With the NBA regular season officially over and the number
seven and eight seeds are locked in after the Play-In tournament, the 2022
NBA playoffs are finally here!
I'll be upfront in saying that this is one of my favorite times of the year.
This is when NBA All-Stars become legends and no name
players become household names for future seasons.
Today, I'm going to give you my 2022 NBA playoff predictions, capping with who
I believe which team will be taking home the Larry O'Brien trophy.
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Let's begin with the Eastern Conference, where the number
one seed Miami Heat beats the number eight seed, the Atlanta Hawks
in six games. the Heat have put up a solid, regular season campaign
led by Kyle Lowry,
Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, let alone having the sixth man of the year candidate
and the 22 year old phenom Tyler Herro playing insane ball off the bench.
The depth and role players on their squad make the Heat a tough opponent
for Atlanta to contend with in a seven game series.
Even with Trae Young leading the charge from the Hawks,
winning the two Play In games to get the number eight seed, A.T.L. doesn't
have enough pieces to match up against the Heat.
In respect of Young's impressive postseason performances of the past
is why I have the Hawks winning
at least two games, but they'll still get the early exit.
Next, I have the number four seed, Philadelphia 76ers
beating the number five seed Toronto Raptors in seven games.
Pairing James Harden with MVP candidate Joel Embiid,
the 76ers have found their groove after the trade deadline back in February.
They'll have their hands full of a stingy Raptors squad
that's led by NBA champions Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam,
plus Sixers small forward Matisse Thybulle, who's unvaccinated,
won't be able to travel with the team to Canada due to their COVID 19 protocols.
This is big because Thybulle is an incredible defender and gives
Philly an edge. But because the Sixers have home
court advantage is why I have them winning in seven.
Next up is the defending NBA champions, Milwaukee Bucks at the number
three seed sweeping the number six seeded Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls are sadly unmatched against the defending champs.
Even with Lonzo Ball, who's out for the entire playoffs due to a knee injury,
I personally don't think the Bulls match up well against Giannis
Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday and the Bucks.
Chicago 0-4 against Milwaukee during the regular season and that's
with Bulls All-Star DeMar DeRozan scoring more than 20 points per contest.
Look to see the Bucks bench get a lot of minutes
in each contest. To wrap up the East first round
I have the number two seed Boston Celtics defeating the number seven seed
Brooklyn Nets in six games. This entire week
all I've heard is how "the Celtics are in trouble against the surging Nets,"
especially being without locked down defender Robert Williams III
due to a knee injury.
I personally don't buy it because, yes, Kevin Durant and Kyrie
Irving are back playing consistent ball, which is great for the league.
However, due to the state of New York's strict COVID 19 protocols throughout
the regular season, the Nets duo have only played seven games together,
and I believe that will play a factor in their offensive potential.
Ben Simmons could play a factor if he suits up from his back injury,
but I don't think
he'll have enough minutes to really sway the series in Brooklyn's favor.
Plus, Boston is first in the league in defensive rating.
So I'm looking to see the Celtics moving on to round two
after this exciting matchup.
Speaking of round two, I have the Heat
taking the series in six games against the 76ers.
The Heat's bench is deep compared to the Sixers and depending on
how often head coach Doc Rivers does his rotations for Philly, players
like Embiid, Harden, and standout Tyrese Maxey may see more minutes
throughout the series.
This could hinder their offensive production,
whereas Miami has weapons like Tyler Herro, Max Strus and Duncan
Robinson coming off the bench to continue to push the pace in transition.
In addition, it'll be too much for Philly to slow down the number one team
in three point percentage.
So the Heat will have a shot
in competing for their seventh Eastern Conference title.
Who they will meet is the defending champs, Milwaukee Bucks,
who will beat the Celtics in seven games.
This series will be determined by the "bigs" on each team.
I believe the backcourt
is too evenly matched, but when I look closer to the rosters,
I see the Bucks gaining the edge when it comes to the paint.
This is largely because the Bucks Center Brook Lopez
is back in the lineup after being injured during the regular season.
Even though he's only played 13 games this season,
no one on the Celtics will be
able to stop him on both ends, thus giving the Bucks a big advantage
down the stretch, especially when it comes to home court advantage in game seven.
So in the Eastern Conference finals, I have the Bucks defending the Heat
in six games. A rematch from last year's Eastern Quarterfinals matchup,
although it won't be a sweep. The Heat will get at least two games
due to the brilliance of Kyle Lowry and Bam Adebayo.
However, it won't be enough to stop Giannis and company.
I believe Khris Middleton will be absolute dominant throughout the series
and unfortunately Tyler Herro will have a repeat
poor performance like he did last year against this same team.
The Heat's bench won't be enough to squash the third best team in the league
in offensive rating,
thus Milwaukee having the opportunity
to defend their title by going back to the NBA Finals.
Now we're off to the West
where the number one seed, Phoenix Suns sweep the number eight seed
New Orleans Pelicans.
Even though the Pelicans were able to get one game against Phoenix
in the regular season in their four game series,
the Suns are looking like a title contender team right now.
Led by young All-Stars Devin Booker and DeAndre Ayton,
the Suns are poised to take care of the Brandon Ingram led Pelicans.
The only upside for New Orleans is using their experience
in winning the two games in their Play In run as the number nine seed
and making the playoffs and use that into next season.
Next up, I have the number four seeded Dallas Mavericks
defeating the number five seed Utah Jazz in five games.
Full disclosure that this pick is solely based on if
Mavs All-Star Luka Doncic calf strain injury
he suffered on the season finale doesn't withhold him from playing.
I'm banking on Luka playing, for he has been a huge force for Dallas,
along with Jalen Brunson, Reggie Bullock and Dwight Powell.
Utah ranks first in the league in offensive rating,
however they have blown double digit leads six times this year.
Aside from Donovan Mitchell being a consistent threat,
I see the Mavs advancing into round two.
Now for my personal favorite first round match up to watch,
I have the number three seed, Golden State Warriors defeating the number six
seed Denver Nuggets in six games. Throughout the entire 2022 regular season,
Golden State hasn't had their Big Three in most of their games due to injury.
Without Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green on the floor,
the Warriors still put together a strong season on the backs
of Jordan Poole, Andrew Wiggins and Kevin Looney.
Nikola Jokic has put together a league MVP caliber season,
but without any consistent production from Denver's supporting cast,
I can't see the Nuggets winning more than two games.
The Splash Brothers will go off like they did on their championship run in 2017
to see the Warriors move on.
Who they'll face will be the red hot number two seed Memphis Grizzlies,
who will beat the number seven seed Minnesota Timberwolves in five games.
Led by the phenom sensation Ja Morant,
the Grizzlies are officially the youngest team in the postseason,
weighted by playing time, with the average age of 24.4 years old.
That youth driven the Grizz to be the first in the league in blocks,
steals and rebounds per game.
They'll be put to the test right away
because the Timberwolves are supporting a league best in points per game
and three pointers made, led by three point shooting champ Karl-Anthony Towns.
There's a reason why defense wins championships and here Memphis
will be able to shut down the high scoring T-Wolves and will be advancing.
In the second round action
I have the Suns again sweeping their opponent, this time against the Mavericks.
Dallas just doesn't match up well against the Suns
and with Phoenix being first in the league in field goal percentage as a team,
the Mavericks don't have any answers for Booker or Ayton, let alone CP3.
Yes, Luka is averaging just under 30 points per game, but it won't be enough,
not even from winning one game at home to slow down the Suns.
In fact, the Mavs haven't beaten the Suns in a head to head game in their
last nine contests with their last win
on November 29th, 2019. Suns will be back in the Western Conference finals.
Next up is my second round favorite matchup, and that's the Warriors
barely getting over the edge against the Grizzlies in seven games.
If I'm being selfish, which I truly am when it comes to NBA playoff basketball,
I personally hope Game seven is won in overtime.
Experience versus youth.
Steph Curry versus Ja Morant.
This is the series where Morant will become a household name.
Much like how Steph did when he played against LeBron in their first
NBA finals back in 2015.
Even though Morant will perform out of his mind,
I'm taking the Warriors to take care of business
at home on Game seven due to their experience and coaching.
They'll move on to compete for their seventh conference title in franchise history.
With the Western Conference finals
I have the Suns defeating the Warriors in six games.
Both teams match up very well with each other and each head
coach could play matchup ball with whomever is on the court.
Both squads have powerful starters and exceptional second unit players.
A classic example of basketball
chess match will unfold in front of your very eyes in this series.
Even the regular season series is split down 2 to 2.
But when the rubber meets the road, I believe Devin Booker
will have a phenomenal series averaging 30 plus points per game,
helping the Suns win their fourth conference title,
thus leading to an NBA Finals rematch from 2021.
My 2022 NBA Finals prediction is the Phoenix Suns
defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in six games. In the 2021 NBA Finals
the Suns were quickly up 2-0 heading to Milwaukee
and then lost four in a row. They were two games away
from winning their first NBA title in franchise history,
having all the momentum. Here they will correct their wrongs.
Both sides have most of their rosters returning who played in those same Finals.
But I believe this time Monty Williams, head coach for the Suns,
will have an answer for the Bucks small forward Khris Middleton,
who gave the Suns headaches in 2021.
The Suns will be out for vengeance, but the Bucks won't make it easy
on each possession.
It'll be a worthy finals rematch to watch,
and with Chris Paul finally winning an NBA title at the age of 37,
and most importantly, the Suns winning their first title
in franchise history since being founded in 1968.
Well, there you have it.
Those are my picks for the 2022 NBA playoffs.
But check this out! In the description below,
I have a downloadable link to an empty NBA bracket for you to fill out for yourself!
After making your picks post it on social media using the hashtag
LURKS LESSONS and let's see who will have the most correct picks.
Please know that the link won't be available after an NBA champion
has been crowned, so hurry up and get those brackets posted!
All right, everyone,
my name is Jeff Loehrke, and I'll catch you guys in the next lesson.