Juiciest Playoff Matchups
Let’s Make These Playoffs Interesting
Since Kevin Durant signed with the Warriors last summer, NBA fans have been salivating over Round 3 of the NBA Finals rivalry between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors. It seemed inevitable- even opposing NBA front offices held off on trades at the deadline because they thought there was no stopping these two juggernauts from facing off one more time! While both teams have had their struggles over the course of the season (which is to be expected), I still believe that this rematch that we’ve all been waiting for will happen. However, that inevitability shouldn’t preclude us from enjoying the rest of the playoffs! There is still plenty of fun to be had on the road to the NBA Finals in both the East and West. That being said, let’s take a look at some of the best possible playoff matchups.
Round 1
Cleveland Cavaliers v.s. Indiana Pacers
LeBron v.s. Paul George. That’s the only reason I’m interested in this series. We got a nice preview of what that will look like in the final weeks of the season and that matchup did not disappoint. Their previous playoff matchups have always lived up to expectations, and Paul George seems to elevate his play when he faces the King. The Cavs will beat the Pacers handily, but Paul George will enter the Summer of George as one of the hottest near-free agents in basketball.
Houston Rockets v.s. Oklahoma City Thunder
Harden v.s. Russ. Former teammates turned MVP rivals. The only way this could get better is if the NBA announced the MVP award before the playoffs started, then we could get an Admiral-Hakeem situation here. Regardless, the individual matchup here will make for a highly entertaining first round.
Winner: Rockets in 5.
Round 2
Boston Celtics v.s. Washington Wizards
Ignoring the fact that I’d really like to see two top-tier point guards go at it, these teams have major beef and I love it. The story of how it all got started dates back to last season, but this rivalry only started to get national attention after Jae Crowder poked John Wall’s nose, sparking a small scuffle between the teams. For their third matchup, the Wizards elected to wear all black funeral attire to the game, taking the pettiness to a whole new level. What’ll happen when the stakes are real? I’m excited.
But enough child’s play, forgetting all the ridiculousness, from a basketball nerd perspective the matchups in this series would be incredible. I’m assuming that Avery Bradley would guard John Wall, and who wouldn’t want to see that? Marcus Smart guarding Bradley Beal. Wow.
Winner: Wizards in 6.
Round 3
Thunder/Rockets v.s. Golden State Warriors
Thunder: KD vs Russ in the Western Conference Finals? Are you kidding? I don’t care if the Warriors sweep the series, I just want to see Russ go full supernova and dunk over the entire Warriors team.
Winner: Warriors in 4
Rockets: The Rockets built their team to compete with the Warriors. James Harden is tired of being an afterthought in the West and he’s ready to pull his team of role players and 3-point shooters to the Finals or die trying.
Winner: Warriors in 6
Finals
Cleveland Cavaliers v.s. Golden State Warriors
This is what we’ve all been waiting for: Round 3. If LeBron pulls out the victory, it solidifies his status as possibly the greatest basketball player ever. Kyrie will go at Steph with everything he’s got and Durant will have to prove himself on the biggest stage. I can already picture the parade of Crying Jordan memes that await KD if the Warriors lose.
