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I’m a little late with my predictions for round 2, but I blame the league for allowing round 2 to start before round 1 is still going on. Therefore I thought I’d wait for every series to play game 1 (or in CLE/IND case, game 2) before making my predictions, that way I can get some reactions/overreactions in from the first game. Also, not for nothing, but I nailed my round 1 predictions (outside of MIN/LAL)! I picked 6 out of 8 winners correctly, all within one game of how many games it would take – 4 of those series I nailed perfectly. Therefore by the laws of the universe, these round 2 predictions will be abysmal. But give them a gander anyway and let me know your predictions too.

(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (4) Indiana Pacers

Woah! What a meltdown from the Cavs last night. I’ll never understand a team being unable to inbound the ball after a timeout. What did you draw up during that minute? You’re telling me that after all the practicing you do, one guy out of four can’t a yard of separation? Anyway, all credit to Tyrese Haliburton and Indiana – they’re in my opinion the hottest team in the league right now after catching fire in the last 30 games or so during the regular season. Also, not to discuss something of irrelevance but what happened to the Haliburton/Sabonis trade being perfectly balanced after the “light the beam season” 2 years ago? That conversation has quickly dissipated.

So before this series started, I probably would have said Cavs in 6. Here’s the major issue if you’re Cleveland, you’re down 0-2, you have to go on the road into a LOUD stadium, Garland, Mobley, and Hunter all have injuries, and you couldn’t get the job done even with Mitchell having a phenomenal game. I cannot see this Pacers team blowing this series lead. All in all, they’re too healthy, too confident, and play too fast for the Cavs to keep up. 64 wins and another disappointing postseason? Who will the Cavs blame this time if they’re unable to pull off this comeback?

Prediction: Pacers in 6

(2) Boston Celtics vs (3) New York Knicks

First of all, shoutout Chalamet for allegedly skipping the MET Gala with his supermodel girlfriend to watch his Knicks play a playoff game. One of us! One of us! Secondly, the Knicks were simply just tougher than Boston on Monday night. When overtime rolled around, New York seemed to be ready and up for the task, Boston on the other hand did not. Also, Boston yet again blew a big lead at home. I’m not sure what the psychology is behind this team, but last season they were ruthless at the TD Garden, going 37-4 in the regular season. This year they went 28-13. Furthermore, I have one massive quarrel with something Boston did last night. For what should have been the last shot in regulation, Boston did what every team seems to do in this situation these days and I cannot stand it! Give the ball to your best offensive guy (Tatum), switch him into a preferable matchup (Robinson), and dribble the ball until the final second before heaving a three as the clock winds down. It boils my blood. Just run a play and go get a good shot.

Anyway, I still think that the Celtics should take care of the Knicks. The problem is the next round. Holiday, Porzingis, and Brown are all banged up. Not only that, the hunger from last season’s Celtics has not been on display once at any point this season. And I, like many others, have been waiting for the switch to flip. If this lost doesn’t do that, then I can’t see them getting past either of Cleveland or Indiana at this point. Altogether though, I don’t trust New York’s offence, it’s too Brunson heavy, and that Detroit series was not a good look for them.

Prediction: Celtics in 6

(1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs (4) Denver Nuggets

This series is modern day basketball pornography. Two great teams going at it. The two frontrunners for MVP leading their respective teams against each other. Oh yeah. Game 1 was just beautiful. It was one of those where I refused to turn off my TV because Denver was just hanging around. My favourite thing about that finish was watching Westbrook bring up the ball full speed for the last possession. Will he turn it over? Will he chuck up an awful, heavily contested layup? Or maybe pull up from 3? No, he’ll make the right play. Just like a mail-man, he delivered. Also Jokic had a 42/22/6 game and no one really batted an eye. That’s simply how good he is. The way he is carrying this team, the way every time down the court he either gets a bucket or orchestrates an open shot for his teammate, it truly reminds me of 2018 LeBron (the best version of any player I’ve ever seen).

Going into this series I didn’t know what to expect. Like always, Jokic will need to go super mode for the Nuggets to have a chance, but more importantly his supporting cast will need to step up. Murray looks like he is starting to find his rhythm out there and Gordon has been super reliable so far his postseason. If those two can stay consistent, it’s up to MPJ and Russ to play smart out there and be a positive on the court. It can definitely be done, but my problem is that OKC are so much deeper. They have 11 guys they can play, whereas I’d be shocked if Denver went 7 deep. Denver has the experience and the best player in the world. OKC has the depth and the probable MVP. My heart says Denver as nothing would give me more joy than seeing the Joker get championship number two, cementing himself as top 10 all time. However, my brain says Oklahoma City thanks to their energy and defence. I’ve spent more time deciding on who to pick in this series than I did trying to pick my major in college.

Prediction: Thunder in 7

(6) Minnesota Timberwolves vs (7) Golden State Warriors

I was incredibly surprised by the result in game 1. I thought the Warriors would be too gassed from the Houston series and the quick turnaround that followed. Boy was I wrong. Golden State’s defence is seriously legit. They have held their opponent to less than 90 points in 3 of 8 games this postseason. It’s 2025, that should not be possible. Obviously the Timberwolves are in the midst of a literal historically bad 3 point shooting slump, which is a huge reason why they came up short in game 1, but I expect them to find their rhythm at some point.

I would expect the Warriors would have been my favourite after last nights win. However the loss of Steph Curry is obviously devastating. Reports are saying he will miss at least one week. It seems like it will be one of those injuries that he will only return from once they need him, like if they go down 3-2. With the type of injury Curry has, it seems like one of those where he won’t be fully healthy until the offseason, so even if he does return he will not be even close to 100%. Unfortunately, this is somewhat to be expected when you have such an old team. As much as I would love to see Steph back in a conference finals, I just don’t see it happening unless Minnesota can’t figure out the Warriors defence. I trust Chris Finch and Anthony Edwards to work their magic though.

Prediction: Timberwolves in 7