The NBA playoffs are here! Thank God. Now this maybe a controversial take, but I look forward to round 1 more than any other round. All day Saturday and Sunday we have an NBA playoff game on; from 10am PT to 8pm PT. Sorry family and sorry responsibilities.
We have some great matchups to start this playoff run and I decided to go over to the Eastern Conference first – so let’s take a look at my NBA playoffs round 1 predictions for the East.
Not to brag, but last year I went 6/8 on my first round predictions including nailing the amount of games the winner would win in on 5 of those 6 predictions. Not bad. We’ll see how I eventually fair this year.
(1) Detroit Pistons vs. (8) Orlando Magic
I’m certain all Detroit fans are pleased with this matchup. Of all the 4 play-in teams, Orlando was always the least likely to cause any problems in a 7-game series. Their offence is slow and stagnant, and their star players just seem to rarely have efficient nights. Their low shooting numbers are highlighted with their 53.1% effective field goal percentage (the 25th lowest in the league) and there is only one playoff team with a worse offensive rating across the season, the Portland Trailblazers. Not the stats you want from a playoff team. When it comes to clutch time, there’s no one on Orlando who will be able to match the offensive production of Cade Cunningham. Plus, with the Cade injury late in the season, the Pistons solved many questions about how they can run a smooth offence when Cunningham goes to the bench. Perhaps a blessing in disguise.
Prediction: Pistons in 5
(2) Boston Celtics vs. (7) Philadelphia 76ers
Much like Detroit fans, I’m sure almost every Celtic fan was routing for the Magic to pull out the win over Philadelphia in this weeks battle for the 7-seed, unfortunately for them, Paolo, Franz, and that terrible Magic offence couldn’t get it done. Shocker. As a non-Celtic fan, I’m glad the 76ers came out with the win as I think it makes for a much more interesting matchup. The team that was supposed to be on a gap year but look like legit title contenders versus the team whose lineup and decision making over the last few years has been rather unpredictable to say the least. As of right now, Boston is my favourite to come out as Eastern champs, so obviously I will be picking them. However, the explosive backcourt of VJ and Maxey will cause problems for Boston as they really only play a 2-guard rotation. Derrick White can only guard one of these guys at a time and he is currently struggling to shoot the ball well on the offensive end. White will be the X-Factor for the C’s. With all that said, the combination of the championship pedigree of Boston, Embiid’s health in doubt, and Brown & Tatum’s overall ability should propel Boston to a win.
Prediction: Celtics in 6
(3) New York Knicks vs. (6) Atlanta Hawks
By far my favourite first round matchup in the East. Can Jalen Brunson exorcise the ghost of Trae Young? Or will the latter’s spirit live on through Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker? Those are tough questions to answer. You have the win-now-and-ready, star-studded, best 1-5 in the East New York Knicks hosting the hottest team since early March, defensive ball-hawks (pun intended) Atlanta Hawks. I see a very similar repeat of last years first-round matchup for New York where they played the Detroit Pistons. A chippy series where Atlanta will hang around every game, however when it comes down to the clutch, there is no one I trust more with the ball in their hands in the Eastern conference than #11 Jalen Brunson. That plus the heavy pick-and-roll action with Towns, and the ability to call on OG and Bridges gives me the confidence in New York avoiding the upset.
Prediction: Knicks in 6
(4) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (5) Toronto Raptors
How happy are the Cavs that Atlanta fell out of the 5-seed on the final day of the regular season? Despite being much better than I originally thought they would be at the beginning of the season, Toronto is a much easier matchup for Cleveland. The current Cavs era with Mitchell/Allen/Mobley has been a consistent letdown in the playoffs since forming, and when you couple that with the addition of notorious playoff underperformer, James Harden, I don’t see how Cavs fans should expect anything different from this years team. I think Cleveland should expect to have some tough shooting nights going up against Scottie Barnes and this Toronto defence, but when it comes to clutch time, I expect the experience and offensive skillset of Mitchell and Harden to be too much for this Raptors team.
Prediction: Cavaliers in 6
—My Western conference predictions will be out tomorrow morning before the tipoff of Denver and Minnesota. Let me know your predictions for the Eastern conference first round matchups.
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