The NBA regular season came to a crazy end last night. The Wolves needed overtime to beat the Nuggets in a game that would decide the final playoff spot in the West. Russ Westbrook needed 34 rebounds in his last two games to average a triple double on the season and of course he went and got them. Westbrook became the first player in NBA history to average a triple double for an entire season twice, and he did it two years in a row. A handful of close games decided all the seeding, and finally we have our playoff matchups. I’ll give you my picks and a quick breakdown for each series. The team with home court will be listed first in each matchup.
Golden State V. San Antonio:
Golden State should move on pretty easily here, even without Curry. The Spurs haven’t looked good in awhile and are clearly not the same team without Leonard. Look for Golden State to win this series comfortably as they get their roster ready for a deeper run.
Toronto V. Washington:
This series will come down to the battle in the backcourt. Lowry, Derozan and the Raptors are definitely the favorites here, but Wall and Beal can ball with the best of them. Expect the Wizards to give the Raptors a run for their money. At the end of the day I’ve got Toronto moving on, but they’ll have to work for it.
Philadelphia V. Miami:
No one expected Philly to have home court in their opener, let alone finish at the 3 seed. I think Philly continues to shock people and moves on here. It will come down to Joel Embiid’s health. If he can be his usual self behind the mask, they’ll be in good shape. If not, Hassan Whiteside will give the 76ers problems. I think Embiid will be fine though, and the Sixers will move on.
Portland V. New Orleans:
This is one of the more intriguing first round series. The question will be if Anthony Davis can get enough help to keep up with Dame and CJ McCollum. I don’t see anyone on the Blazers being able to slow down Davis, but not many people can slow down that dynamic backcourt either. And we already know how clutch Lillard is. I’m going with Portland in a real close series here.
Boston V. Milwaukee:
A couple days ago, I would have given serious thought to the Bucks pulling off an upset here. But they’ve looked pretty bad lately and if they continue to play that way they won’t be able to beat Boston, even without Kyrie. Look for Boston’s rookie 1-2 punch to play well here and get some much needed experience. I don’t see Boston going very far this year, but I do think they’ll beat the Bucks here in the first round.
Cleveland V. Indiana:
No one around the league had Cleveland finishing fourth in the East, but here we are. And I think its going to take a toll on them. They’ll beat the Pacers, but it won’t be easy. They made their path to the Finals way harder then it had to be. And I think it will catch up with them. LeBron played all 82 this season, and now he’ll have to play some more tough ones. Let’s see if it catches up with him.
Oklahoma City V. Utah:
This will be another great series. The Jazz came out of nowhere this year and that defense is legit. It will be put to the test though against OKC’s big three. No one is really sure if the big three is gelling to its full potential, but this will surely be a test for them. Ultimately, I think Utah’s youth catches up to them and a veteran-filled roster for the Thunder get it done in a close series.
Houston V. Minnesota:
Minnesota took big strides this season and will be a contender in a year or two. But right now, they are out of their league. Houston will roll the Twolves here and get ready for their next series pretty quickly.
Well there you have it folks. The NBA playoffs will kick off this weekend with half of the series getting started on Saturday and the rest of them starting on Sunday. Be sure to check back here after the weekend to stay up to date as we move towards the Finals.
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