On the 2-3-2 format: this isn't a recent change. It's been around since 1985; the reasons for it are to eliminate travel time, expense, and fatigue in series between the two coasts.
As to Simmons and the "jinx": did you listen to the podcast? Did that at all sound like somebody who wasn't being completely serious? I think many of you think Simmons is a lot more clever than he really is. If he was worried about jinxes, like I said, he'd pick the Celts to lose in the first, second, or third rounds, as well. How is it any less of a jinx to pick your team to make it to the Finals and lose, as it is to pick them to win? He's still predicting a total of 14 playoff victories.
Ultimately, it doesn't really matter. However, Simmons has made a bit of a career posturing himself as "Boston Fan #1", and it's pretty ridiculous for him to now worship at Kobe's altar while being overly critical of -- and outright wrong about -- the team he supposedly loves.