Before I get to the actual preview content let me take a moment to toot my own horn. In my NBA Season preview I had 8 of the 10 right in the Eastern Conference. Picked Knicks and Pacers to make it and had Charlotte as number 11 and Cleveland number 12 if I’da just switched those. I had 7 of the top 10 right in the Western Conference. Why I ever believed in Sacramento I’ll never know. But moving on.

The NBA’s witching hour is here. I couldn’t tell if TNT still goes with the 40 Games in 40 Nights slogan for the playoffs, which I thought was cool, but there’s really gonna be some fun basketball the next two months with June 19th slated to be Game 7 of the Finals. Here’s a preview of those games and some gratuitous commentary from yours truly.

What a tough loss for the Cavs in the Play-In game. Held Trae Young to 6 points in the first half only for him to do what true superstars do. They’re supposed to overcome any answers for them and he scored 32 in the 2nd half on 10-16 shooting to do just that and seal a comeback for the Hawks. Watching basically a playoff game in Cleveland with the crowd all into it was special and there should be many more of those in the coming years. Evan Mobley should become the superstar they need. And remember the night is darkest before the dawn. The Cavs can draft an E.J. Liddell or Malaki Branham (please don’t anyone draft him) or another solid addition to an already impressive young roster.  

In the West it looks like the Suns are pretty heavy favorites but they’re gonna have to fend off attacks from Grizzlies and Warriors and…checks notes….Jazz? The East is gonna be something else though. Welcome to the belly of the East where every contender sans the Bucks had their own internal drama that was molded into hate for other teams. There’s a lot of bad blood between some of the teams and of course that only makes fans want to pop the corn faster. But in the end, it might be a rematch of last year’s Finals that we’re looking for.  

Western Conference

Luka Doncic incurred a calf strain in the regular season finale (the crux of the load management debate) and it looks like he’s gonna miss Game 1. Woj is reporting the Mavs don’t want to risk the injury getting worse and he may not be back until Game 3 in Utah which severely hurts the Mavericks chances. Maybe that’s why they traded Kristaps Porzingis for Spencer Dinwiddie earlier this year. It’s a perfect opportunity for the hapless Jazz to make it to the next round after years of developing a reputation as only regular season kings. This year they didn’t even do that, missing out on home court advantage. I still wouldn’t count out Doncic even if he doesn’t return until Game 3 but without him I’m ride or dying with Mike Conley Jr. to survive this round. Prediction: Jazz 4-2

Steph Curry looks like he’s gonna play in Game 1 which is crucial for Golden State but this series is a referendum on if Nikola Jokic, the seemingly likely NBA MVP winner really deserves that nod. Jamal Murray is still considered doubtful and maybe if the star guard was back by now I’d pick Denver in the upset. But although I think Jokic might put up some laughable numbers (get it, Joker?) I think Denver is missing too many key pieces to take out an up and down Warriors team. Prediction: Warriors 4-2

Good on the Timberwolves for finally making the playoffs. They have a young team with promise but the Grizzlies took two big leaps this year. Ja Morant became a bona fide superstar averaging 27.4 points per game. He missed 25 games but it was the Grizzlies 20-5 record without him that really turned heads and solidified the number 2 seed in the vaunted West. Karl-Anthony Towns had a very forgettable 11 points, 6 fouls, and a -14 plus/minus in the Play-In game which he’ll hope to make people forget but Anthony Edwards is the young star that’s gonna move the needle for Minnesota. Yet it won’t be enough against a Grizzlies team that’s the real deal and the world can’t wait for Ja Morant to really come into his own on the biggest stage the sport has to offer. Prediction: Grizz 4-1

The best team of the NBA regular season should have little trouble taking care of the Pelicans this series. The Suns are smarting from going up 2-0 in the 2021 Finals only to lose 4 straight to the Greek god Giannis. And with Chris Paul at age 36 in his 17th season, Father Time shows no mercy (as too many have us are recently finding out). The Suns window is closing and this will most likely be their best chance to win the title with Chris Paul. New Orleans, glad you got to be here, happy to have you.  Hope you get to keep Zion. Prediction:  Suns 4-1

Eastern Conference

The story of the 76ers is going to be the story of James Harden in the playoffs. Joel Embiid is going to come to play. Tyrese Maxey should produce consistently. But Harden and the playoffs don’t seem to mix. If he plays like he did for 6 games of that infamous 7 game series between the Rockets and Warriors in 2018, the Sixers can go really far. It’s just that Harden has without fail ended up failing to play up to standard at some point in each of his recent playoff appearances. For the Raptors, at least more of the world will get to watch the joy that is Scottie Barnes. The Raptors could be frisky but even if Harden doesn’t show up like he can, Philly should win this series. But then again, they're still coached by Doc Rivers. Prediction: 76ers 4-2

The Bulls made the playoffs and that makes their season a big success. They spent beaucoup money in the offseason and it paid off for them. But injuries took a toll and they’ll be without Lonzo Ball this series not that it would help. The Bucks might be 3rd in the East but they are by no means the 3rd best team that side of the Mississippi. The Bucks are in a mood and they might run roughshod through teams that aren’t ready for the best player in the world. Enjoy what Giannis is doing. He is exactly what we want superstars to be. Prediction: Bucks 4-1

This is the highlight of the first round. A superteam versus that good good homegrown. Boston enjoyed a long run after the new year as the best team in the NBA and they’ll now face Celtic villain Kyrie Irving and the ender of basketball souls, Kevin Durant. The rest of the Nets haven’t really gelled like the whole Celtics team did after struggling earlier in the season. Can Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown plus a stronger supporting cast outlast KD and Kyrie with Ben Simmons set to possibly play his first games for the Nets in this series? Guess I’m a sucker for the superteams who do have a pretty good and proven track record when healthy. This series could be an all timer for the first round. Prediction: Nets 4-3

I really think the Heat can be given some trouble this series. Frankly I was more excited to write about the Cavs giving Miami some “heat” if you will (I’ll see myself out soon) but Trae Young and the Hawks can be just as much of a pain in the ass for them. John Collins, the Hawks 2nd leading scorer is still out and might have an outside shot at making this series but I don’t really buy Miami as a true Number 1 seed. I think they’ll come out on top this series but I would not be surprised to see them struggle and almost give it away. Prediction: Heat 4-2

A Sincere My Bad: So I made a mistake in my Play-In preview and had the Spurs advancing to the Friday night game even though I had the Pelicans beating them Wednesday. My fault. I even did my normal double checking and still didn’t catch it. Guess I’m still getting used to the Play-In ramifications. Also this must be what old is like.

Round 2 Predictions

Western Conference:

(1) Phoenix vs (5) Utah: Suns 4-1

(2) Memphis vs (3) Golden State:  Grizz 4-3

Eastern Conference:

(1) Miami vs (4) Philadelphia:  76ers 4-3

(3) Milwaukee vs (7) Brooklyn:  Bucks 4-3

Conference Finals Predictions

Western Conference:

(1) Phoenix vs (2) Memphis:  Suns 4-2

Eastern Conference:

(3) Milwaukee vs (4) Philadelphia:  Bucks 4-3

Finals Prediction

(1) Phoenix vs (3) Milwaukee:  Suns 4-3

If you couldn’t tell by now I tend to pick with my heart and for being probably the 3rd best point guard of all time, would love to see Chris Paul get that ever elusive ring.  And if it weren’t for Giannis who I’m already taking a risk picking against here, I’d probably have the Suns edging the Nets.