Guest Blogger: The First Lady of Sport Speaks

I’ve been toying around the idea of having a guest blogger from time to time to infuse some new insight to this mediocre blog (It should also be noted that through some market research, 4 people thought it would be a good idea, thus I’ll roll with it). My wife Claire, aka The First Lady of Sport, wanted to weigh in on a debate we have been having in our household and since she’s 6 months pregnant, what she wants…she gets. Enjoy. 

A long, raging debate in the Arsenault household is how sport leagues format their playoffs, specifically reseeding after each round.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/ian_thomsen/04/25/weekly.countdown/index.html

The First Lady of Sport fully agrees with this article. Sure, you want to reward excellence, but the unbalanced schedule and conference rivalries Thomsen addresses outweigh the reseeding issue. (Yes, in this case, the West has had a tougher schedule due to tougher opponents, but as a fundamental rule, teams competing for playoff spots should be playing the same opponents, the same number of times).

Thomsen doesn’t even comment on the rivalries that are developed in the post-season within conferences. MJ having to go at the Pistons for three straight years before finally getting a crack at his first finals (and championship ring)…Raja vs. Kobe from a few years back (who can’t wait for the Suns-Lakers match-up)…Sens vs. Leafs…Yanks vs. BoSox…West Beverly vs. Beverly High…
 
I couldn’t agree more with the very last paragraph. Playoff brackets are neat, efficient and easy to follow. Reseeding in playoffs makes no sense in any sport and does not give the underdog a chance. Moving to a best-of-seven already gives the higher-seed an advantage. The first round is the reward of their regular season - after that it’s anybody’s game!