This year’s playoffs are showing us that a new wave of NBA talent is changing the way a team has to play to get to the top.

Gone are the days of Michael Jordan scoring 35 points a game, while his teammates in Chicago looked on. I’m not saying he didn’t have help winning those six championships, Scottie Pippen, B.J. Armstrong, Steve Kerr and Dennis Rodman were helpful additions throughout Jordan’s run. But a team like that is no match for the high-powered, speedy offenses of the next generation. Take teams like Phoenix, Miami and Seattle, for example. These teams run up and down the court relentlessly until, before you know it, they have upwards of 120 points on the scoreboard. Making this more concrete is the fact that Phoenix and Miami swept their first-round series against Memphis and New Jersey, which are two teams involved in a transformation into the NBA but obviously still have kinks to work out. As for the Supersonics, they have a hold of their series with the once indestructible Sacramento Kings, which since the trade of Chris Webber to 76ers has focused more on that team aspect, but here they are nearly in the same boat as Memphis and New Jersey.

Webber’s new team, the Philadelphia 76ers, has to deal with the model of the NBA future, the Detroit Pistons, which optimizes what the NBA is becoming; this has Philadelphia looking up from the bottom of the playoffs with one foot out the door. Same goes for the George Karl’s Denver Nuggets, who decided to unite after Karl was hired mid-season. Now they have to deal with the un-flashy and methodical San Antonio Spurs that are as deadly as any team in these playoffs. The Spurs have always had a knack for team unity, ever since David Robinson was there. But these days it is run by the emotionless yet highly effective Tim Duncan, As for the other match-ups: The Chicago Bulls get a mirror image of themselves in the Washington Wizards, though Washington has older experienced players; the Bulls have a group of young hungry players like Kirk Hinrich, and University of Connecticut’s Ben Gordon. Then you have what I call the turmoil series featuring the Indiana Pacers and the Boston Celtics. Both teams have had extremely up and down seasons. The Pacers were in a free fall after “The incident at the Palace,” which entailed star Ron Artest to be suspended for the entire year; but somehow they regrouped and squeaked into the playoffs. Then you have the Boston Celtics who traded away Antoine Walker and Gary Payton, only to re-acquire them earlier this season for their playoff push. This series, just like the Chicago-Washington series, is a toss up; either team could easily win those series. Finally, the series between the Dallas Mavericks and the Houston Rockets or the battle for Northern Texas. Both teams have come off terrific regular seasons with Dallas being led by Dirk Nowitzki and Houston following Tracy McGrady’s lead. Much like any four-five match-up in the playoffs, the series is close and features a back and forth style of play, with either team giving their semi-final opponent a tough series.

Since the Detroit Pistons beat the Los Angeles Lakers last year for the NBA championship, owners and GMs alike figured out that you need a team of good players, not a team with two great players and some okay guys to fill in holes. Take a look at the lower seeded teams as well as teams that weren’t able to make the playoffs. First, obviously, is the Lakers who missed the playoffs for the first time since the 1993-94 season. This was just one year after being Western Conference champions; due to a few problems in the off-season they lost a key to their success in Shaquille O’Neal, but in return received a batch of underachieving players like Caron Butler and Lamar Odom to fill in holes. For Kobe Bryant, he couldn’t have been more pleased, until he realized that he isn’t Jordan in ‘92 or ‘96; things are different now, and as O’Neal said, “That’s just the curse of the Shaqbino, that’s all.” It’s the same for the Cleveland Cavaliers. LeBron James who is figuring out early in his career that getting to the playoffs is hard without help. James had a terrific rookie season, which brought him Rookie of the Year honors, and his sophomore season brought thoughts of the other 23; but like Bryant he was unable to make the playoffs. For James, it has got to be tough with so much hype around him, he misses the playoffs just by a few games two straight years.

It’s going to be hard for any team to get past the Heat, Pistons, Spurs, and Suns this year and may be one of the last years you hear “one-man team” during playoff time. No matter who wins the championship, this I guarantee: they will be working as one unit, not as pieces of a puzzle.

Thanks a lot Mr. Jordan, you gave us many memories but it’s time to move on and set the stage for the NBA of tomorrow and these teams know exactly how to do it. I’m extremely excited to see where these playoffs go. The Larry O’Brien trophy is up for grabs waiting for the champion to be crowned.

Will it be new “bad boys” of Detroit again? We'll have to wait and see.