Breaking Down the Matchups

By Jack Armstrong

POINT GUARDS:

Childs

Chris Childs and Alvin Williams were terrific in the Knicks series, particularly Childs. He averaged over six assists, made over 56 percent of his threes and created havoc for New York by penetrating the lane. He provided toughness and leadership that the Raptors really needed. This is a very big matchup, critical for the series. Childs' ability to make shots took some pressure of Vince Carter and allowed Williams to be more scoring-minded.

Snow

Eric Snow is a tremendous lead guard. He really knows how to run the team and is a very capable shooter. He does a good job to get Allen Iverson in scoring position and is a good defender. Iverson handles the ball a lot and is the prime player at creating for others. They are both very quick and get a lot of steals so the Raptors will have to do a good job protecting the ball.

Edge: even

WING PLAYERS:

Carter

Alvin Williams played great against Philadelphia in the regular season with a 5:1 assist-to-turnover ratio. For the Raptors it will be much tougher to get scoring inside against the 76ers compared to the Knicks so outside shooting will be critical and Alvin will have to duplicate the performance he had in the last series. Vince Carter is much more confident now and we have seen the maturation process happening right before our eyes. Overall, his floor game was quite impressive against the Knicks and he played great defence. He only had 12 turnovers in the series and, considering how much he was harassed, that is very impressive. Carter made great decisions and his basketball IQ is very underrated. In the regular season, he shot very well from the outside against Philly so they should try to make him put the ball on the floor and funnel him into a crowd with Mutombo waiting. Jerome Williams can match up very well with George Lynch and Dell Curry will provide good solid play.

Iverson

For the 76ers, obviously Iverson is the focal point. He's just such an explosive scorer. He will get his 20-plus points no matter what you do. He's great at drawing fouls and with all his scoring still had nearly seven assists a game in the Pacer series. Alvin has the size and toughness to defend him well. Williams needs to keep Iverson in front of him and make him work for everything he gets. Aaron McKie is a good complimentary player. He shot well vs. the Raptors in the regular season, is an adequate perimeter shooter and can carry the team for a stretch. George Lynch is Mr. Everything for Phily, a great offensive rebounder who only takes good shots.

Edge: even

FRONTCOURT

Davis

Antonio Davis was awesome vs. New York and will have to continue to perform well. Oakely will be important for Toronto because he will be the guy that the Sixers will play off of. He will get that open shot and will have to hit it. Oakley will need to keep Tyrone Hill off the glass. Keon Clark could be the X-factor. He played really well against Philadelphia in the regular season and you can see his confidence growing with each playoff game. Toronto's big people will have to work together to contend with Mutombo.

Mutombo

Philly has Tyrone Hill, Lynch, when he plays the four, Matt Geiger and, of course, the big fellow in the middle, Dikembe Mutombo. His ability to rebound, block and alter shots really makes a difference in the game. He really makes their defence effective since he's such a terror. I think he could be the difference in this series. If he has a good series, he can get them over the hump. Mutombo is an average to below-average offensive player and the Raptors should try to get him in foul trouble.

Edge: Sixers

COACHING:
You have two Hall of Famers, two guys who have proven themselves over time as great coaches in the game. Teams take on the personality of their coach. Larry Brown's teams are hard-nosed and defensive-oriented. They will push the Raptors farther away from the basket and make Toronto start its offence further from the basket. Lenny Wilkens' teams are more cerebral and in the defining moments of Game 5 vs. New York you could see the solid purpose in the Raptors play.

Edge: even

OUTLOOK:
The Raptors are improved enough to get the job done, but Philadelphia has two great players who can make a great impact in such a dramatic fashion. Mutombo's rebounding and shot-blocking will make the Raptors play a different game. They will have a harder time getting offensive rebounds and getting easy shots.

Prediction: Philadelphia in 6