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Well we already know the 8 teams that will contest the Eastern play-offs and are just waiting on the final seeding. 6-8 could change a lot, and despite Embiid potentially missing the first round with eye hurties, I daresay MIA/MIL/WAS would prefer the 7th seed, as Boston has lost Irving now too with Hayward still unlikely.

Meanwhile, the West is indeed wild.

5: New Orleans Pelicans (46-34)
6: San Antonio Spurs (46-34)
7: Oklahoma City Thunder (46-34)
8: Minnesota Timberwolves (45-35)
9: Denver Nuggets (45-35)

4 spots for 5 teams. Someone's getting screwed. And I thought SA, OKC and MIN would make it in pretty easily as the 3-5 seeds at the start of the season, meanwhile NO is still ahead of them on tiebreakers despite losing Demarcus Cousins. And after 18 straight 50-win seasons, the streak ends in San Antonio because Kawhi Leonard seems to have come down with a bad case of Derrick Rose syndrome :(.

Last edited by Jay (OTT) at 4/9/2018 6:06:37 PM

So all five teams mentioned in the previous message won their games today. That means;

- SA, OKC and NOP are all in, because...
- The final day features Denver @ Minnesota. Loser is out, since they'll be stuck on 46 wins.

For the teams already in (including Portland and Utah), seeds are now the focus, as they could still drastically change over the next couple of days. And of course the 3-4 and 6-8 seeds in the East aren't settled yet either.

Last edited by Jay (OTT) at 4/10/2018 8:39:28 PM

Western Conference:

Minnesota Timberwolves (8) vs Houston Rockets (1)
As cool as it was to see Minnesota end their play-off drought in storybook fashion (OT in a one game shootout), it seems likely that the wolves will suffer the same fate as the Vikings; getting curb stomped immediately after an unforgettable moment. Still, 47-35 is the sign of a solid team, so Houston can't get complacent.

Utah Jazz (5) vs Oklahoma City Thunder (4)
Well done Oklahoma, you managed to avoid drowning. In fact, you made it all the way back to a top four seed thanks to Portland doing you a solid. The bad news? Utah are red hot, going 29-6 in their last 35 games to make it here. Will we see the OKC superteam we were promised at the start of the season, or will they stumble again?

San Antonio Spurs (7) vs Golden State Warriors (2)
REVENGE! Wait, where's Leonard? Where he at? Damn, just when the Warriors were at their most vulnerable they catch a break in playing a team that's also weakened. The following rounds will be a challenge if Curry is still not 100%, but I can't see the Warriors dropping this one.

New Orleans Pelicans (6) vs Portland Trail Blazers (3)
The pelicans were supposed to drop back and tank after losing Cousins. But the team forgot to read the script and instead entered a play-off race that no-one thought they had business being in. I still can't see them winning the series unless play-off Rondo goes super saiyan 3, but next season? If Cousins can cut down on the turnovers, we're looking at a title contender here.

Eastern Conference:

Washington Wizards (8) vs Toronto Raptors (1)
Those fuccbois at ESPN are constantly disrespecting the Raptors after their best season ever. I look forward to watching them eat shit when the Raptors shake off the 'regular season team' stigma and make the NBA finals. Now don't let me down Toronto, please let my jinxing power fail this one time.

Indiana Pacers (5) vs Cleveland Cavaliers (4)
Without Kyrie Irving, I'm not sure Cleveland has that ability to enter 'play times over' mode and sweep the East like they did before. Indiana was unlucky not to have won a game in last years series. I think they'll do much better this time, and Oladipo surely has to win most improved player after taking this team to heights we thought they could no longer reach.

Milwaukee Bucks (7) vs Boston Celtics (2)
Congratulations Bucks! You won the seventh seed sweepstakes and have been gifted the chance to play a dead team walking in the Celtics! But, just to keep my bases covered, how do you plan on underachieving this time? I mean, you have a generational talent in Giannis and some great players around him but you only went 44-38?

Miami Heat (6) vs Philadelphia 76ers (3)
Miami could have tanked the OT period against the Raptors to drop down to the seventh seed, but no, they just had to win and take the hardest road against 'The Process' instead. Sure, Embiid is out, but not for long, and even without him the winning streak stayed intact. There's also the problem of having to defend against a 6'10" point guard named Ben Simmons...

I predict Houston vs Toronto for the finals. This might once again be a prediction from the heart rather than the head (moreso in the West since Curry isn't out for the whole play-offs), but I'd like to think that regular season form isn't entirely useless despite Cleveland's stunt last year.

I think okc and utah, portland and nop, and the washington toronto series has the potential to be really great series!

Especially the washington one because washington have beat the raptors (twice?) now in the playoffs in consecutive years. That's probably wrong but they do have small budding rivalries.

Congratulations Portland Trail Blazers! You just got swept by a team with one good player and a bunch of injury woes! I mean aside from Anthony Davis and something called a play-off Rondo, what was really so hard about having to play the damn Pelicans? You had the northern splash brothers in Lillard and McCollum, and a pretty good big man to match up with Davis too, what else did you need to compete with?

I wouldn't even be pissed if you lost in a competitive series, but you took it one step further and got swept in a series that almost every analysis predicted you were going to win! How do you fail on such an epic level that you lose four straight games where you were the favourites? Don't worry though, you do win a consolation prize Portland... the LOLCOW of the season award!

Jrue averaged 19/6 for the season and is in contention for DPOY? Wouldn't call it AD and playoff Rondo. Give credit where it's due.

I stand corrected. I often forget about Jrue Holiday because, aside from that one ASG selection, he's not 'the' star player, but never plays badly enough to be a punchline, nor does he gain exposure from being on a title contending team. That may change next season, pending NOLA's ability to re-sign Cousins and fully utilise him alongside what the rest of the team has proven capable of already.

Last edited by Jay (OTT) at 4/22/2018 9:58:06 AM

Mid 1st round comments:

Houston 2-1 Minnesota: Thanks for keeping the series competitive Wolves. I'd still be shocked if you somehow advance, but as long as Towns and Wiggins continue to improve from experience I can see this becoming a 50+ win team next season.

Oklahoma 1-2 Utah: Utah were the team in form leading into the play-offs, and so far they've carried that over into play-off success. Even after a full season of playing together, OKC are still struggling to turn talent into wins, but it's not too late just yet.

Portland 0-4 New Orleans: Here lies Damien Lillard. He never scored.

Golden State 3-1 San Antonio: Whilst the win only delays the inevitable for SA, it may have a lasting impact on the play-offs. That's already one loss more than GS had in the West last year, and it reduces their rest days whilst also proving that they can be beat, though they were still missing Curry.

Toronto 2-2 Washington: Well done Toronto, you've gone 2-0 up and are shaking off the stigm- oh darnit, they've gone full Raptors again and let an 8th seeded Washington level it. Can you at least put this one away in 6 please?

Cleveland 2-2 Indiana: So does this mean I was right to criticise the Cavs for those panic trades at the deadline? Indiana haven't just done better than last year, they now have a genuine chance of ending LeBron's reign in the East by themselves, despite the narrow game 4 loss.

Philadelphia 3-1 Miami: If Toronto loses another game to Washington I'm jumping off that horse and trusting the process. Since Embiid's return, Phili's looked like the strongest team in the conference, and it's reflected in the series scoreline. There's still question marks, but they have the talent and know how to use it.

Boston 2-2 Milwaukee: I was getting really worried that the Bucks would once again under-perform and get stomped by some young guys and a point center, but a big home stand has levelled the series. As for what happens next, who knows?

EDIT: Houston and Utah easily go 3-1 up. The western conference semi-finals is now set unless someone chokes hard (UTA vs HOU, NOLA vs GS).

Last edited by Jay (OTT) at 4/24/2018 2:03:08 AM