So, the Trail Blazers are in it, but how far will they go?

If the playoffs started today (Monday, April 13 at 2 p.m.) Portland would be the No. 5 team matched up against the No. 4 team, the Houston Rockets.  The winner would then take on the Lakers (unless the Jazz pull of an amazing upset) in the second round.

The Trial Blazers would NOT have home court advantage.

What do you think is going to happen and what are the Blazers' chances?

The Blazers will host the Houston Rockets in the first round of the NBA playoffs, starting Saturday at 7:30 p.m. followed by Game 2 at Portland on Tuesday at 7 p.m., Game 3 on Friday at 6:30 p.m. and Game 4 on April 26 at 6 p.m. 

If neither team has won four games by this time, Game 5 will be April 28 in Portland.  The Blazers and Rockets will continue to play until one team wins four games, with Game 6 scheduled April 30 in Houston and Game 7 May 2 in Portland.  The times for Games 5, 6 and 7 have not been determined yet.

During the regular season the Rockets beat Portland twice, both times in Houston.

The Trail Blazers did beat Houston in Portland, 101-99, thanks to a last-second three-point basket by guard Brandon Roy.

CBS Sportsline predicts the Rockets win the series in seven games, despite saying Rudy Fernandez is the 'X-Factor' in the match-ups.

ESPN's John Hollinger predicts the Blazers will win in 6 games.

"The young Blazers' increasingly steady play over the second half of the season bodes well for their postseason, as does their playing style: The league's slowest-paced regular-season team isn't going to be thrown off by a slower postseason pace."

Hollinger says he wouldn't be shocked if the Blazers knock off the Lakers in the second round, but he predicts Los Angeles prevails in 7 games.

ESPN gathered eight 'experts' to predict the playoffs.

For the Blazers-Rockets match up, seven said Portland would win, while the lone Rocket supporter wasn't rock-solid in his prediction:

"While I want badly for the Blazers to win this one, I still think they are a year away. This team is 10 deep and their second team outplays their first team at times, but that depth means less in the playoffs with no back-to-back games."

The Sporting News' Sean Deveney predicts the Blazers will win in 7.

"The Rockets have more experience, but the experience they have has mostly involved losing in the first round...Portland's home-court advantage, too, looms large."

Greg Oden missed the Blazers' Friday morning practice with a sinus infection. He is a game time decision for Saturday's game against Yao Ming and the Rockets. 

One blogger suggests Oden isn't really sick, just scared of facing Ming.

Johnny Ludden writes a very nice column for Yahoo! in which he thinks the Trail Blazers might be the only team in the West to knock off the Big Dogs from Southern California.

"Portland [is] the only West team to beat Kobe and campany twice this season."