There is no mystery to the San Antonio Spurs.

They are a team of adults, where nonsense is at a minimum in a sport where it too often gets in the way of success. And don't for a moment believe it doesn't start with the focus on execution and fundamentals from coach Gregg Popovich, a product of the Air Force Academy.

Derek Anderson has been a key addition to San Antonio's defense.(Allsport)

"Coach keeps everything in order, and the result is consistency," Spurs point guard Avery Johnson said. "You won't see much difference in this team from one night to the next, and that's a credit to him as coach. And we have guys who approach it all the same way."

Beginning with their All-NBA duo of Tim Duncan and David Robinson up front, there really should be no surprise that the Spurs go into the NBA playoffs this weekend with the best record in the league, guaranteeing home-court advantage in every round.

And in the Western Conference this season, with the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers picking up a head of steam and the upstart Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks hot teams that everyone is afraid of, the importance of having the home-court advantage in every round can't be underestimated.

"You always want to have home court," Popovich said. "But the way the West has been this year, anybody is capable of winning anywhere. That's how good all the teams are. We just have to keep playing our game."

And that game is defense. The addition of Derek Anderson this year not only has given them another perimeter scorer and slasher, but a perimeter defender squeezing opponents into the death trap that is Duncan and Robinson inside. They lead the NBA by a longshot with an 8.3 scoring advantage over their opponents, allowing only 88.2 points a game thanks to an NBA-best .418 defensive field-goal percentage. But by the same token, they also lead the NBA with a 41-percent 3-point shooting percentage ... the only team to shoot at least 40 percent from long distance.

Not convinced yet? Too bad ... give yourselves a couple of weeks, then you will be. That said, let's get to the matchups as they begin Saturday.

No. 1 Spurs vs. No. 8 Timberwolves

To continue our fawning over the Spurs, we didn't take into account their depth and experience, having won the title just two years ago. The T-Wolves always play them tough, as Kevin Garnett is a superstar who always gets up for the challenge of dealing with Duncan and Robinson.

But Garnett is not enough, and T-Wolves point guard Terrell Brandon must play at his optimum level, which is never a guarantee considering his chronic left ankle problems. Wally Szczerbiak is a great streak shooter, as is Anthony Peeler, and veteran LaPhonso Ellis has experienced a renaissance of sorts as a sixth man after several years of knee problems nearly ended his career in Denver and Atlanta.

There is little else to be concerned with on the T-Wolves roster. Coach Flip Saunders has done a marvelous job getting the Wolves to this point, despite losing Malik Sealy to a fatal car accident last May and Joe Smith to a free-agency faux pas. But this is where the train stops.

The Spurs are loaded with far more than Duncan and Robinson. Anderson has added another athletic dimension that was lost when Sean Elliott became sick with a kidney disorder. Although Elliott is back, he isn't the same player he was and doesn't need to be. Terry Porter is playing as well as he ever has at point guard, despite being 38 years old, so Porter, Johnson and Antonio Daniels give them plenty of depth in the backcourt with Anderson, Elliott and the occasional perimeter shooting of Steve Kerr.

Up front, Danny Ferry, Malik Rose and Samaki Walker fill out the rotation of this deep and multi-talented group.

The one lacking aspect of the Spurs might be that one tough character like Mario Elie proved to be for them in 1999, but that won't be necessary for them to dispatch the Timberwolves.

No. 2 Lakers vs. No. 7 Trail Blazers

At the outset of the season, nobody would have believed this matchup would occur in the first round, that's for sure. For awhile, it looked like they could meet as the fourth and fifth seed, until the two teams went in opposite directions.

The Lakers took off.

The Blazers went into the tank.

Shaquille O'Neal has been nothing short of spectacular this month, scoring at least 31 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in every game as they finished up the season on an eight-game winning streak. Yeah, there were problems between O'Neal and Kobe Bryant; there always will be when two superstars are on the same team. But there's no likelihood of breaking them up, particularly if they continue on their present streak and take the Spurs to task in the conference finals.

But to get there, they'll need help from Horace Grant up front, Rick Fox, Robert Horry and guard Derek Fisher to relieve all of the attention the two superstars are going to get. You can bet coach Phil Jackson will be harping on that as they move forward into the playoffs.

At the same time, the Blazers have gone south for the spring. It began concurrently with the signing of free agent Rod Strickland and continued with a freefall that has taken them from the top seed in the West to seventh. Since signing Strickland on March 5, the Blazers are 8-14.

Rasheed Wallace set a new record for NBA technical fouls with 41, and was suspended twice by the team for detrimental conduct. Shawn Kemp is done for the year in drug rehab, and Bonzi Wells blew out his knee ... and it all happened in the same week.

Still, the Blazers are a formidable crew if together in body and spirit. Wallace, Scottie Pippen and Arvydas Sabonis make a great frontcourt, with Damon Stoudamire and Steve Smith at guards. Strickland, Dale Davis, Stacey Augmon and Detlef Schrempf fill out what remains a deep team.

But the downward spiral seems unlikely to change against the red-hot Lakers.

No. 3 Kings vs. No. 6 Suns

This will be the one of the more interesting matchups in either conference, pitting two teams that have put the wood to each other at different times this season.

More appears to be at stake for the Kings than the Suns, with the future of MVP-candidate Chris Webber to be decided over the next few months. This is the third season since they first became the media and fan darlings, but they have yet to win a playoff series. Webber is a free agent in July, and unless they get to the conference finals, most believe he is gone. Even if he does leave in what would certainly be a sign-and-trade, the Kings have plenty of talent.

The European connection alone -- center Vlade Divac, forward Peja Stojakovic and rookie swingman Hidayet Turkoglu -- is stunningly talented and multi-dimensional. Throw in guards Doug Christie, Jayson Williams and Bobby Jackson and you see why the Kings are so tough to run away from. Scot Pollard is a blue-collar forward center that knocks people around in place of Divac and Webber, and Jon Barry can come off the bench and light up the place with 3-pointers and dives for loose balls.

But the Suns aren't about to go away, either. Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion have been spectacular the final six weeks of the season just when the Suns began to get a sense of peril to their playoff aspirations. It isn't as if they don't have a lot of talent either, although 2000 NBA sixth man of the year Rodney Rogers has struggled to find the confidence and consistency of a year ago, while Cliff Robinson hasn't played at the same level either. Then there is the rock of defensive toughness and consistency, Elie, whose three NBA Championship rings and unwavering confidence adds another dimension to what coach Scott Skiles wants from his team.

Rookie center Jake Tsakalidis has shown great improvement as the season has progressed, but the playoffs are an entirely different situation that he'll have to adapt to, so expect veteran Chris Dudley to split time with him. Tony Delk, Tom Gugliotta and Vinny Del Negro all add various degrees of offensive firepower from the bench.

This is one of those series that could go either way, with the talent of the Kings expected to prevail.

No. 4 Jazz vs. No. 5 Mavericks

As usual, this very likely will be the most exciting series and the most capable of creating an upset.

There is no mystery to the Jazz, now into their third decade with Jerry Sloan as coach, with John Stockton and Karl Malone paving the way on the floor. Bryon Russell and John Starks have alternated at the starting shooting guard spot, with Donyell Marshall the most talented and versatile forward Malone has ever started next to. Greg Ostertag and Olden Polynice are the centers, erratic as they may be.

Off the bench with Russell (or Starks) and Ostertag, they have Danny Manning and Jacque Vaughn. It's a tough, if old, group that has won 50 games continuously for a generation.

That brings us to the Mavs, who are in the playoffs for the first time since 1990 and with 53 wins, equaled their second highest total in franchise history. Don Nelson has shown incredible patience with this young group that has come alive, led by All-Star guard Michael Finley, blossoming second-year forward Dirk Nowitzki and the acquisition of Juwan Howard to play next to Nowitzki.

All of it has come together with the emergence of point guard Steve Nash, who finally came of age after years of disappointment. He has run the show with increasing efficiency and productivity both in playmaking and shooting, with Howard Eisley off the bench swinging at both guard spots. Shot-blocking maven Shawn Bradley and Calvin Booth split time at center, with veterans Vernon Maxwell and Greg Buckner providing some depth.

Like the Suns and Kings series, this pits the talent of the Mavs vs. the experience of the Jazz, only in a more obvious divergence. If Nash can withstand his hamstring problems, you have to like the Mavs.