I'll go through each series one by one and at the end predict who I think will advance. I'll try and do separate ones for each round, though I end up falling in the group of people that think it will be Miami against probably San Antonio or Oklahoma City again in the Finals. Basketball seems easily predictable like that.
Without further ado, here's how I think the first round plays out.
Eastern Conference
(1) Miami Heat vs (8) Milwaukee Bucks
Miami, to no surprise, wound up as the consensus best team in the league and earned the top seed out east for the first time in the LeBron era. Meanwhile you have a Milwaukee team that picked up J.J. Redick at the deadline to help make a run to help Brandon Jennings out. Milwaukee might be able to make these games at least somewhat competitive but otherwise this should be over quickly. Heat in four.
(2) New York Knicks vs (7) Boston Celtics
It's kind of crazy how Boston has fallen even though I think everyone expected them to fall off each of the last couple years. Without Rajon Rondo though this Celtics team is down to basically just Garnett and Pierce, though Jeff Green has had his moments. Meanwhile newly crowned scoring champ Carmelo Anthony finally seems to have a really good supporting cast around him and Mike Woodson is a good coach. The C's will make this a series but we're looking at an early exit for them this year. Knicks in six.
(3) Indiana Pacers vs (6) Atlanta Hawks
It's kind of amazing how the Hawks have been able to survive without Joe Johnson and still be a decent team, but you have to continue to credit guys like Al Horford and Josh Smith for carrying this team. Indiana survived losing Danny Granger to win the division. This tough team that plays a similar style to the Bulls likely won't have issues here. Pacers in five.
(4) Brooklyn Nets vs (5) Chicago Bulls
I'm going to defer to Geoffy for most of the in-depth analysis here. In the grand scheme of things though, I think the Bulls' experience, even without Derrick Rose and possibly Joakim Noah should be enough. Angry Thibs will make sure "WE HAVE MORE THAN ENOUGH TO WIN WITH." Bulls in seven.
Western Conference
(1) Oklahoma City Thunder vs (8) Houston Rockets
After falling short in the Finals last year, Sam Presti decided to send James Harden and his beard away, and ended up in Houston where Daryl Morey looks like more of a genius than normal after rebuilding this team's core. Even with that though, I don't think Houston has the firepower to keep up with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Thunder in five.
(2) San Antonio Spurs vs (7) Los Angeles Lakers
I'm not going to lie; I wanted the Lakers to miss the playoffs because of the overhyping and also because it would have been hilarious to see the Lakers without a first round pick and out of the playoffs. Given what happened to Kobe though, I'm kind of glad they did make it for him. Even with that though, I don't think the Lakers have the depth to take out the Spurs. Tony Parker has been really good, and Tim Duncan is still chugging along despite his age. Spurs in five.
(3) Denver Nuggets vs (6) Golden State Warriors
Denver went on a nice little win streak for part of the year as well, and they have a very well balanced team that will be a tough out, especially with home court. This team plays pretty good defense, which is a necessity against Steph Curry. He will not make this series easy. At the end of the day though I have to go with the overall better team. Nuggets in six.
(4) Los Angeles Clippers vs (5) Memphis Grizzlies
It's kind of amazing to see something of a changing of the guard in Los Angeles with the Clippers winning the division instead of the Lakers. This team continues to have its amazing moments, and Chris Paul is still up to his usual shenanigans at the point. Memphis has great defense again this year and even after trading away Rudy Gay they're a tough out. I do think the Clippers have the edge though. Clippers in seven.
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