Re: 2021-2022 NBA Playoff Predictions
Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2022 8:09 am
Let's goooooooo!
WEST ROUND 1
Suns vs Pels: Suns in 4
Mavs vs Jazz: Jazz in 6
Warriors vs Nuggets: Warriors in 5
Grizz vs Wolves: Grizzlies in 5
WEST CONFERENCE SEMIS
Suns vs Jazz: Suns in 5
Warriors vs Grizz: Grizzlies in 7
WEST FINALS
Suns vs Grizzlies: Suns in 6
EAST ROUND 1
Heat vs Hawks: Heat in 4
76ers vs Raptors: 76ers in 7
Bucks vs Bulls: Bucks in 4
Celtics vs Nets: Celtics in 6
EAST CONFERENCE SEMIS
Heat vs 76ers: Heat in 7
Bucks vs Celtics: Bucks in 7
EAST FINALS
Heat vs Bucks: Bucks in 6
NBA FINALS
Suns vs Bucks (THE REMATCH): Suns in 7
Various thoughts:
- I think Luka's injury is going to doom the Mavs in the 1st round. Everybody hates on the Jazz, but they are still a solid team, and without Luka the Mavs will be extremely vulnerable and will have a dreadful time scoring against the Jazz defense.
- The hardest first-round series to me to predict are in the East, 76ers/Raptors and Celtics/Nets. I think the Raptors will be really tough for the Sixers to vanquish, but ultimately I'm going to go with playoff experience and "best player on the floor" as the 76ers' edge. For Celtics/Nets I think the Nets have a steep hill to climb out of, and the Celtics are playing amazingly well. KD and Kyrie are amazing, but the Celtics have good defenders, and I don't think I believe in Brooklyn's depth and durability. Wouldn't be surprised to see another KD injury.
- Going into further rounds, I am not sure how well the Heat will fare. They have a great team on paper, but they had a real mid-season lull. I don't think I can picture them going all the way to the NBA Finals. But when I look at them vs the Sixers, I do think they have enough depth and great defense and shooting that they'll be victorious. I feel like they'll have ways to neutralize fat Harden in that series.
- Looking at the later rounds in the West, I do think a Grizzlies / Warriors series will be really interesting. I bet almost everybody would pick the Warriors. The Grizz don't have the experience of going deep on a playoff run. But they have a ton of talent and depth and energy; they're actually a really scary team. And I think the Warriors are running on fumes to some degree. I went back and forth on this one but I'm ultimately going to go with the new blood and my belief in the ascendancy of Ja Morant. They'll be a tough WCF opponent but I think we're ultimately the better team.
- I think it's super likely that the NBA Finals will be a Suns/Bucks rematch. It's a bit bumpy to see the Bucks coming out of the East, but when I look at each series I just like the Bucks more. It'd be really interesting to see these two teams face off again. It could be the start of a real rivalry between us. I think we're much hungrier and want revenge for last year, but meanwhile they have the confidence boost that comes from having won it before; they know they can beat us. It would be really scary to face them again. But I want another crack at them. I think we can beat them if we're healthy. This really could be our year.
GO SUNS!
WEST ROUND 1
Suns vs Pels: Suns in 4
Mavs vs Jazz: Jazz in 6
Warriors vs Nuggets: Warriors in 5
Grizz vs Wolves: Grizzlies in 5
WEST CONFERENCE SEMIS
Suns vs Jazz: Suns in 5
Warriors vs Grizz: Grizzlies in 7
WEST FINALS
Suns vs Grizzlies: Suns in 6
EAST ROUND 1
Heat vs Hawks: Heat in 4
76ers vs Raptors: 76ers in 7
Bucks vs Bulls: Bucks in 4
Celtics vs Nets: Celtics in 6
EAST CONFERENCE SEMIS
Heat vs 76ers: Heat in 7
Bucks vs Celtics: Bucks in 7
EAST FINALS
Heat vs Bucks: Bucks in 6
NBA FINALS
Suns vs Bucks (THE REMATCH): Suns in 7
Various thoughts:
- I think Luka's injury is going to doom the Mavs in the 1st round. Everybody hates on the Jazz, but they are still a solid team, and without Luka the Mavs will be extremely vulnerable and will have a dreadful time scoring against the Jazz defense.
- The hardest first-round series to me to predict are in the East, 76ers/Raptors and Celtics/Nets. I think the Raptors will be really tough for the Sixers to vanquish, but ultimately I'm going to go with playoff experience and "best player on the floor" as the 76ers' edge. For Celtics/Nets I think the Nets have a steep hill to climb out of, and the Celtics are playing amazingly well. KD and Kyrie are amazing, but the Celtics have good defenders, and I don't think I believe in Brooklyn's depth and durability. Wouldn't be surprised to see another KD injury.
- Going into further rounds, I am not sure how well the Heat will fare. They have a great team on paper, but they had a real mid-season lull. I don't think I can picture them going all the way to the NBA Finals. But when I look at them vs the Sixers, I do think they have enough depth and great defense and shooting that they'll be victorious. I feel like they'll have ways to neutralize fat Harden in that series.
- Looking at the later rounds in the West, I do think a Grizzlies / Warriors series will be really interesting. I bet almost everybody would pick the Warriors. The Grizz don't have the experience of going deep on a playoff run. But they have a ton of talent and depth and energy; they're actually a really scary team. And I think the Warriors are running on fumes to some degree. I went back and forth on this one but I'm ultimately going to go with the new blood and my belief in the ascendancy of Ja Morant. They'll be a tough WCF opponent but I think we're ultimately the better team.
- I think it's super likely that the NBA Finals will be a Suns/Bucks rematch. It's a bit bumpy to see the Bucks coming out of the East, but when I look at each series I just like the Bucks more. It'd be really interesting to see these two teams face off again. It could be the start of a real rivalry between us. I think we're much hungrier and want revenge for last year, but meanwhile they have the confidence boost that comes from having won it before; they know they can beat us. It would be really scary to face them again. But I want another crack at them. I think we can beat them if we're healthy. This really could be our year.
GO SUNS!