_edited_ed.jpg)
The NBA playoffs are here and we’re ready to give a brief analysis and predictions on what we think the first round is going to look like. The bubble has been a huge success so far, the NBA has done a fantastic job at keeping players safe and producing entertaining content. Today we saw the bubble pre-playoff play capped off with a battle between Damian Liliard and future rookie of the year Ja Morant as the Blazers were able to finally clinch the 8 seed and are poised to take on the top ranked Lakers. The smoke has cleared, most fans and analysts are happy with the playoff seeding, I am so pumped to see 7 game basketball. Vince and I are going to do our best to provide a short synopsis of what we think will happen in round one. We’ll feature some categories to help break down the reasoning and give our overall pick of who takes each series.
(Graphic via: Insider.com)
Western Conference Round 1:
Who’s ready for 'Dame Time’ in the playoffs? The Blazers have the hottest player in the world right now and unanimous NBA Bubble MVP Damian Liliard. The backcourt for this team has always been a problem for their opponents as CJ McCollum is elite at making space off the dribble, they also have strong big men in Nurkic and Whiteside. On the other hand the king is back in the playoffs taking his Laker squad to the top of the western conference and clinching the number one seed. Lebron features a new cast this season, most importantly elite big man Anthony Davis who is poised to make his Laker playoff debut. The bench for this Laker squad is the big question mark but anytime Lebron is in a playoff game the entire league takes notice. Danny Green and KCP are going to have to knock down shots when the superstars are doubled. Carmelo Anthony has been a feel good story this season and I am really hoping he can keep up this good run and give his good friend Lebron a scare in round 1. Despite the Blazers below 500% record they are on a lot of playoff teams' radar. I don't think they’ll be taken lightly in round 1 or pushed around, this will be an exciting series.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Lakers
Anytime you have Lebron and Anthony Davis in the same starting lineup you’ll be tough to beat, these two can dominate the game. Lebron & AD have surrounded themselves with two shooters in Danny Green and KCP along with a big time rebounder in Javale Mcgee
Overall Depth: Blazers
I think the Blazers as of now have the deeper squad, especially when considering who's playing well right now. Out of the main 8 guys that are playing I respect the Blazers numbers a little more, spearheaded by the great play of Gary Trent Jr. This was strictly based off of what have you done for me lately and the best player off the bench is definitely on the Blazers.
Ryan's Series Pick: Lakers in 6
Vince's Series Pick: Portland in 7
Patrick Series Pick: Portland in 7
This Clippers team is absolutely loaded and if it weren’t for injury issues I think they would have easily captured the top spot in the west. Kawhi is looking to repeat as NBA champ with a new team this year and Paul George is trying to capture his 1st ring and prove he belongs in the category of the NBA Elite. Dallas is going to showcase two of Europe's brightest stars in the Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis combo. The Mavs depend on the 3 ball to be contenders, Seth Curry has been out the past couple of games and Luka has struggled from deep shooting 15-50 in the bubble. If they want to make a run in the playoffs they’ll need to do better at knocking down outside shots. The Clippers have so much depth outside of they’re starting lineup and I'm having trouble seeing how the Mavs defense is going to contain this high powered offense.
Starting lineup advantage: Los Angeles Clippers
Kawhi and Paul George have been spectacular in the bubble, both shooting right around 50% from deep. Zubac has been sucking up rebounds averaging 10.2 per game. Marcus Morris is a huge vet presence and the addition of Reggie Jackson gives Pat Beverley time to heal up. The Clippers have a clear advantage here.
Overall Depth: Los Angeles Clippers
This is my pick for the deepest team in the NBA when healthy. JaMychal Green has found his 3 point shot, Lou Will is a 6th player of the year candidate year after year. Montrezl Harrel could start for 75% of NBA Teams. If Landry Shamet comes back healthy and Patrick Patterson can continue to produce good minutes I don’t know who's beating this team in 7. The Clippers are an absolute wagon.
Ryan's Series Pick: Clippers in 5
Vince's Series Pick: Clippers in 6
Patrick Series Pick: Clippers in 5
This is the closest matchup in the Western Conference as these two teams have squads that match up well against each other. They recently had a 2OT thriller in the bubble where Donavon Mitchell hit clutch shot after clutch shot to extend the game but couldn’t close out against the deep Nuggets squad who took it 134-132. Jokic is arguably a top 3 big man in the game, he didn’t have great numbers in the bubble but did average a cool 8.2 assists in 8 games. His overall season stats sat at 19.9 PPG, 9.7 RPG, and 7.0 APG. Michael Porter Jr. is the X-factor for this team as he led them in points during bubble play and has shown extreme progression over the year. The Jazz have a similar core to last year's playoff team featuring young star Donovan Mitchell and NBA vets Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley. Gobert is a huge presence in the paint and is consistently a top defender in the game. This Series is going to be a great back and forth and I expect a lot of close games in the 4th.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Denver Nuggets
This was the toughest call for me on this list. Both teams have two big stars paired with a solid NBA vet. Jokic and Murray lead a well rounded starting lineup that can put points on the board.I think Royce O’Neale for the Utah Jazz is the one liability in both lineups and with how well MPJ has played in the bubble I have to give the nuggets the nod here.
Overall Depth: Denver Nuggets
If this team comes into round 1 healthy, mainly Gary Harris and Will Barton I think they have a little more depth. Jerami Grant has had a very solid year averaging 15.6 PPG in the bubble and 12 PPG for the whole season. With MPJ’s hot streak Will Barton comes off the bench and was the third leading scorer for this Denver squad all year. Plumlee can grab boards and the whole world is on Bol Bol watch even though I don't expect him to see a ton of minutes.
Ryan's Series Pick: Nuggets in 6
Vince's Series Pick: Nuggets in 7
Patrick Series Pick: Nuggets in 7
This is just fate finding its way into the NBA bubble right? I don’t think any analyst in the world had the OKC Thunder at the 5 seed going into the playoffs. Russell Westbrook facing his former team in round 1 of the playoffs is just a total destiny scenario. Chris Paul and Steven Adams have led this Thunder squad to a phenomenal record and look to own the inside of the arc and bully the Rockets to a series win. The big storyline here is starting point guard Russell Westbrook’s current quad injury that Houston expects to have him sidelined for at least the first few games of the series. James Harden typically comes out firing in the 1st round, we expect him to put up at least 32 PPG in the series and hit a lot of big shots along the way. Shai and Gallo are gonna be huge X factors for this Thunder team, if they’re able to knock down their shots and let CP3 facilitate I expect to see a very tight series.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Houston Rockets
The Rockets starting 5 are what make them go, and more importantly what led them to the #4 seed. They have the best player in the series in James Harden who averaged 34.3 PPG and 7.5 APG throughout the entire year and assuming Russ is back by game 3 they’ll have the two best starters in the series. They obviously are going to be playing small ball so rebounding will be a huge factor here but if they can put a body on Steven Adams I think they’ll win the first minutes of the game.
Overall Depth: Oklahoma City Thunder
This shouldn’t be a shock to most, the rockets are only going to run 8-9 guys in the rotation during round 1. The Thunder have at least 10 guys that will see some minutes and guys like Nerlens Noel, Dennis Schroeder, Darius Bazely are gonna have a huge impact for this OKC second unit. Bazely averaged 13 PPG and 6.3 REB in bubble play and can be a huge key to success for Oklahoma City.They have a lot of young guys off the bench eager to make a name for themselves and I'm excited to see this second unit in the playoffs.
Ryan's Series Pick: Houston in 7
Vince's Series Pick: OKC in 7
Patrick Series Pick: Houston in 7
Eastern Conference Round 1:
Giannis and company locked up the number one seed in the East and pretty much got the closest thing to a first round bye. The Magic won't be able to score vs the Bucks great defense and they won’t be able to defend the Bucks great offense which will make it very hard to win a game let alone four. The Orlando Magic have talent on the roster especially with Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic who will need to have a monster of a series for the Magic to have any chance to win. The Bucks on the other hand are fully equipped to make a deep run in these playoffs. Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe have been playing nice since the NBA restarted its season which could help Giannis stay fresh, which is a scary sight for the rest of the league.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Milwaukee Bucks
All I really need to say is that the Bucks have the reigning MVP in Giannis Antetokounmpo. Bledsoe and Middleton are two of the most undervalued players in the game who are averaging a combined 35.8 PPG, 10.8 RPG and 9.7 APG.
Overall Depth: Milwaukee Bucks
George Hill is still a pretty good piece off the bench and Donte DiVincenzo is starting to really come into his potential as a scorer and ball handler. Nothing about the Bucks bench gets you excited but they are all solid and stick to their roles. Guys like Ilyasova, Robin Lopez and Marvin Williams can come in and give you great minutes and maintain a lead when you need to spell Brook Lopez and Giannis.
Ryan’s Series Pick: Bucks in 4
Vince’s Series Pick: Bucks in 4
Patrick Series Pick: Bucks in 4
The Nets came into this NBA restart after losing a ton of players and still ended up going 5-3 in the Bubble. Caris Levert has been playing great basketball as of late and, even against a good Raptors defense, I don't see him slowing down. Levert will need help though and that's where things get a little tough. Jarrett Allen has had a double- double in 4 games with 8 total blocks but after him and Joe Harris who has been shooting the ball well it gets very unreliable. The Toronto Raptors are the favorites in this series after going 7-1 in the Bubble. The Raptors defense was the best in Orlando and it was only holding teams to 101.6 PPG while the Nets were scoring at will with 6 straight games of 115 or more which was the longest in Franchise history. The Raptors defense will be the key for them in this series and they can not overlook the Nets who know they won't be expected to win.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Toronto Raptors
Marc Gasol looks fresh after the time off and is playing great. Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry have shown that they deserve respect after Kawhi left and both All-Stars have been nothing short of great and against the Nets you can confidently say they will keep it going.
Overall Depth: Toronto Raptors
Van Vleet, Powell, Ibaka, and Hollis Jefferson alone can beat the Nets. I really like the Raptors bench and how it compliments the starting roster.
Ryan’s Series Pick: Raptors in 5
Vince’s Series Pick: Raptors in 5
Patrick Series Pick: Raptors in 4
76ers Guard Ben Simmons will miss the Playoffs with a knee injury he suffered recently and Joel Embiid has also missed time due to injury. Philly would be a popular pick in these playoffs but they can’t seem to stay healthy at the same time. Embiid will do a lot of damage vs the Celtics front court but outside of Him, Harris and Horford I just don't think they can get it done in a 7 game series. On the other hand the Celtics are healthy and with young studs Jayson Tatum and Jaylon Brown they are ready to show they belong in the conversation with the league's best. Kemba Walker has been limited since coming back from a knee injury with averaging 13.5 ppg and 3.4 appg in about 24 minutes but if he can be the player he was before the injury the Celtics will be a tough team to beat.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Boston Celtics
The Celtics lineup is the same as the one they rolled out before the NBA paused play in mid March. It’s one of my favorite lineups in the league if all are healthy and are capable of going deep in games and playing good enough defense to win. The biggest issue in this series is going to be to stop Embiid but even if they only slow him down the rest of their team can easily lock down the rest of the 76ers roster.
Overall Depth: Boston Celtics
Marcus Smart is a defensive stud and can lock down almost anyone in the league. I expect him to shadow Tobias Harris for most of this series. After Smart there isn’t much else on the Celtics bench beside Enes Kanter and hungry young players who can come on in short bursts and give you some production and keep you afloat.
Ryan’s Series Pick: 76ers in 7
Vince’s Series Pick: Celtics in 6
Patrick Series Pick: Celtics in 5
Pacers guard T.J Warren has been playing out of his mind in the Bubble and gets to go up against Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat in one of the best first round matchups this season. Pacers are without star forward Domantas Sabonis which is the reason T.J Warren was inserted into the starting lineup. Warren has scored 186 points in 6 games which is good for 31 ppg. I like the Pacers a lot this season and with Victor Oladipo changing his mind and deciding to play in the restart it gives Indiana another legit scorer and go to option for their offense. The Miami Heat went 3-5 in the bubble but they played much better than that record indicates. Adebayo is a legit bigman who can beat you in the post and handle the ball as well. Kendrick Nunn and Duncan Robinson haven’t gotten much going but I expect that to change. The Heat are a deep team and could even threaten for the Eastern Conference crown.
Starting Lineup Advantage: Miami Heat
I believe Nunn and Robinson will get it going and average a combined 35 Ppg in this series. As well as Warren has been playing I don't think he can slow down Butler and as Turner vs Adebayo will be a fun matchup to watch I just don't see Turner coming out on top.
Overall Depth: Miami Heat
A young team going into the playoffs would normal scare me but the Heat have players on that bench who have had a ton of experience in big games with Iguodala, Crowder, Olynyk and Meyers Leonard
Comments