feeling dangerous.

Go ahead, make me look stupid (as if I needed the help)

(welcome to all you folks from Andy Osenga’s blog and Mark Batterson’s blog …if you’re into sports and/or faith, add us to your bookmarks or subscribe to our feed)

The NFL kicks off another season tonight in the swamplands of northern New Jersey and I couldn’t be more excited. You know what this calls for, don’t you? Predictions!!!

But instead of boring with you with a fluff-laden preview piece, I decided to poll the writers of PFB to see what they thought of the upcoming season. Facing suspension or removal from the site if they did not participate, they all happily responded with their best guesses on how 08/09 will play out in the NFL.

In addition to our fine, underpaid staff, I also solicited opinions from two of my favorite artists. Mark Batterson, an artist of the written word (buy his new book here, if you dare)…and Andy Osenga, an artist of words and music (download his free EP here, if you dare). Much to my surprise, they agreed to join in on the fun.

The Result: This way-too-busy graphic loaded with more wisdom and prophecy than the books of Daniel and Habakkuk combined. Feast!

A few things to note:

1. I also asked each person who they thought would throw more passing yards: Chad Pennington or Brett Favre. (I would have included this in the graphic, but I didn’t realize my omission until halfway through the process and yeah…) Everyone said Favre…except for Andy. Personally, I was tempted to go with Chad, but only because I don’t trust the Jets O-Line to let Brett stay healthy all year.

2. You may have noticed some discrepancies with Andy’s predictions. Some might call this a mistake. I call it brilliant. If the Jags make the Super Bowl, he was right. If they miss the playoffs, he was right. That, my friends, is the proper way to make meaningless predictions.

3. With his prediction that Sam Madison would win League MVP, Andy Osenga became the first person in the history of earth to predict that Sam Madison would win league MVP. (Update: Andy explains his method for picking in this exclusive!!!)

4. Everyone picked the Cowboys to playing the NFC Championship game (except Andy). I’m not sure this bodes well for America’s Team.

5. We want to hear from you guys. What are your predictions for the season? If you’ve got 3 minutes, answer the 7 Prediction Questions (including the Chad/Brett query) in the comments below.

Enjoy the Season!

As you probably don’t recall, before this NBA Season started we paid 4 experts an exorbitant amount of money to offer their predictions for the season. Those 4 experts were myself, the Burnside Writers Collective’s Jon Adams, Chad Gibbs (of Two Majors fame), and my then 4-year old son, Parker.

Now that the playoff teams have been set, I thought this would be a good time to look back at our predictions to see who’s in the best shape.

Here’s your Playoff Teams, followed by our predictions:

The East: BOS, DET, ORL, CLE, WAS, TOR, PHI, ATL

Bryan – [6 of 8] CHI, DET, BOS, WAS, ORL, CLE, NJ, TOR
Jon – [5 of 8] CHI, TOR, BOS, CLE, WAS, MIA, DET, NJ
Chad – [3 of 8] BOS, DET, MIA, CHI, NJ, IND, CHA, ATL
Parker – [2 of 8] NJ, NYK, MIL, MIA, IND, DET, CHI, BOS

The West: LAL, NO, SA, UTA, HOU, PHX, DAL, DEN

Bryan – [7 of 8] HOU, SA, DAL, DEN, UTA, PHX, POR, N.O.
Jon – [7 of 8] SA, DAL, PHX, HOU, DEN, UTA, GS, LAL
Chad – [7 of 8] PHX, UTA, NO, DAL, DEN, LAC, HOU, SA
Parker – [4 of 8] POR, HOU, PHX, DEN, MEM, MIN, SA, SAC

I’ve got the edge right now with 13 of 16 playoff teams chosen correctly. Jon had 12, Chad had 10, and Parker only 6 of 16 correctly. He will be grounded for a week.

By the way, these were our Finals picks:

Bryan – Phoenix over Boston
Jon – Boston over Dallas
Chad – Phoenix over Boston
Parker – Chicago over Phoenix

I’d say Jon is in the best shape right now. If I had a redo, I’d probably take Boston over San Antonio in the Finals (or maybe Detroit over the Lakers). I do think the East will win, unless LeBron somehow gets the Cavs back to the Finals. (FYI…Boston went 25-5 against the “mighty” West this year.)

We’ll revisit this again when the NBA Finals are over. So…see you again in a few months.

Why is it that we like to make predictions for an upcoming sports season?

To sound smart? To say “told you so” if our guesses turn out to be right? To convince ourselves that our team has what it takes? To me, making predictions is about hope. Not necessarily about the hope of an individual team, just the hope of a new season.

In my opinion, each new sports season is great because it’s like getting your hands on the newest book in your favorite series of books. Major League Baseball has been around for a while, so this year’s book has got to be Volume 158 or something like that. (I’ll let my editor do the research)

(editor’s note: I have no editor)

Those of us who are baseball fans all read the last book that came out in the series called “The 2007 MLB Season”. It was a great book. There were good guys, bad guys, plot twists, historic moments, mysterious events that changed the course of the book (remember those flying midges on Joba Chamberlain’s neck in Cleveland?), and of course, a big finish.

Not everyone loved the way the last book ended of course, but that’s the beauty of a new season. There will be new characters introduced to go along with the ones we love and love to hate (world, meet Evan Longoria), there will be pages of comedy, tragedy, and plenty of moments that inspire (like on Page 1 of this year’s book when Ryan Zimmerman hit a game winning homer in the Nationals brand new park). Inevitably there will be plot twists we never saw coming and ultimately there will be a big ending that maybe, just maybe, will be the one you are hoping for.

With that in mind, I give my predictions for how this book, “The 2008 MLB Season”, will play out. While I’m not a baseball expert, the reality is I’m not much different than Peter Gammons, Jayson Stark, Buster Olney, or Atreyu. They don’t know how this book will end any more than I do. And even though they know the previous books in the series a lot better than I do – seeing as how it’s what they do for a living – in the end we’re all just guessing.

OK, enough with the overworked analogies and Neverending Story pics…here’s how I think this will play out

13 Predictions for 2008

1. The Yankees will win the AL East – do I really think this is going to happen? I don’t know. I’m torn between the Sox and the Yankees. While I’m not sold on Girardi as the right manager for this team, I do think the pinstripers are going to have another monster season at the plate. Cano might win the batting title, Giambi is in a contract year, Matsui and Jeter will be as solid as ever, and A-Rod will probably put up MVP numbers again. Most folks think it will come down to their young arms, and I tend to agree. So I guess what I’m saying is that Joba, Phil, and Ian might all be the real deal.

2. The Mets will win the NL East – Without Santana I’d be picking the Phillies or Braves here, but Johan will be strong in September when they need him most.

3. The Diamondbacks and Angels win the Wests – I see the Rockies regressing, and I don’t see the Mariners living up to the hype. If the Big Unit (worst.nickname.ever.) can get healthy and give the D-Backs 12-15 quality starts, he’ll be a great compliment to Haren and Webb. Over in Seattle, I’m with the chorus of experts who think the M’s won’t score enough runs to keep pace with the Angels.

4. Ryan Howard will lead the NL in homers this year – rounding out the top 5 will be Ryan Braun, Adam Dunn, Alfonso Soriano, and Matt Holliday. In the AL it will be A-Rod, Manny, Carlos Pena, Miguel Cabrera. and Big Papi who make up the top 5.

5. The Cubs will win the NL Central - and it has nothing to do with the 100-year anniversary thing. I’d consider picking the Reds as a sleeper over the Brewers to keep it close, but my buddy Geof would probably kill me. This is the one pick that most experts seem to agree on, which is probably bad news for the Cubs.

6. The Houston Astros will finish in the bottom 3 of their division – I only add this to the list because Cliff Young and Jeff Miller of Caedmon’s Call were adamant with me last month that the Astros had a shot at winning their division. I think they’ve been smoking some of their 40 Acres.

7 – The worst record in baseball will belong to the Orioles – Not only are they bad, but the rest of the division is great. I’m not as high on the Blue Jays as many are, but I’m predicting the Orioles will fare no better than a 6-13 record against any of their division foes this year.

8. The Tigers will not win their division - But they will win the AL Wild Card. Their lineup is great, and so is Verlander. But Bonderman, Willis, Rogers, and Robertson? I’m not ready to write them in for 100 wins yet. I’m going with the Indians in the AL Central, but I think it’ going to be close. These two teams might finish 1-2 record-wise in the AL.

9. The Cy Young awards will go to Santana and Halladay – I like Roy and Johan to win 21 games each and walk away with some hardware. I was tempted to pick Kazmir in the AL, but his recent elbow issues scared me off.

10. The final playoff spots will be won by the Phillies and Tigers – the fightins’ will hold off the Dodgers and Braves for the Wild Card, and the Tigers will eliminate the Red Sox in the last week of the season.

11. The Yankees and Indians will meet in the ALCS – The Yankees will out-hit the Tigers and the Indians will out-everything the Angels to meet in the ALCS. Without the midges, I think the Yankees will come out on top.

12. The Diamondbacks and Cubs will face off in the NLCS – Unless the Mets can figure out how to clone Johan this summer, they will fall to the D-Backs in 6 games. Same goes for the Phillies, who will wish they had a few more Cole Hamels when they lose to the Cubs. I like the Cubs to take care of business in the NLCS, not because I think they have a better club than the D-Backs, but because I have no desire to see a Yankees-Diamondbacks matchup in the World Series.

13. The Yankees will beat the Cubs in the World Series – If you think this whole thing was me trying to jinx the Yankees, you’re crazy. (not that I would complain if that happened). I just think Jeter, Posada, and company have one more title run in them before they start to fade into Bolivian. I hope I’m wrong. Wicked wrong.

OK, one more creepy Neverending Story pic.

Falcor says, “Enjoy Opening Day, everyone!”

(I originally posted this piece on my personal blog)

On his blog All Growns Up, reader Aaron Lewis convened a few baseball experts (and by “experts”, I mean “not really experts”) to share some thoughts on the upcoming MLB Season. Here were my answers:

1) Who is your favorite team?

The Red Sox (i was born and raised in Massachusetts)

2) What is your prediction for your team’s record and how far will they advance in the playoffs (if they make it)?

I’ll say 93-69, and first place in the AL East. I think they can repeat as champs, so I’ll predict that they will. I’ll also say that if they fail to make the World Series it will be at the hands of the Indians.

3) Give me one player to watch from your team and one player to watch from the league at-large.

Clay Buchholz – With Schilling on the shelf, Clay looks like the man for that 5th spot in the rotation. He is projected to be a #1 starter someday, and with a MLB no-hitter already under his belt, it will be interesting to see if he can live up to some of that hype at the age of 23.

Joba Chamberlain – Even if he is as dominant as a starter as he was as a reliever, will the Yankees blow enough late leads to consider this a mistake? The Joba/Rivera combo kept the Yankees from crumbling last year, and one has to wonder if it will be their demise in a loaded American League.

4) In any order, name three players you would consider for the number one overall fantasy draft pick.

Hanley Ramirez, A-Rod, Jose Reyes

5) Who are your three favorite baseball writers?

Peter Gammons – because he ALWAYS has the most information.
Buster Olney – because his blog on the four-letter is an amazing resource
Sean McAdam – Providence Journal writer who covers the Red Sox and contributes to ESPN.com

6) Would you like the leagues to establish the same rule with regard to the DH? Which way, pitcher batting or DH?

I’m biased because I follow an American League team, but I like the DH and think both leagues should adopt it. Would football be better or worse if the Kicker had to play QB every tenth drive? Sure, there might be more strategy involved if that was the case, but it would not make for a better product.

7) Describe Scott Boras, A-Rod, and Joe Morgan in one word or term.

Scott Boras – boring
A-Rod – too intense
Joe Morgan – Muteworthy

8] What non-favorite team do you like to watch play?

Yankees, because i enjoy their losses almost as much as Red Sox wins.

9) On-going PED investigations – important or ready to move forward?

PED investigations should only stop when the game is cleaned up…which it’s not. I just wish it would focus more on the present/future than on the past. Trying to pretend PEDs are a past problem will put us in the same position 15 years from now.

10) Who is best and worst GM in the game?

While I love Theo Epstein, he does have the 2nd highest payroll to work with. I think Billy Beane is among the best, for the way he keeps the A’s competitive every year. Mark Shapiro seems to know what he’s doing in Cleveland as well. As far as the worst, I’ll say Ed Wade of the Astros based on the things he did with the Phillies over the last decade and the questionable moves he’s already made in Houston.

You can read everyone’s responses here.

If you want to share your answers to some or all of these questions, fire away in the comments.

So, professional basketball is back. Some of you care. Many of you don’t.

Here at Prayers for Blowouts we see this as one more opportunity for us (and you) to show the world just how smart we are. We’ve compiled an elite panel of NBA experts that will offer their predictions on which teams will make the playoffs, and which team will win it all.

First let’s meet our panel:

Bryan Allain – As a 4th-grader, he celebrated the 1986 Boston Celtics Championship by marching around his block with a makeshift drum, screaming “We are the Champions!” These days he watches about 15 NBA regular season games and maybe the first round of the playoffs. Yes, he is an expert.

Jon Adams – The sports editor of the Burnside Writers Collective, Jon is a Toronto Raptors fan who loves hockey and gambling on American Gladiator reruns. You bet, he is an expert.

Chad Gibbs - A former janitor and frequent contributor to the Burnside Writer’s Collective, Chad claims to have shot a 73 this summer on the golf course, though he was not able to produce a signed and notarized scorecard when asked. He loves Auburn, but don’t hold that against him. Has he ever been called an NBA expert? Not until today.

Parker Allain - He’ll be 5 years old in December, and up until last week had never watched a minute of an NBA game in his life. He has a teddy bear named Freddy and he can say his ABCs (though he sometimes forgets T-U-V). He made his predictions based on which logos he liked better. Is he an expert? Sure, why not?

Let’s get to the predictions:

Eastern Conference Playoff Teams

Bryan – CHI, DET, BOS, WAS, ORL, CLE, NJ, TOR
Jon – CHI, TOR, BOS, CLE, WAS, MIA, DET, NJ
Chad – BOS, DET, MIA, CHI, NJ, IND, CHA, ATL
Parker – NJ, NYK, MIL, MIA, IND, DET, CHI, BOS

Western Conference Playoff Teams

Bryan – HOU, SA, DAL, DEN, UTA, PHX, POR, N.O.
Jon – SA, DAL, PHX, HOU, DEN, UTA, GS, LAL
Chad – PHX, UTA, NO, DAL, DEN, LAC, HOU, SA
Parker – POR, HOU, PHX, DEN, MEM, MIN, SA, SAC

NBA Finals

Bryan – Phoenix over Boston
Jon – Boston over Dallas
Chad – Phoenix over Boston
Parker – Chicago over Phoenix

We know you don’t care about the NBA, but we want your predictions anyway. Include them as a comment and at the end of the season we promise we’ll give props to whomever was the most psychic, whether it’s a panel expert or commenter.