NBA Western Conference playoffs preview

A look at the first-round series in the Western Conference playoffs, which start this weekend:

No. 1 SAN ANTONIO SPURS (63-19) vs. No. 8 SACRAMENTO KINGS (44-38)

Season series: Spurs, 2-1, winning two games by a total of four points before Ron Artest came to Sacramento. The Kings won by 10 at San Antonio in early April.

Storyline: The Spurs start their quest for a second straight title against a dangerous No. 8 seed: Sacramento is 26-14 since acquiring Artest in January.

Key matchup I: Tony Parker vs. Mike Bibby. Both point guards look to score without disrupting their team's offenses. Parker had his best season, averaging 18.9 points and shooting 55 percent. He is more of a slasher, while Bibby relies more on his outside shot to average 21.1 points.

Key matchup II: Artest vs. Bruce Bowen. Perhaps the two best 1-on-1 defenders in the league, but they probably won't waste much time covering each other. The Kings may prefer to use Artest on Manu Ginobili, since Bowen spends most of his time behind the 3-point line. San Antonio will put Bowen on whichever Sacramento player gets hot.

X-factor: Michael Finley, Nick Van Exel and Brent Barry. Those perimeter players are supposed to give San Antonio one of the league's best benches. The Kings aren't very deep, so this could be a huge advantage for the Spurs.

Little-known fact: Though they have been two of the best teams in the West during this decade, the Spurs and Kings have never met in the postseason.

Prediction: Spurs in 6.

No. 2 PHOENIX SUNS (54-28) vs. No. 7 LOS ANGELES LAKERS (45-37)

Season series: Suns, 3-1, even though Kobe Bryant averaged 42.5 points in the four games. Steve Nash and former Jazzman Raja Bell sat out the Lakers' only victory, and Phoenix averaged nearly 112 points in its three wins.

Storyline: This series is all about offense, so it could be the most fun of the opening-round matchups. The high-flying Suns and Nash, their MVP candidate, against NBA scoring leader Bryant, who also has MVP hopes.