The NBA regular season has ended, and every team has played its 82-game season. Only 16 teams remain for one objective… to reach the NBA Finals. 8 teams in each conference will compete to reach the Finals.
No. 1 Denver Nuggets (53-29) Vs No. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves (42-40)
The Denver Nuggets are coming into this series with the best record in the West. They’re also coming into this series with the Timberwolves a little banged up, especially after a long season. Nikola Jokic is in the MVP race again after having yet another amazing season. Joker will be trying to continue that as they host the Timberwolves who are banged up themselves coming into this series. Minnesota will be without Jaden McDaniels (Hand) and Naz Reid (Wrist) out indefinitely. On the season the Nuggets and Timberwolves series is 2-2 as the Timberwolves roster looks different from those games during the season. With that being said the Timberwolves will have to make sure that Joker doesn’t go off by having Rudy Gobert or Karl-Anthony Towns on him all series on switches. If they can contain Nikola and make someone else beat them this could be a good series for the Timberwolves. Anthony Edwards will need to try and slow down Jamal Murray and make sure that he has his game going as well on both ends. If Anthony Edwards takes that next leap in this series and has a good two games where he’s the best player on the court Minnesota will be in good shape. Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns will be spectacular in this series.
The Denver Nuggets have all the talent in the world and they have a lot of length as well. You have Nikola and Jamal to worry about but Michael Porter Jr and Aaron Gordon will also make things tough on you. If the Nuggets play their brand of basketball in this series and get the big men of Minnesota in foul trouble it could get ugly fast. Nikola is a problem for any team and if he has his scoring, passing, and rebounding all going he can be a nightmare to defend because of the versatility he possesses. Joker is the head of the snake and if he has it going in Denver it could be a very long series or short series depending on the Timberwolves counter. The Nuggets have the size and length to match up with the Timberwolves but it will come down to making the right plays in this series.
Prediction: Timberwolves Win the Series (4-2)
No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies (51-31) Vs No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers (43-39)
The Los Angeles Lakers are peaking at the right time and it’s been a collective effort. This team is loaded from top to bottom now after their moves at the trade deadline and can make some serious noise in the playoffs. In order for them to do that they have to disrupt the parade inside Ja’s city first. The Lakers won the season series 2-1 and both teams didn’t look like how they do today heading into this playoff series. It’s going to be a tough task to stop LeBron James and Anthony Davis especially when they have a true chance to win another championship. LeBron has been a complete monster these past couple of weeks and looks like he has his legs back under him from missing that time with injury. The Grizzlies will have to throw multiple bodies at LeBron to slow him down and if that doesn’t work it could get ugly. LeBron is pass first but he also knows how to get to his spots and knows how to get to the line. The Grizzlies will need to slow him down and hope that they can contain Anthony Davis with Jaren Jackon Jr if they want a chance at this series. Austin Reeves has been playing amazing basketball and his plus/minus is unreal showing his impact on the game. The Lakers depth is what will get them this win in this series because any night it could be a role player that can contribute to the win like a DLO or Schroder. The Lakers defend at a high level as well and that stems from their coach Darvin Ham so this could be a grind-it-out type of series for sure.
Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies always want the smoke and let it be known they not ducking either. If Memphis wants to win this series they will need a 1st Team All NBA caliber series from Ja Morant. Ja will need to be the best player on the court on both ends. We know he’s electric with the ball and he can create for his teammates but he has to be the selfish one in this series. Morant will need to lead them in points and assists while making some of those hustle plays as well. Ja Morant can’t do it alone he will need Bane to show up in this series and make a huge impact with his shot-making ability. The Lakers aren’t a team that you can take lightly and they know that so trying to get them in foul trouble will help the Grizzlies as well. The Memphis Grizzlies have depth on their team as well but they don’t have as much experience as the Lakers do in the playoffs so it will come down to who makes the best decisions with no errors. Memphis will need to play big inside and Davis will be a nightmare matchup without Steven Adams in the lineup.
Prediction: Lakers Win the Series (4-2)
No. 3 Sacramento Kings (48-34) vs No. 6 Golden State Warriors (44-38)
The Sacramento Kings shocked the world this season getting the 3rd seed in the Western Conference this season. For that great season, they won the prize of playing against the defending world champion Golden State Warriors who are coming off a 150+ point performance against the Blazers. This has been a special season for the Kings and they have a special dynamic duo with Fox & Sabonis I just believe they ran into the wrong team this season in the standings. Fox has taken his game to another level and so has Sabonis but the Kings don’t have the firepower to keep up with the Warriors on the offensive end. The Kings can pull the upset if they can control the pace of the game and if they can force the Warriors into some tough shots throughout the series. The defense will be key for the Kings in this series because you don’t want to get into a shooting contest with the Splash Brothers. The Kings have Fox who is known to get in the passing lanes and get the steals so he will need to do that and more while Sabonis commands the boards in the paint. The Kings will need some huge help from the role players like Keegan Murray, Trey Lyles, and Malik Monk if they will pull this off. The inexperience is there but anything is possible in the NBA.
The Golden State Warriors are the defending champions and they have the pedigree every year to win the whole thing. That pedigree is Steph, Klay, and Draymond as long as they are healthy this team always has a chance no matter the situation. During the season the Warriors went 3-1 against the Kings and made it look easy I’m expecting the same in this series. The Warriors will be too much for the Kings as they have mismatches all over the court and it will be tough to knock the champions out. Not much to say in this prediction because I simply believe in the Warriors and their championship DNA.
Prediction: Warriors win the Series (4-1)
No. 4 Phoenix Suns (45-37) Vs Los Angeles Clippers (44-38)]
This series would have been the best out of the Western Conference for sure but the injury to Paul George derailed that dream matchup. The Suns are coming into this at full strength ready to make a statement against the Clippers. So far in the short term the Suns are undefeated with Kevin Durant in the lineup with Booker/Paul/Ayton. This could be a special playoff for the Suns if they can make it work against the Clippers. Now the Clippers aren’t a pushover they have some dogs over there as well with Westbrook and Leonard. This is gonna be a great series but the Phoenix Sunds have so much firepower in their lineup that the Clippers might not be able to handle it without Paul George. The season series is out the window as both teams look different so this will be a case of who really wants it. The Clippers would need a huge boost from Russell Westbrook because if he can turn into that MVP Russ that would be huge in this series to help Kawhi out. Kawhi will need to get back into his Spurs mode and really put this Clippers team on his back to have a chance in this series. Kawhi vs KD will be must-see TV and we will be ready for it. The Clippers have the depth as well in this matchup so I see them getting a couple of games because of that alone.
The Phoenix Suns just look like a well-oiled machine right now and it will be tough to stop their starters from getting to their spots and doing what they want. Durant and Booker are a walking bucket and both can give you 40 per night. If Ayton can hold his own in the paint and help out with being that dominant big then this could be a very quick series because he’s the X-Factor for sure. Chris Paul has the IQ and skills to get it done as the Clippers don’t really have anyone that can contain him so it will be interesting to see if this Suns team is Finals Ready in my opinion and they look SCARY.
Prediction: Suns Win the Series (4-2)
Photo Credit: (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images) (Jane Tyska/Digital First Media/East Bay Times via Getty Images) (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
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