2014 NBA Playoffs
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Da Prophet
Mid-Card Championship Winner
Notorious718
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As a Bay Area boy, I was pulling for Golden State. They had a surprisingly tremendous run against the Clippers. An important key will be keeping all their starters healthy next year. But great Game 7 nonetheless.
Paul Bunyan's Axe
Occasional Pre-Show
No one on their team can guard Durrant as well as Tony Allen did as well. I'm predicting OKC in 5.
Nets vs. Raptors right now, winner plays the Heat. For the many who hate the Heat, you should be rooting for the nets here. The Nets are 4 and 0 against the Heat in their season series, and I think they could give the Heat a fight if they win today.
The officiating in the Raptors/Nets game today is atrocious.
Paul Bunyan's Axe
Occasional Pre-Show
Crazy finish, but Nets move on.
What a heartbreaker, to fight all the way back from such a large deficit, and have an opportunity to hit one shot to win the game and the series, only to not manage to even get the shot off. Terribly disappointing 
Yes! Spurs move on. Tough series but SA clicked on all cylinders today. With SA moving on, here are the Semi-finals matchups for each conference.
Indiana vs Washington
Washington wins in six games. This has nothing to do with Indiana and everything to do with Washington. They just destroyed the Bulls who are a tough defensive match-up. Indiana has no bench and Washington is probably stronger in each position save for small forward.
Miami vs Brooklyn
Miami wins in five games. Regular season means nothing in the playoffs. Brooklyn will steal game three but Lebron and co. are monsters in the playoffs.
San Antonio vs Portland
San Antonio in six games. This reminds me of last year's playoff match-up of SA vs Golden State. Portland is a great offensive team but struggle defensively. Ginobili and Parker will expose the Portland frontline all series. Should be a great series to watch.
Oklahoma City vs Los Angeles Clippers
Clippers in seven games. I just don't trust the Thunder frontline or Scott Brooks. Griffin and Jordan will have a field day against Ibaka and Perkins. I trust Rivers more than Brooks and Westbrook may shoot them out of this series.
Indiana vs Washington
Washington wins in six games. This has nothing to do with Indiana and everything to do with Washington. They just destroyed the Bulls who are a tough defensive match-up. Indiana has no bench and Washington is probably stronger in each position save for small forward.
Miami vs Brooklyn
Miami wins in five games. Regular season means nothing in the playoffs. Brooklyn will steal game three but Lebron and co. are monsters in the playoffs.
San Antonio vs Portland
San Antonio in six games. This reminds me of last year's playoff match-up of SA vs Golden State. Portland is a great offensive team but struggle defensively. Ginobili and Parker will expose the Portland frontline all series. Should be a great series to watch.
Oklahoma City vs Los Angeles Clippers
Clippers in seven games. I just don't trust the Thunder frontline or Scott Brooks. Griffin and Jordan will have a field day against Ibaka and Perkins. I trust Rivers more than Brooks and Westbrook may shoot them out of this series.
2nd Round Predictions
Wizards in 6 games over Pacers. I think Wall and Beal out play Hill, Stepheson, and George combined. Still not convinced that George is a top 10 player or that he's a great offensive player but he is a lock down defender. Looking forward to the West/Nene match up here. This'll be an ugly series I bet, maybe even with a few suspensions. If Hibbert plays really well though, the Pacers will win but I don't see that happening. Hibbert might actually be the problem with the chemistry issues they have.
Heat in 5 games over Nets. The Heat won't slow down here. I think all games will be close but the Heat will win it in the end.
Thunder in 6 games over Clippers. Probably the series that I'm looking forward to the most. Griffin and Jordan won't have an easy time in the paint against Ibaka and Perkins so that'll be fun to watch. However, Westbrook is the X-factor here. If he distributes the ball more and scores efficiently, then the Thunder will win. You can't really get into your set plays if your point guard has a shoot-first mentality. In my estimation, Westbrook should be averaging 12 assists because of the attention he gets when he drives into the lane.
Blazers in 7 games over Spurs. This'll be a fun series and I sure as hell hope I'm wrong on this as I want the Spurs to win one more championship because they should've won last year. However, the starting 5 of the Blazers are legit. Each of them play with intensity and hustle and that's all you can really ask for. Lillard/Parker will be fun to watch for sure. It's past vs. present here.
Wizards in 6 games over Pacers. I think Wall and Beal out play Hill, Stepheson, and George combined. Still not convinced that George is a top 10 player or that he's a great offensive player but he is a lock down defender. Looking forward to the West/Nene match up here. This'll be an ugly series I bet, maybe even with a few suspensions. If Hibbert plays really well though, the Pacers will win but I don't see that happening. Hibbert might actually be the problem with the chemistry issues they have.
Heat in 5 games over Nets. The Heat won't slow down here. I think all games will be close but the Heat will win it in the end.
Thunder in 6 games over Clippers. Probably the series that I'm looking forward to the most. Griffin and Jordan won't have an easy time in the paint against Ibaka and Perkins so that'll be fun to watch. However, Westbrook is the X-factor here. If he distributes the ball more and scores efficiently, then the Thunder will win. You can't really get into your set plays if your point guard has a shoot-first mentality. In my estimation, Westbrook should be averaging 12 assists because of the attention he gets when he drives into the lane.
Blazers in 7 games over Spurs. This'll be a fun series and I sure as hell hope I'm wrong on this as I want the Spurs to win one more championship because they should've won last year. However, the starting 5 of the Blazers are legit. Each of them play with intensity and hustle and that's all you can really ask for. Lillard/Parker will be fun to watch for sure. It's past vs. present here.
They've lost their chemistry. It's so weird. They were on fire just a while back then a week before the season ends, they're all out of sync.
This off-season, I bet they'll try and deal Hibbert. I really think Hibbert is messing with their chemistry. They need someone who rebounds since that team takes a lot of shots instead of driving it in.
The Thunder will extend this series, but this game showed their major flaws and why I picked the Clippers to win. They have terrible ball movement, they have terrible spacing on the floor, Perkins is a liability but they can't go small for long because Jordan and Griffin will tear them apart, and they rely too much on just Durant and Westbrook. Brooks needs to figure this one out quick.
Wall, Beal, and Ariza can go toe to toe with George, Hill, and Stephenson. Like I stated before, this series will depend on who's frontline can dominate. The duo of Nene and Gortat outplayed the entire frontline of Indiana:
Nene/Gortat: 27 pts, 21 rebs, 4 assists, 5 blocks
Hibbert/West/Scola/Mahinmi: 29pts, 17 rebs, 3 assists, 5 blocks
Hibbert is a trainwreck: 0 pts, 0 rebs, 2 blocks, and 5 personal fouls. There is no way Indiana is winning this with this type of production from their bigs.
Wall, Beal, and Ariza can go toe to toe with George, Hill, and Stephenson. Like I stated before, this series will depend on who's frontline can dominate. The duo of Nene and Gortat outplayed the entire frontline of Indiana:
Nene/Gortat: 27 pts, 21 rebs, 4 assists, 5 blocks
Hibbert/West/Scola/Mahinmi: 29pts, 17 rebs, 3 assists, 5 blocks
Hibbert is a trainwreck: 0 pts, 0 rebs, 2 blocks, and 5 personal fouls. There is no way Indiana is winning this with this type of production from their bigs.
