Funnest Round…EVER?

We’ve waited a long time for the NBA playoffs to return, and they’re finally back.  This year’s first round figures to be a doozy, with the muddled stew that was the West producing some intriguing matchups, along with a few sleepers lurking at the bottom of the East.  Yes, it’s likely that a few of these series will end in a sweep (gentleman or traditional), but what if this is the year that we get lucky, and every series goes the distance?  Everyone loves a Game 7--let's imagine we get eight of them to kick things off.  True, the odds are small, but as a former math major, trust me when I say that anything is possible.  (And as a former English major, I can also say that we can also make shit up that sounds reasonably plausible, too.) From the Joker to Joel, from Jimmy to Ja, we’ve got you covered.

East

Celtics (2) vs. Hawks (7)

Atlanta's win in the play-in game versus Miami gives us a blueprint of how they can hang with a far-superior Boston team:  plenty of production from Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, plus a healthy explosion of points off the bench.  Boston has one of the best starting fives in the league, along with potential Sixth Man of the Year Malcolm Brogdon, but if Al Horford shows his age and Robert Williams III isn't able to deliver big minutes, there's a universe where Atlanta is able to do some damage inside.  If Trae can go thermonuclear like he did two postseasons ago, well, so much the better.  Boston will get theirs, but we can hope to get some Game 7 Garden Magic if everything goes right.

Sixers (3) vs. Nets (6)

There's no 16 seed waiting to slay a 1 in this year's playoffs, but there is a swarming defense trying to take down a giant.  Nic Claxton will draw the lion's share of work covering Joel Embiid, but in order for Brooklyn to take Philly to the limit, he'll need some help.  It may take some calculated gambles by Spencer Dinwiddie and Iron Man Mikal Bridges to drop down and force Embiid into some uncomfortable passes.  It may also take a few 3-for-16 shooting nights from James Harden off of those passes, but that is entirely within the realm of possibility here.  Seth Curry catching fire from deep wouldn't hurt, either.

Cavs (4) vs. Knicks (5)

By the numbers this should come down to a battle of New York's big three (Julius Randle, Jalen Brunson, and RJ Barrett) against Cleveland's trio of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, and the ever-improving Evan Mobley.  What we really want to see is the battle between Brunson and Mitchell, two players in the first year with their new teams who have aided in the leap to the fringes of contention.  The winner of this series most likely draws Milwaukee, so our best bet to see Spida in a face-melting duel is right here, right now.  Petition the league to make this a best-of-71 series, please. 

Bucks (1) vs. Heat 

Can Miami slay the giant?  Sure!  Along with Jimmy Buckets playing 40 minutes a night in his usual playoff self, add in the 2012 versions of Kevin Love, Victor Oladipo, and Cody Zeller (with the latter two recreating their Sweet Sixteen selves), and we've got something happening here.  Toss in Bam Adebayo at his best catching Brook Lopez at his worst, and we juuuuuuust might get a series here.  If nothing else, we'll get to see the rockfight that is Jimmy vs.Giannis. 

West

Grizzlies (2) vs. Lakers (7)

Does LeBron have the legs to go the distance with Ja?  Will Dillon Brooks set the record for most T's in a playoff series?  Can the Lakers win a series (let alone a championship) with Austin Reaves as their third-best player?  Put money on one of these games becoming THE AD GAME, where he puts up a 45/17/8 line, with five blocks for good measure.  The only question is if it will happen in a heartbreaking Game 7 loss, or if it's the impetus to the start of something bigger.

Kings (3) vs. Warriors (6)

I originally wrote these previews as answers to obvious questions, the first one for this series being "First one to a million wins, right?"  While that line of thinking may not be good for the blood pressure of Mike Brown or Steve Kerr, it's a wonderful road to travel for fans of entertaining, high-octane basketball.  While it's strange to imagine the Warriors wanting to slow things down and get into a rockfight, that may be what is necessary to shut off the beams.  It'll be raining from deep this entire series; Draymond Green will have to get muddy if he wants the Warriors to advance.

Suns (4) vs. Clippers (5)

Who wants to tell Kevin Durant, Chris Paul, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George that two of them are going home in two weeks?  This feels like they'll play "your turn, my turn" with each game, so whoever can eke out a win in Game 1 will have a huge advantage in this series.  Look for Devin Booker to prove he belongs in the superduperstar category, and look for Terance Mann to be on the floor in crunch time going shot for shot with him.  Expect Paul and Russ to be talking about this series 30 years from now when they're playing one-on-one on ESPN's new show, "Old vs. Bold."  Yes, 30 years from now, Russ will still refuse to acknowledge anything but his bravado, and as I approach middle age myself, I fully salute him for it.

Nuggets (1) vs. Timberwolves 

I really don't know if Minnesota can get this to seven games, let alone five.  But I really want to watch as many episodes as I can of "Rudy and Slo Mo"--who knows if we'll get a second season of it?  Joker versus KAT in the battle of the big men who don't play like big men is nice and all, but any time you get a chance to watch a potential teammate fight, you do it, yes you do.  +++