After watching the opening debut of the playoffs yesterday, I finally think that I have a more solid understanding of how each team is going to play. The day this post goes up, the teams that didn’t play yesterday, will have played today. So let me get started by showing you how the bracket looks this year.
As many have said, there has never been this much depth in playoff history. And when I am talking depth, I am talking about the western conference. Look at the Phoenix Suns for instance. They were eliminated from the playoffs simply because they were in the west. Now lets take the Suns and put them in the Eastern Conference, suddenly they are the number 3 seed with their finishing record. The western conference is really where the main action is going to be, this is also why it is very hard for me to predict western conference match ups. The East may not be as powerful as the West, but it does bring some young and upcoming teams that should make the Eastern Conference a little bit more relevant in a few years. The Raptors and the Wizards are young teams that show great potential. Heck, even the Bobcats looks sensational. Although for me, if any team has a chance to beat the Heat, it would have to be the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets found themselves late in the season and they look amazing. Jason Kidd has done a great head coaching job. The Nets even beat the Heat 4 times during the regular season.
Alright so now let me start doing the predictions.
I would like to point out that the Thunder was the only team that won at home yesterday. The Nets and the Warriors beat their opponents on away territory. Today the Heat and The Spurs beat their opponents at home, the Blazers, Rockets, Bulls, and Wizards have yet to play and I will not be able to say anything before the post goes up.
Predictions
Miami Heat vs Charlotte Bobcats- There is no doubt the returning champs are going to win this series, but I would like to point out that the Bobcats looked really good today, the Heat underestimated them in my opinion. I think the Heat will put away the Cats in 5 games. Yes, I do believe that the Bobcats can defeat the Heat for at least one game. 4-1 Heat
OKC Thunder vs Memphis Grizzlies- Everyone think that this match up is going to go down to the wire, 7 game series. After watching the Thunder beat the Grizzlies yesterday, I think that this series should be short and sweet. Memphis lacks offense, while the Thunder plays great offense, and there defense was stellar yesterday. The team recorded 10 blocks! So my prediction is 4-0 Thunder
LA Clippers Vs Golden State Warriors- Probably the most entertaining match up of the playoffs. These two teams HATE each other. These games are going to have its fair share of technical fouls. Both teams are amazing and fun to watch. This is more of a offensive battle, and to me, once the Warriors get hot, they can put of 30 points in a quarter. Yesterday we saw Blake Griffin almost do nothing, he was struggling on the floor, and he let his emotions get in his way. Chris Paul tried to make up for the slack but the Warriors were able to pull it off in the end, beating the Clippers on the CLIPPERS home court. Huge game for the Warriors and I think this series will come down to the wire but Golden State will prevail in the end. 4-3 Golden State
Brooklyn Nets Vs Toronto Raptors- The Raptors had a great regular season locking up the third seed. Unfortunately they had to start the playoffs by playing the Nets. If the Nets would have started the regular season better, they would have easily been the second or third seed. The Raptors are a young squad that has a bright future, but right now, the Nets are going to win. 4-1 Nets
San Antonio Spurs Vs Dallas- The two squads from Texas battle it out. The Mavs showed late in the season that they could really ball. I think that if they were the seventh seed, they could have maybe beaten the Thunder, but they are not the 7th seed. They are playing a team called the Spurs. The same Spurs that made it to the championship last year, the same OLD (pun intended) Spurs that locked up the best record in the NBA. Mavs will give it their best, but the Spurs are winning- 4-2 Spurs
Indiana Pacers Vs Atlanta Hawks- The Pacer may be the number one seed in the East, but the way they have been playing towards the end of the regular season had me thinking that they should not be in the Playoffs. The Pacers offense is non-existent, some of their players are having off-court issues, the focus is not their. They even lost their first game of the Playoffs at home against the Hawks. who by the way, has a losing record! I have lost all hope in the Pacers for this year so I am awarding the Hawks the series win. 4-3 Hawks.
Houston Rockets Vs Portland Trail Blazers- Another interesting match up that should be fun filled. The Rockets and their Star James Harden are legitimate title contenders. The Blazers had a great star to the season, and ended on a pretty good note. I like the blazers more than the Rockets, but I just don’t think the Blazer can beat them. I think this series will be 7 games,and that last game will be decided by the Stars. If Lamarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard get hot, then the Blazers can win. If Harden and Dwight Howard get hot, then the Rockets will win. Since Harden is a little bit more consistent-Unfortunetly, I am going with my gut reaction. 4-3 Portland
Washington Wizards Vs Chicago Bulls- The Bulls amaze me every year. Regardless of the players they lose they seem to always win games with their gritty defense and tough passion. The Bulls lost both Derrick Rose (again) and Luol Deng and still locked the 4th spot in the East. Their opponent is not mediocre though. The Wizards have stunned everyone this year. Their back court combo of Bradly Beal and John Wall is full of energy, speed, power. The Chicago Bulls can bully the Wizards with their defense, but there is no way they can fully shut down Wall and Beal. The Bulls also struggle on the offensive end, they do not really have any single player that can step up their game of quick offense. I love me some Bulls but the Wizards are going to win. 4-2 Wizards.
These are my playoff predictions! I will be writing another post on my second round predictions! The Playoffs are here and I am pumped!