Round 2 of the NBA playoffs is underway
Celtics vs Wizards
Cavaliers vs Raptors
Rockets vs Spurs
Warriors vs Jazz
who you got, waypoint?
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Sweet, let’s talk some hoops!
I think Spurs are going to have a hard time bottling up the Rockets and still be able to conserve enough energy to be effective on offense. They struggled mightily on offense against Memphis with little to no contributions outside of Kawhi, and that is going to have to change. Now granted, Houston is not Memphis on defense and SAS should have an easier time generating good looks, But conversely Kawhi is also going to be waaaaaay busier trying to keep Harden in check and I think it’s going to be a very tall order for him to not only be the spear tip of the offense as well as the lynch pin on defense.
I think the Jazz if nothing else present an interesting obstacle for the Dubs in that they are going to go up against a team that can very much exploit their lack of size in the middle and as long as the Jazz are allowed to play that type of ball they should be able to potentially make the series at the very least interesting. In the end it doesn’t really matter though. GS has too much firepower and barring some serious injuries I don’t really see them losing a series to anyone.
I think the Celtics are going to eek out a series against Washington simply because I’m still not believing in Washingtons bench although they could potentially just out talent them with Wall and Beal, especially with IT trying to guard either guy
I’m hoping for my Cavs to take care of business in 4 games, but they’ve honestly been so unpredictable this year that I have no fuckin’ idea if they are going to be incredible or outright horrible and neither would honestly surprise me.
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yeah I agree with most of that
spurs/rockets is the matchup I’m most excited for. I could easily see it going either way in 7 games
I think the jazz can definitely win a few games if gobert plays all of them but it’s hard to bet against a healthy warriors squad
celtics definitely win if they can keep playing like they did in game 1 and those last few games against the bulls
no way the raptors beat playoffs LeBron. They should have an easier time scoring than they did against the bucks but even so I don’t think they can put up enough to win a shootout
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I actually think Raptors have a good chance against Cavs, but I hate the cavs so…
Aww, why so negative my dude 
I’m from Mississippi, so I’m a Pelicans fan. Since we didn’t make the playoffs, I was rooting for the Clippers because everyone bullies them. Since they are eliminated, I’m rooting for the Wizards and Cavs.
I’m not negative lol I just am a Warriors fan
lol, well I guess we’ll see you in the finals then!
Wizards fan reporting in. Worried about Markieff Morris, hope that doesn’t tank their chances. Either way I doubt the Celtics can maintain GSW/Hou-like 3 point production, so I think they have a puncher’s chance.
Spurs/Rockets is gonna kill me because they’re my favorite teams. I can’t even pick a winner.
As long as you have an elite PG and as long as that PG is guarded by Isiah Thomas you have a chance, so I’d say it’s at least a very real puncher’s chance. Celtics problem is that Bradley only can guard one of either Beal or Wall and it’s hard to hide away Isiah on either one of those guys. It’s unfortunate for the Celtics but that’s the way the league is nowadays. There are simply too many elite point guards and if you don’t have the clientele you’re defensively you’re going to struggle.
I’m a Heat fan so my first and most important take is that the NBA is in fact lucky Dion Waiters is home doing damn articles.
The only real horse I have in the race at the moment is Houston because I’ve always been a huge Mike D’Antoni fan and I’d love to see him actually win something, especially considering how well he’s maximized what James Harden can be this year.
I’m also kind of rooting for the Celtics, because that would be a great story considering all that Isaiah Thomas is going through (And I mean if they beat LeBron that would be cool too).
The West is super interesting to me because I feel like it’s relatively up for grabs. Obviously the Warriors have plenty going on for them, but they don’t seem unbeatable to me. I think a series between them and Houston could have potential to be loads of fun.
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That damn article was the best thing I read on the players tribune in a long time!
It’s the first article in ages where you really truly believed there wasn’t a ghost writer in the room. Just pure unadulterated magic in the form of text.
If you would’ve told me at the beginning of the season I would legitimately love having Dion Waiters and James Johnson on my team I would have burst out laughing, but I’ll be damned if it didn’t wind up happening anyway.
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As a cavs fan I can tell you from experience that Waiters Island is beautiful place approximately 1-2 months out of the year. Outside of those the wether is volatile and strange, swinging between tornados and thunderstorms, but for those rarified 30-60 days it’s the greatest place on earth.
Oh, yeah. I’m definitely trepidatious about the idea of having him around long term, especially for any significant amount of money, but the brief time we spent in Wait County this season was glorious (if not only for the sheer ridiculousness of it).
I agree with your Celtics prediction. Celtics bench will have a huge +/- advantage. Wall/Beal/Porter will need to play very well all series to pull off the upset.
Hiding Isiah is kind of the problem – when Markieff got injured we put Oubre in his place on the starting lineup, and he’s an offensive zero. He’ll need to step it up.
This Cavs/Raptors game is about what I’d expect from what feels like their 10th series in the past few years. Hopefully the Raptors can keep it competitive so Cleveland doesn’t get any rest between rounds. 
Oh my god, 'Bron just took a swig of bear during the game this is the greatest sport ever.
Edit: false alarm, he only teased it. man, that would have been amazing.
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