to be honest I think all of these teams are afraid of the knicks in the first round. They would all much rather play the pacers or the 6er's in a series then go toe to toe with bigshot-melo-stat; all of whom have some hefty playoff/big game experience.
As for who I would like to see in the first round; simply for the entertainment factor I would have to vote Miami.
Miami lacks depth, and it would pretty much be a big 3 vs. big 3 match up. I like our big three and our season series is spit with them, even with the old team and the brand new team beating them. It makes me think that our team right now, with the cohesion and swagger we have would simply dominate in the spot light. And nothing would be sweeter then to send the "heatles" to the golf courses early.
After them, I would still rather face Chicago then Boston. Chicago have not yet won significant games together, particularly D-Rose is lacking the playoff pedigree that seems necessary to get deep in the playoffs. We've played well against them pre-trade and we match up welll with them in most positions. Chicago has the advantage in depth off the bench, but D'antoni keeps the rotation short anyways so depth is not really an issue for our team.
And lastly Boston. Boston has something the other 2 teams don't have; experience in the playoffs together. Rings from 2008, a finals appearance last season and a tweaked roster that, until the loss of Shaq last night, was looking even better then last years team. This team was built to go the distance this year. With their stars age catching up with them, they feel the pressure to win it all this year as they may not have as good of a shot again. They are hungry, experienced and have more depth then any team in the league. They are one of the toughest defensively and with their size, they make for a tough match up for the knicks. Tho with Shaq hurting, the issue is not as bad,