Sue Ogrocki / Associated Press
Los Angeles Lakers (1) via Trail Blazers or Grizzlies (8)
If the Blazers hold onto the eighth seed they recently caught from the Grizzlies, this streak has some potential.
Damian Lillard is on an absolute crack in the bladder. If he’s anywhere near that level in the playoffs – and the Lakers won’t have Avery Bradley to bother him – Portland could steal some games.
Gary Trent Jr. and Carmelo Anthony feel it too. CJ McCollum has experience taking on big games. And Jusuf Nurkic is back. Everything comes together at exactly the right time for the blazers.
But LeBron James is still LeBron James. And Portland has no one to check it out. The Lakers would likely win this streak, but we’ve reached a point where a blazer fuss wouldn’t be anymore shocking.
The Grizzlies have a lot of fascinating young talent, but they seem less ready to challenge The King on the game’s biggest stage.
Los Angeles Clippers (2) via Dallas Mavericks (7)
This series has the potential to be a blast. Like Lillard, Luka Doncic was unreal in Orlando. In fact, he’s the only player with at least 100 minutes and a better box plus / minus in August. And the way he commits a crime when surrounded by gunshots is electrifying.
But this Clippers roster is just too crowded. You can throw Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Marcus Morris, or even Patrick Beverley at Doncic. You may not be able to stop him, but this is a group that is sure to make things difficult.
At the other end, Kawhi, PG and Lou Williams will pick a defense that ranks 18th (and 19th in the bubble) this season.
Denver Nuggets (3) via Utah Jazz (6)
When these two teams played on August 8, it took the Nuggets two hours of overtime to get ahead. Even without their second best goalscorer, Bojan Bogdanovic, jazz does not go down without a fight.
Rudy Gobert remains one of the game’s most formidable players, and he’s kept Nikola Jokic way below his typical head-to-head production. Donovan Mitchell may be prone to wild fluctuations in efficiency (he shoots 38.2 percent in Orlando), but he can get started right away.
However, the nuggets should have many answers. With Jokic orchestrating from the center of the floor or low post and Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. (averaging 22.0 points in the bubble) flying around him, Utah’s defense (15th in the bubble) will be overwhelmed.
Oklahoma City Thunder (4) via Houston Rockets (5)
The tachometers on take machines on the Internet will be reset when Chris Paul beats the Rockets out of the playoffs.
Last summer Houston traded him and a ton of picks for Russell Westbrook for the Thunder, which may be missing out on a decent part of this series.
And while Houston is being beaten up, the Thunders are in full strength. In the season, OKC is plus-7.4 when CP3 shares the word with Danilo Gallinari. Both should play more in the playoffs.
Steven Adams could be the Rockets’ biggest problem, however. Against the microball philosophy, he should hold on to the boards and get a lot of open looks from Paul, Dennis Schroder and the rising star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
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