Welcome to Crev’s Corner. I am the writer, Brayden Creveling, also future host to the podcast Crev’s Corner on Anchor. With this being my first blog, I thought we should keep things simple and talk about playoff basketball that will start tomorrow starting with Bucks vs Magic @ 1:30pm Eastern Time. We now will Break down all the matchup and see who will be going to the 2nd round and some players to watch for.
Eastern Conference:
(1) Bucks vs (8) Magic….Bucks in 5 games
I do think the Bucks will come out of this pretty clean but the Magic win one game in Orlando. The person who I think we will need to keep our eyes on is Kris Middleton. Middleton has been the Robin to the former league MVP, Giannis Antetokunmpo. If Middleton doesn’t preform well in this Orlando series, it may not be a big deal now but it will be a problem in further rounds. He needs to use an easy round with a bad defensive team like Orlando to prepare to battle in the trenches with defensive juggernauts in the East like Toronto or Boston, even the Miami Heat. Bucks will beat the Magic with ease but Giannis supporting cast needs to use this series to get the ball rolling.
(4) Pacers vs (5) Heat….Heat in 6 games
The Pacers would put up a good fight to any team in the East but Miami is just built different right now with a lineup full of dogs. If TJ Warren averages 34.8 points like he did in the bubble during the seeding games, this series could get interesting. He is scorching hot and if Oladipo and Myles Turner can play to their potential, this series has the potential to go to a very intense Game 7. The only disadvantage is the Pacers don’t have that clear cut star or 2 way player that can take over a game. I can trust Jimmy Buckets Butler to seal out a game and take care of business.
(3) Celtics vs (6) 76ers….Celtics in 7 games
I truly believe the 76ers would be the winners of this series and be the upset of the 1st round if Ben Simmons was in Orlando with them. Joel Embiid will not have a even matchup down low and if he stays healthy, I wouldn’t be shocked if he averages nearly 35 points per game in the series. Tobias Harris needs to be a key factor if the 76ers have a possibility of advancing past this tough all around solid Boston Celtics team. The Celtics have 3 of the 4 best players in the serious. I truly don’t believe Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown will have any challenge when it comes to them getting to the rim. Smart and Embiid also have a past so this series could get chippy and I’m just as excited as the next person.
(2) Raptors vs (7) Nets…..Raptors in 5 games
The former champion Toronto Raptors will more than likely sweep the Nets but I’m banking on Cris LaVert playing lights out and giving them one game. The Raptors are stacked and gonna be a threat to going back to the finals. I think this series has no upside for the Nets because they’re missing KD and Kyrie but a stepping stone as what they need to be. The younger Nets players and bench/role players can take a look at the Raptors and see more of a big brother situation about what it’s like to be a champion so they can have a legit shot next year.
Western Conference:
(1) Lakers vs (8) Trailblazers….Lakers in 6 games
I am not a fan of the whole play in game thing but the Trailblazers making the playoffs is all around better for the NBA. The Lakers-Blazers series is gonna be the best 1 seed vs 8 seed series we’ve had in awhile. Lakers aren’t playing the best of basketball and Blazers are red hot. CJ McCollum could be the X factor to a possibility of an upset. Dame Lillard is playing like the best player in the NBA and the Blazers are heading into this series with no fears. The reason why I think the Lakers without a doubt will win this is Anthony Davis is the best big man in the league and Blazers have no one to run with him. Also I am way more confident in Lakers bench and Lebron James stepping up in big games. Plus the Lakers have experience like Rondo, McGee, Howard, Danny Green and Lebron who know how the playoffs work and how to reach the finals.
(4) Rockets vs (5) Thunder……Rockets 7 games
The thought of this seres scares me half to death as a Houston Rockets fan. This series is going to be the best of Round 1 and I think every game will be a dog fight. You have some gritty game changers like CP3 along with Steven Adams and the young guys vs the high scoring duo Harden and Westbrook when he comes back from injury. The thought of watching these games won’t sit right with me that we can’t watch Westbrook play these playoff games infant of an Oklahoma City crowd but it doesn’t matter at this point. These past couple months gave James Harden a break and took away his excuse of being burned out for playoffs. The unsung hero I think will be the bench spark that will step up and take a significant role guarding Thunder’s best player. Austin Rivers will be the player everyone needs to have their eyes on. I also truly don’t think Thunder has the wings and mobile posts to guard Covington and PJ Tucker out on the three point line.
(3) Nuggets vs (6) Jazz…..Nuggets in 7
This series will be exciting but I don’t see either of these teams making it past the second round. Mitchell and Gobert are a very good duo but Nuggets just have more pieces to cover the Jazz game and I don’t have much faith in either team. I’m not sod on Jokic being a star in this league, everyone raves about his passing abilities but having 15+ in his first 3 bubble games but that story to sleep. Nuggets have young pieces especially Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr that are a year or two away from blooming and potentially taking this team to the Western Conference Finals for the next 3-5 years. Just like everything, good things take time.
(2) Clippers vs (7) Mavericks….Clippers in 7 games
The Mavs have surprised me in the bubble leading all the teams in scoring and the Clippers are gonna need an answer for a bigger guard the size of Doncic and KP on the outside. The Clippers just will have 5 of the best 7 players in the series and that doesn’t give me much confidence that the Mavericks and Luka can pull off the upset. I do think it will be a fun watch night in and night out that the offensive heavy Mavs will go head to head with the best defensive team in the NBA, excited for the Paul George on Luka match ups.
Thank you for taking time out of your day and can’t wait to write more content for you guys to read!
Crev’s Corner 