NBA PLAYOFF PREVIEW AND PREDICTIONS
NBA / Basketball
Written by Eddie Huband
Source (Background Photos): Getty Images
Play-In Tournament Predictions
East
7 seed - Brooklyn Nets
8 seed - Atlanta Hawks
The Nets should easily dispatch the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 7/8 game. The 9/10 game between Atlanta and Charlotte is a toss-up, but I’ll go with the more proven Trae Young over LaMelo Ball in a matchup of young stars. In the subsequent 8/9 game, I just don’t see this Cavs team having enough in the tank with all the injuries they’ve faced.
West
7 seed - Minnesota Timberwolves
8 seed - LA Clippers
The Wolves have been solid all season and should be able to beat the Clippers at home, who are trying to integrate Paul George and Norm Powell into the fold after long stints on the injury list. Fear not though Clipper fans, your team will likely handle whoever wins the 9/10 game between New Orleans and San Antonio.
East first-round predictions
The case for Miami
They aren’t the sexiest team in the East, but Miami has been steady all year long, combining team play with a stingy defence to earn home-court through the first three rounds. The Heat have a ton of tough-minded guards to throw at Trae Young that will have the ability to wear him down over the course of a series.
Miami has recovered nicely from the Jimmy Butler/Erik Spoelstra fiasco on the bench a few weeks back to finish the year winning 6 of their last 7 games. If they play their patented brand of tough-minded defence and unselfish basketball, it will take a smart and disciplined team to knock them off. Neither of these is the best adjectives to describe this Atlanta group.
The case for Atlanta
The Hawks do have talent. This year has been a bit of a mess defensively, but they have most of the core intact from last year’s run, and maybe they can find a way to tap into that level of play once again.
Let’s be real though, if Atlanta wants a chance in this one, Trae is going to have to be the best player on the court. He’s certainly capable. Young was unstoppable on offence this year, averaging 28.4 ppg while shooting over 38 percent from three.
We’ve seen what he can do if he gets hot in a playoff series too, just ask Knicks and Sixers fans.
Prediction
Trae is good enough to get a game by himself, but this should be easy pickings for the East’s top team. Miami in 5.
The case for Boston
The C’s have been the best defensive team in the league for four months now, and they’ll hopefully be getting defensive anchor Robert Williams back at some point during this series. Jason Tatum represents a real end-of-game option that can go toe to toe with Kevin Durant, and Boston has a group of tough guards that will be busy trying to handle Kyrie Irving.
Brooklyn has the best player in the series, but the advantage of depth, continuity, chemistry and defence easily goes to Boston. If they can prevent KD from going mental, they’ll be in good shape.
The case for Brooklyn
It’s pretty simple; if Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are at their best, they can win any game or series against anyone at any time. The Nets are 36-19 with Durant on the court, and though Boston has a great defence (and I mean GREAT), it’s still a scary sight looking across the court and seeing number 35 in the opposing uniform in a big
playoff game.
Brooklyn has the advantage at the top of the roster, and both Irving and Durant are going to have to be special for them to win the series. They’ve both proven in the past that they can be up to the challenge.
Prediction
My respect (and fear) for KD’s game is immense, but I’m going with the Celts’ defence as the difference in a very competitive series. Boston in 7.
The case for Milwaukee
Gianni Antetekounmpo shouldn’t have any issues getting to the rim at will against a Bulls team that’s atrocious on defence, particularly protecting the basket. The Bucks have been somewhat pedestrian this season by their own standards, but they lucked out in this first-round matchup against a squad that’s been mediocre for half the season now, and this should be a nice get-right matchup before they go up against the big boys in the East.
Milwaukee has a championship pedigree, more talent, and is better defensively. In other words, this could be a short series for Bulls fans.
The case for Chicago
Despite their struggles, the Bulls still have two elite scorers on the wing. DeMar DeRozan has been outstanding this year averaging 27.9 ppg on 50 percent from the field. He can get any shot he wants in big spots.
Once you get past Khris Middleton, the Bucks are pretty void of quality defenders on the wing. If DeRozan and Zach LaVine are both clicking at the same time it could pose a major problem for the likes of Grayson Allen and the corpse of Wes Matthews.
This is a long shot, but the Bulls have the perimeter talent to make this a series if things break right, especially if they get a little help from big man Nikola Vucevic, who's been DOA all year.
Prediction
This Bulls team is heading in the absolute wrong direction, especially on defence, which is a problem when you’re going up against the defending champs. Milwaukee in 4.
The case for Philly
Two words…Joel Embiid
When he’s at his best, which he has been for this entire season, the MVP candidate is the most dominant big man the league has seen since Shaq. From a matchup standpoint, Toronto has virtually no one who comes close to being capable of guarding him one on one. Prayers up to Khem Birch and Precious Achiuwa
If Embiid can impose his will and get Toronto’s frontcourt inconsistent foul trouble, it could be a shorter series than some are anticipating. Nick Nurse will throw double and triple teams Embiid’s way constantly, in an attempt to make anyone else beat them, including James Harden, who the Raps will gladly let shoot as much as he pleases if it gets the ball out of Embiid’s hands.
With players in the Embiid stratosphere though, sometimes schemes don’t make much of a difference.
The Raps can also be offensively challenged, they rank in the bottom five in the league in offensive efficiency and field goal percentage. That won’t be helped by Embiid’s rim presence on defence.
The case for Toronto
What the Raptors lack in size at the centre position, they make up for in size everywhere else. This is a squad filled with 6’10 athletes who run around, crash the boards, create turnovers, and just wreak havoc in general.
Toronto has a better supporting cast than Philly, which is helped even more by the fact that Matisse Thybulle will be unable to play in road games in the series due to his vaccination status. They also have a matchup problem of their own. Pascal Siakam has been on an absolute tear the last two months, and Philly has no one that really can guard him.
Embiid is too slow laterally, and Tobias Harris isn’t exactly a defensive juggernaut. Remember, Siakam torched the Sixers for a 37-point triple-double when the teams met in Toronto just two weeks ago.
Toronto’s terrible offensive efficiency numbers mean they’ll need Siakam to be at his best down the stretch of games to offset the dry spells. If their length can make things difficult for Embiid and Siakam continues his strong play, then the Raps have a real shot at an upset here.
Prediction
Embiid scares the heck out of me, but there’s a reason why the Raptors have been the proverbial ‘team no one wants to play for the last month. Toronto in 7.
West first-round predictions
The case for Phoenix
The Suns have been far and away from the best team in the NBA this year, and there’s no reason to think that trend won’t continue in the postseason. Devin Booker has become Kobe-light in many respects, while Chris Paul continues to carve up opposing defences in the pick and roll in an incredibly efficient way.
They have a ton of wings that can shoot the ball, and play defence, and Deandre Ayton is one of the best defensive big men in the conference. This is a complete basketball team that’s clearly on a mission, and the idea of them losing in the first round is frankly hard to imagine.
The case for LA
The only shot the Clippers have in this one is if Kawhi Leonard makes a miraculous comeback from the knee surgery that’s kept him out all season. There have been rumblings that he’s doing some three-on-three work, but nothing that indicates he’ll be ready to play in a playoff game any time soon.
The Clips did get Paul George back along with Norman Powell, which certainly helps their chances in this series if Leonard is unavailable. But this Phoenix team is an absolute juggernaut, and PG would have to get red hot to give them a chance.
Prediction
Phoenix isn’t here to make any friends. Suns in 4.
The case for Memphis
The Grizz have been eating everyone up all season (no pun intended) en route to a 56- win campaign. Ja Morant has been lights out, but the crazy thing is they haven’t missed a beat without him over the past month. They have a great supporting cast of Dillon Brooks, Desmond Bane, Jaren Jackson Jr. and a bunch of tough wings that get after it.
If Morant comes back as the player he’s been all season, Memphis definitely has the talent advantage in this matchup. They also have a raucous home crowd and a potential coach of the year candidate running the show in Taylor Jenkins. The Grizz best bet to win this series is if they continue doing what they’ve done all year; play hard, play together, and play with energy.
The case for Minnesota
This will be a good chance for some of Minnesota’s young pups to get some quality playoff reps, and they have the talent to potentially make things interesting. Former #1 pick Anthony Edwards seems to be rounding into form again after dealing with nagging injuries for a long stretch after the All-Star break.
Karl-Anthony Towns has had one of his best seasons as a pro, particularly on defence. The roadmap for the Wolves winning is if he and Edwards can hit some shots and they can steal a game early on in the series. Then the pressure of being a #2 seed expected to win could start to build on the inexperienced Grizzlies’ shoulders.
Prediction
This one isn’t a slam dunk, but the Grizz have earned my confidence with their fantastic regular season. Memphis in 6.
The case for Golden State
The Warriors still have a ton of championship pedigree on the roster, and if Steph Curry is able to return to form fairly quickly from the injury that sidelined him for the last month, it definitely bodes well for them.
Jordan Poole is the wild card for this team. With Klay Thompson still working his way back into form from the long layoff, Poole has become the team’s most dangerous scorer on the roster not named Steph.
Denver doesn’t have a great guard rotation, so that’s where the advantage clearly lies for Golden State. If Curry, Poole and Thompson light it up offensively, Denver won’t have the backcourt depth to keep up.
The case for Denver
Nikola Jokic is going to be the league MVP again, and for good reason. The dude does everything for this team. He brings the ball up, anchors the defence, and is the primary offensive initiator. His numbers are absurd, and he’s absolutely capable of winning a series all by himself with the way he can score the ball and simultaneously lift the games of everyone around him.
Draymond Green will likely draw the defensive assignment against the Joker, and he’s actually a pretty good choice if you had to pick someone in the league to guard him, in theory anyway.
In practice though, Draymond will probably get helplessly torched like every other player in the league trying to defend that magician. He’s that good, and the Warriors have to take this team seriously.
Prediction
Jokic is amazing, but he just doesn’t have enough help in this one. Golden State in 6.
The case for Dallas
I was all ready to anoint the Mavs as the dark horse to win the West, and then Luka Doncic went down with a calf strain in the last game of the season.
They’re saying he should be ready to go, but we’ll see if he’s anything close to being 100 percent. It didn’t look promising when the injury happened.
If Luka is healthy enough to gut it out, Dallas poses a matchup nightmare for Utah because of his high usage rate relentless pick and roll attack. He should be able to extend Rudy Gobert away from the basket on a regular basis, which would completely break the Jazz defensive scheme.
This is a ‘best player in the series’ argument. Assuming Luka is playing, Utah doesn’t have the size on the wing to slow him down.
The case for Utah
As I mentioned, Luka’s injury status could drastically change the complexion of this series.
Even if he’s hurt though, if the Jazz is going to take advantage they’ll need their two best players to step up. Donovan Mitchell is an elite offensive talent, but he’s shown a tendency to make poor decisions and force things offensively in previous playoff appearances.
Rudy Gobert should have a distinct advantage over the Mavs average frontcourt, but he isn’t exactly the type of player offensively that can expose those kinds of matchups. Utah will need to find a way to get Gobert involved offensively against the likes of Dwight Powell and Maxi Kleber.
Prediction
If Luka’s healthy enough, Dallas should have the advantage here. I also have no confidence in the Utah Jazz given their recent playoff track record. Dallas in 6.
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