In The Scope: Playoff Frenzy in the Eastern Conference
Some things to look for, as well as my predictions, regarding each NBA playoff series in the Eastern Conference.
The Playoff Frenzy has officially arrived to the NBA. A unique state of being, the Frenzy throws 16 teams in the mix for a championship in the wake of the ever-growing popular play-in tournament, which over the past couple years has acted as a perfect appetizer for the remaining seven-game series’ that will determine the 2022 NBA champion.
With hard fought wins in the final play-in games by Atlanta and New Orleans, the playoff matches across the league are set. Here are some things to look for, as well as my predictions, regarding each series in the Eastern Conference.
Atlanta Hawks vs Miami Heat – Coming off an impressive two-game winning streak to clear the play-in tournament, Trae Young and the Hawks have a chance to defeat the best in the East. Averaging 28 points and 10 assists a game, Ice Trae will be a tough defensive assignment for the Heat, but Miami has its own playoff-tested challenger at the point in Kyle Lowry, who is known for his perimeter defense. Aside from the battle at the “1,” the Heat have better talent and coaching on all cylinders, and we all know Jimmy Butler is a different player come playoff time. The Hawks will put up a good fight, but I expect the Heat to win the series 4-2.
Toronto Raptors vs Philadelphia 76ers – The pride of the ‘6’ is crossing the Canadian border to play the Sixers, there may not be enough love to go around in the City of Brotherly Love. Toronto surged through much of the season’s second half behind the leadership of Rockford, Ill. native Fred Van Fleet, former Most Improved Player Pascal Siakam and rookie of the year candidate Scottie Barnes. With that combined talent on both ends of the floor, head coach Nick Nurse has the weapons to solidify a winning plan to stop the dynamic duo of this season’s potential MVP Joel Embiid and James Harden.
Thanks to the COVID protocols in Canada, the Sixers’ unvaccinated defensive specialist Matisse Thybulle will miss half of the series. Pay attention to the coaching of Nurse and his counterpart Doc Rivers. Rivers is a champion, but he has a bad recent history of not completing series that he should have won and Nurse is a schematic genius. Between Harden’s history of not living up to his potential in playoff games down the stretch combined with Rivers’ recent coaching history, expect the Raptors to out-duel the Sixers, 4-2.
Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks – The Windy City is back in playoff mode for the first time since the 3 Alphas experiment (Dwyane Wade, Jimmy Butler and Rajon Rondo) petered out in 2017.
The Bulls season has had moments of struggle but its mostly been a pleasure to see a slight resurrection of the franchise, featuring impeccable play from the Bulls dynamic duo on DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine along with the emergence of Ayo Dosunmu. However, LaVine’s less-than completely mobile knee has played a major role in his game in the second half of the season, and the Bulls lack of consistency doesn’t help outside of injuries.
Chicago is as close to having its full roster than its had at any point this season. Everyone is for the most part is back healthy for this stretch, save Lonzo Ball, who remains a significant loss to the Bulls’ potential perimeter defense and in this series, as assistance in stopping the Bucks’ Big 3 of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kris Middleton and Jrue Holiday.
In a contract year, Coby White, who is scoring 13 points off the bench and shooting 38 percent from three, shouldbe the X-factor in keeping the Bulls afloat offensively. I will look to see if the Bulls fight every game to give themselves a chance to win in this series. They’ll need to take this battle deathly serious as the defending champs are hungrier than ever. The Bucks will devour the Bulls with a gentleman’s sweep, 4-1.
Brooklyn Nets vs Boston Celtics – Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving are arguably the most skilled offensive duo in the NBA’s history. Irving dropped 34 points in a near-perfect game to secure the Nets’ playoffs hopes in their play-in game against Cleveland. Kyrie will return to another old stomping ground through this series, his chances at out-doing the Celtics will provide great theater if not some of Irving’s greatest performances to date. On top of Kyrie’s potential dynamism, rumors arecirculating that newly acquired Ben Simmons could be available for the Nets as soon as Game 4 in Brooklyn.
But the Celtics will be no push-over, they’ve arguably been the best team in the league since the All-Star break and feature a nice 1-2 punch of their own in all-stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to combat the Nets’ explosive offense. The on-ball battle between defensive player of the year candidate Marcus Smart and Irving will be one to monitor. Celtics head coach Ime Udoka has brought back winning vibes in the city of Boston, but you can never bet against champions, and Brooklyn has two of them leading the way. I’m going with the Nets winning in seven games, 4-3.
Joshua M. Hicks is a senior writer for WARR Media and host of the “In The Scope” Podcast