Utah Jazz: 10 reasons to watch remaining NBA playoffs

Just because the Jazz are out of the playoffs doesn't mean the NBA season is over, of course. Diehard Utah fans may be reluctant to head back to the La-Z-Boy to watch the rest of the NBA playoffs but here are dozens of reasons to tune into the remaining NBA postseason. Here are just 10:

1. Game 7s. There are at least two left — today when the Celtics host the Cavs and Monday when the Hornets will try to dethrone the Spurs.

2. TNT's studio show. Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley are the best in the business. Barkley, especially, is always entertaining whether you agree with his opinions or not. And TNT is the home of the Western Conference finals.

3. Chris Paul is amazing. If the Hornets hold serve and win at home against the Spurs on Monday, there will be a best-of-7 series for Paul to try to prove that he deserved the Maurice Podoloff trophy instead of Bryant.

4. Can Tim Duncan overcome the even-year curse? San Antonio has won four titles during the Duncan era, in 1999, 2003, 2005 and 2007. For all the Spurs' dominance over the years, however, they just can't seem to win it all in an even-numbered year.

5. Will Chauncey Billups be ready to play and, if not, will Detroit be able to win without him? Reports out of Michigan are that Billups, who missed the Pistons' last two games with a hamstring injury, is ready to go. But even with their starting point guard wearing a suit on the bench, Detroit was able to beat the Magic twice.

6. Can Kobe can continue to carry the Lakers with a sore back? A four-day break should help, but it won't cure the MVP's nagging injury.

7. Conference pride. Sure, the West was clearly better than the East this season, especially in the middle of the pack where a 48-win team like Golden State missed the postseason. But the Celtics and Pistons have shown they can play with anybody on either side of the Mississippi, and could salvage some respect for the East by winning the whole thing.

8. Will NBA commish David Stern and ABC get their dream final? They think ratings gold can be mined with a renewal of the classic Lakers/Celtics NBA finals. They'd love to get back some of that '80s Magic. And that '80s Bird too.

9. Will Boston ever win a road game? Will it matter? The Celtics are 7-0 at home during the playoffs and 0-6 on the road. Yet they can win their second straight series today. At home, of course. In fact, they will have the homecourt edge throughout the playoffs, so they could win the NBA title without a single road win.

10. Watching the rest of the NBA playoffs on TV may not be as exciting as Andrei's trip to France, but it beats yard work.

— Loren Jorgensen

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