NBA 2nd Round Preview

One round of the NBA playoffs is in the books. So far it has been an interesting playoffs. Two sweeps took place in the opening round, Cleveland beat Detroit and San Antonio beat Memphis. Two series went five games, two went six and the final two in the East went seven games. So its been an up and down opening round. At the end of the day, the teams played out to the script, if you will, for the most part. The only team to pull off an upset, if you even want to call it that, was the 5th seed Portland Trail Blazers knocking off the 4th seed Los Angeles Clippers. Every other series went according to plan for the higher seeds. It took a little longer than they would have liked, but they got the job done. Now that its out of the way, to the 2nd round we go. Here's how this is going to go down.

First up its the top seed in the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers taking on the 4th seeded Atlanta Hawks. In their 9th year in a row in the post season, Atlanta got here by knocking off the Boston Celtics in six. This marks the 2nd year in a row that the Hawks have made it out of the 1st round. Atlanta is now 138-183 lifetime in the post season. As for Cleveland, they got here by sweeping the Detroit Pistons in four straight. It marks the 2nd year in a row that the Cavs have made it to the 2nd round, this coming after missing the playoffs for the four years Lebron was in Miami. Cleveland is now 84-84 lifetime in the playoffs. This is the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Cavaliers winning the first two meetings. During the regular season, Cleveland won all three matchups.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
Game 1 - May 2 at Cleveland, 7 pm on TNT
Game 2 - May 4 at Cleveland, 8 pm on TNT
Game 3 - May 6 at Atlanta, 7 pm on ESPN
Game 4 - May 8 at Atlanta, 3:30 pm on ABC
Game 5 - May 10 at Cleveland, TBD on TNT (if necessary)
Game 6 - May 12 at Atlanta, TBD on ESPN (if necessary)
Game 7 - May 15 at Cleveland, TBD (if necessary)

Cleveland has played Atlanta twice before in the playoffs, both times with Lebron on the Cavs roster and both times the Cavs won in a sweep. So Atlanta, who was the top seed in these very same playoffs last year, is looking to just get a win against the Cavs come springtime. Both starting five can somewhat compare. Both teams have four of their five starters averaging double digits in points. For Cleveland you have Kyrie Irving (19.6 ppg), J.R. Smith (12.4 ppg), some guy named LeBron James (25.3 ppg), and Kevin Love (16.0 ppg). Atlanta has talent too in Jeff Teague (15.7 ppg), Kent Bazemore (11.6 ppg), Paul Millsap (17.1 ppg, 9.0 rpg), and Al Horford (15.2 ppg). So from a scoring point of view this could be an even series.

For Atlanta to even sniff having a chance in this series, they need to keep control on the rebounds, play a tight defense, like they did against Boston, and try and slow down (easier said than done) at least two of the big three that plays for the Cavaliers. Cleveland may be too good. Oh and when these two teams met in last years Eastern Conference Finals, LeBron averaged 30.3 points, 11.0 rebounds and 9.3 assists in that sweep. Again another tough task for the hawks. Atlanta had a little trouble with Isaiah Thomas in the last round against Boston, but if they shut him down they won. If they try and do that with say Lebron, then they have either Kevin Love or Kyrie Irving to deal with. Cleveland is just too deep a team.

Pick: Cleveland in 5

Next up is the 2nd seeded Toronto Raptors taking on the 3rd seeded Miami Heat. Toronto got here by beating the Indiana Pacers in seven games in the opening round. The three time defending Atlantic Division Champions have made the playoffs now for three straight years, but this is the first time they've won their opening round series since 2001. Toronto has never made it past this round in the history of the franchise. They are now 18-31 lifetime in the post season. As for the Heat, they got here by beating the Charlotte Hornets in seven games. After missing the playoffs a season ago, this was a bounceback year for the Heat, winning their opening round series for the fifth straight time they've been in the playoffs. Miami is now 118-90 lifetime in the post season. This is the first time ever that Toronto and Miami have faced off in the playoffs. Toronto won three of the four regular season meetings between the teams this year.

Here's the dates and times for every game in this series:
Game 1 - May 3 at Toronto, 8 pm on TNT
Game 2 - May 5 at Toronto, 8 pm on ESPN
Game 3 - May 7 at Miami, 5 pm on ESPN
Game 4 - May 9 at Miami, 8 pm on TNT
Game 5 - May 11 at Toronto, TBD on TNT (if necessary)
Game 6 - May 13 at Miami, TBD on ESPN (if necessary)
Game 7 - May 15 at Toronto, TBD (if necessary)

Can Toronto make their first conference finals appearance in franchise history, or will Miami get there for the sixth time in 10 years? Both teams are coming off having played seven game series in the last round. Fatigue could possibly play a factor in this series. Kyle Lowry, who averaged 21.2 ppg during the regular season, and DeMar DeRozan who averaged 23.5 ppg, both looked averaged during the Raptors win over the Pacers. Don't get me wrong, they played good in the opening round, but both guys have been all stars and played at another level when they're on their game. Toronto really needs them to play back at that level again in this series if Toronto wants to have a chance. DeMarre Carroll can be a force as well, you saw flashes of that in the opening round, but the three of them seemed to play below par in the opener. To get past Miami, all three need to step their game up.

If your Miami, you got a balanced lineup that can make a lot of noise. The five starters in Miami, Goran Dragic (14.1 ppg), Dwyane Wade (19.0 ppg), Joe Johnson (12.2 ppg), Luol Deng (12.3 ppg), and Hassan Whiteside (14.2 ppg) all average double digits in points during the regular season. Gerald Green and rookies Justise Winslow and Josh Richardson can also be productive coming off the bench, something you need to keep an eye on if your the Raptors. The difference in this series is who's best players are playing like it. Right now, at least heading into the series, Miami has the advantage in that department. The Heat are too well rounded and have more experience playing at this level. That's whats going to be key in the series.

Pick: Miami in 7

We move now to the West as the top seeded Golden State Warriors take on the 5th seeded Portland Trail Blazers. Portland got here by beating the Los Angeles Clippers in the opening round in six games. This marks the 2nd time in the last three years that Portland has made it out of the first round. Portland is looking to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2000. They are now 107-128 lifetime in the post season. They are playing the best team in the NBA, the Golden State Warriors. Golden State started their title defense off with a five game series win over the Houston Rockets. Golden State is the defending NBA Champions, so this will mark a 2nd straight 2nd round appearance. The Warriors are now 67-68 lifetime in the playoffs (at least during their time as the Golden State Warriors). This is the first meeting in the playoffs between the Warriors and Trail Blazers, and Golden State won three of the four meetings during the regular season.

Here are the dates and times for every game in this series:
Game 1 - May 1 at Oakland, 3:00 pm on TNT
Game 2 - May 3 at Oakland, 10:30 pm on TNT
Game 3 - May 7 at Portland, 8:30 pm on ABC
Game 4 - May 9 at Portland, 10:30 pm on TNT
Game 5 - May 11 at Oakland, TBD on TNT (if necessary)
Game 6 - May 13 at Portland, TBD on ESPN (if necessary)
Game 7 - May 16 at Oakland, 9 pm on TNT (if necessary)

Golden State has been the class of the league all year. Now can they finish the job? For now at least, they are going to have to do it without Stephen Curry, who is out battling injuries again. Without the league MVP, Golden State needs to have the rest of the team step up and fill a void with Curry not there at this exact moment. This team is no slouch though. Klay Thompson (22.1 ppg), Harrison Barnes (11.7 ppg), Draymond Green (14.0 ppg), and Andrew Bogut (5.4 ppg) are going to be called on to play at another level. They showed during the opening round win over Houston that they have no problem doing just that.

Portland may not be such a pushover. Most people know that Curry and Thompson are the best one-two punch in the NBA. Right behind them, when they're on their game, is Damian Lillard (25.1 ppg) and C.J. McCollum (20.8 ppg). So don't totally count out the Blazers. Portland is playing with house money, they're gonna be playing like they really have nothing to lose. That being said though, I don't give them much of a chance in this series. It's going to be a tough series for the Blazers but the Warriors are going to be too much. They're too deep a team and can't be stopped. At least not in this round.

Pick: Warriors in 5

Finally we have the 2nd seeded San Antonio Spurs taking on the 3rd seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. Another year at the office for the Spurs, a team that hasn't missed the playoffs since 1997. San Antonio dispatched Memphis in a clean sweep in the opening round. This marks the 4th time in 5th years the Spurs are playing in round two. In fact the Spurs are looking to get back to the West Finals for the first time since 2014. San Antonio is now 197-156 all time in the playoffs. As for the Thunder, they got here by beating the Dallas Mavericks in five games. After missing the playoffs a year ago, the Thunder roll right along in the first round, making it to round two for the 5th time in the last five trips to the playoffs. OKC is now 39-34 lifetime in the post season. This is the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Spurs winning four of the first five meetings, and during the regular season, the two teams split the four meetings, with the home team winning each time.

Here's the date and times for every game in this series:
Game 1 - May 1 at San Antonio, 8:30 pm on TNT
Game 2 - May 2 at San Antonio, 9:30 pm on TNT
Game 3 - May 6 at Oklahoma City, 9:30 pm on ESPN
Game 4 - May 8 at Oklahoma City, 8 pm on TNT
Game 5 - May 10 at San Antonio, TBD on TNT (if necessary)
Game 6 - May 12 at Oklahoma City, TBD on ESPN (if necessary)
Game 7 - May 15 at San Antonio, TBD on TNT (if necessary)

This may be the most even matchup in this round of the playoffs. San Antonio has a well balanced starting five of Tony Parker, Danny Green, Kawhi Leonard, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Tim Duncan. You want to talk about a modle of consistency, there it is right there. For the last fifteen years, this Spurs franchise has been it. They may not win the title every year, but they are good enough to be a serious contender every year. If they want to make it to the West finals, which would set up the dream matchup everybody wants to see, then Kevin Durant and Russel Westrbrook are going to have to be shut down. On paper, that's easier said than done.

KD and Russel have been very very good this year, not a surprise for those two guys. In order to beat a team like the Spurs, KD and Russel are going to need help in this series from guys like Serge Ibaka, Enes Kanter and Steven Adams. The Thunder led all playoff teams in first-round scoring with 112 points per game, which shows that they can score and score at will almost. But San Antonio is a better defensiove team than Dallas. San Antonio is going to be too good a team to deal with. Going to be a good, long series, but the Spurs are going to be too much to handle.

Pick: Spurs in 6