This year's Western Conference playoffs promises to be one for the ages.

The Western Conference features some of the very best teams, with the No. 8 seed (Dallas Mavericks) having a 49-33 record, which would be good enough for third place in the Eastern Conference. One intriguing matchup this postseason is the No. 4 Houston Rockets vs. the No. 5 Portland Trail Blazers.

Historically, four vs. five seeds are the closest of any playoff matchup, because it is the most balanced of any matchup. Both the Rockets and Trail Blazers posted a 54-28 record this season. An epic seven game series may be among us. The Rockets won the regular season series three games to one.

Aside from the team matchup, the point guard matchup is a must-see for NBA fans. The Trail Blazers are led by second year all-star Damian Lillard. Lillard has shown signs of promise in his second year as the Blazers' starter and has yet to miss a single game. Lillard, who has won the NBA skills competition the last two seasons, is a well-rounded point guard. Although Lillard is a balanced point guard, who is capable of playing a large amount of minutes, he is not without flaws. For a first round pick starting point guard who averaged 35.8 minutes per game this season, Lillard only averaged a pedestrian 5.6 assists per game.

Then there's 25-year-old Jeremy Lin. A fan favorite, Lin has played limited minutes this season--only averaging 28.9 minutes per game. Lin is not exactly a seasoned veteran, but he does have some playoff experience, unlike Lillard, and Lin has shown he is able to adapt to different systems, coaches and teams. What Lin was able to accomplish in New York City with the Knicks and that roster is still mind-boggling to me. As an undrafted free agent out of Hardvard, nobody expected to see performaces like that. With the great connection between James Harden and the limited offensive abilities of Dwight Howard, it would be wise to increase Lin's role during the postseason.

Thus far, Lillard and Lin have versed each other eight times. All eight matchups have occurred in Western Conference regular season games between Lin's Rockets and Lillard's Trail Blazers with Lin currently holding a 5-3 edge in games won.

The head-to-head matchup between the two point guards is very close but in the eight games, Lin holds an advantage. The last time the two point guards faced off, on March 9, the Rockets won an overtime thriller 118-113. In that game, Lin scored 26 points on 7-17 shooting and Lillard would score 21 points. In their eight games played against each other, Lin has proven to be the superior passer of the basketball. The only double-double recorded between these two in a game played between each other was in a November game last season, when Lin posted 11 points and 11 assists. Lillard has never passed for double-digit assists against the Rockets defense. With Lillard holding a clear edge in free throw percentage, scoring, and rebounding, this should be a great series.

Game one of this series begins Sunday, April 20, on TNT.