Round 2 is going to be awesome! Game 7 of the Spurs-Clippers series was one of the best games of recent NBA Playoffs. I was very shocked the Clippers pulled it off, but hats off to them. I think the Spurs losing surprised the majority. I had them beating Houston in the second round and eventually going to seven with the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. Now with the Spurs out, I think the Rockets have a lot better chance of advancing against the Clippers. With that being said here are my predictions of the 2nd round:
GS vs MEM
Earlier in the season I had the Grizzlies as the #2 seed. This is the series of better teams, because whoever wins this series will be the Western Conference champion. The Grizzlies are going to struggle with the pace when they play at Golden State, but they are one of the top defensive teams in the league. If they grind it out by dumping it down low, I believe Memphis can keep it close and steal one on the road.
GS wins 4-3
HOU vs LA
This series is really up for grabs. Houston played very well against Dallas and the Clippers were sensational in their seven game series against the Spurs. Chris Paul being a tad beat up could hinder the outcome of the series. I also believe that because LA played a brutal seven game series will make them start down 0-1. Game 2 could be a chance to even the series, but I think the Clippers with go back to LA down 0-2. Even down two games, LA will even the series after Game 4. The deciding factor will be Houston owning home court advantage and winning Game 7 to advance to the Western Conference Finals.
HOU wins 4-3
ATL vs WASH
After watching Atlanta struggle against Brooklyn, I am very hesitant to pick them to beat the scorching hot Wizards. How Atlanta plays is why I think they will win the series. They are a good defensive team and an excellent offensive team that shares the ball. The scary thing is that the Wizards are playing unbelievably. Sweeping the higher seed Raptors and averaging nearly 10 point more per game is a recipe for success. I wouldn't be surprised if Washington won, but I think Atlanta is the better team.
ATL wins 4-3
CLE vs CHI
This will be the most popular series of the 2nd round. The Cavs are on role after sweeping the Celtics and the Bulls won convincingly against the Bucks after 2 games of missed opportunities.There are a few concerns for both teams. The biggest: Kevin Love out for the rest of the playoffs. Though he has has under performing season, his importance and role on the court hasn't changed. His ability to stretch the floor enabling Lebron and Kyrie to get to the hoop, will be seriously jeopardized now that he is out. I think James Jones and Mike Miller will play big roles in this series filling in for Love, but they don't bring the rebounding ability as Love does. Lebron and Kyrie will have to up their games and production in order to move on.
The Bulls have concerns as well. Blowing game 4 and 5 didn't help them at all. Yes game 6 was a convincing win, but that put more wear on the whole team and especially Derrick Rose. Rose will be the deciding factor in this series. If he can play near his former MVP self that we saw glimpses of in the Milwaukee series, I think they have a good shot of winning. I still don't think they will beat Cleveland, but expect this series to be a physical one.
CLE wins 4-2
Congratulations to both the Warriors and Rockets on making it to the Western Conference Finals. Both franchises haven't been to this round of playoffs for a number of years. I'm still surprised the Rockets made it this far after the meltdown by the LA Clippers. I wish the Spurs would have made it to the WCFs instead of the Rockets because I believe they are the only team that could have beat the Warriors.
