NBA Playoffs 2013: Predicting Thursday's Game 3 Showdowns

The 2013 NBA playoffs are in full force, and Round 1 action continues to intensify.

When Thursday's games tip off, expect the snowballing to continue and take us one step closer to potential Round 2 matchups with incredible stakes.

Plus, winning Game 3 also provides much-needed momentum as the postseason unfolds. The following predicted victors just continue finding rhythm and keep adding confidence moving forward.

Nets at Bulls (Tied 1-1)

After totally dominating the Chicago Bulls in Game 1, winning 106-89, the Brooklyn Nets dropped Game 2, 90-82. The series travels to the Windy City on Thursday.

So far, the winner of each game has crashed the glass on the defensive end. Brooklyn grabbed 33 defensive boards to Chicago's 26 when the series began, but the Bulls won this battle 35-28 on Monday.

Another major disparity was the Nets' field-goal percentage. It started out at 55.8, which led to a series-opening victory, but then sunk to 35.4 in Game 2. This inconsistency will end up costing Brooklyn, because Chicago's offense will take full advantage by utilizing its efficiency.

The Bulls dish the rock around nicely and rely on multiple scorers. At the same time, that approach controls the tempo and reduces Brooklyn's number of possessions. Now, factor in Chicago's defense, and the Nets are in trouble.

Although Brooklyn also plays sound half-court defense, Chicago's ability to provide itself second-chance opportunities meshed with suffocating defense gradually emerges as a key advantage.

Prediction: Bulls over Nets

Heat at Bucks (Heat lead 2-0)

The Milwaukee Bucks have simply been outmatched through two games against the Miami Heat.

Well, don't expect anything to change in Game 3. The Heat are more explosive offensively, as evidenced by their 208 points versus Milwaukee thus far. At the same time, the Heat present a rough defense and will out-muscle the Bucks in the paint.

After all, Miami also won the rebound battle 46-31 in Game 1 and 43-33 in Game 2. Whether it's additional offensive opportunities or limiting Milwaukee's shot selection, the Heat will control the tempo at each end of the court.

To this point, LeBron James has nabbed 18 boards, which leads every player this series. Even more impressive, bench player Chris Anderson has out-rebounded everyone on the Bucks with 13 grabs of his own. 

Miami is simply too strong and deep for Milwaukee to keep pace, and the Heat's versatility at each end is a supreme competitive advantage. 

Prediction: Heat over Bucks

Clippers at Grizzlies (Clippers lead 2-0)

The Los Angeles Clippers smacked the Memphis Grizzlies in Game 1, 112-91, but only edged past them in Game 2, 93-91.

That said, the Grizzlies definitely found some confidence heading back home for Game 3. Nevertheless, they face a possible sweep unless they win.

Los Angeles won the first two contests courtesy of excellent rebounding, consistently challenging shots and offensive efficiency. The Clippers bashed Memphis inside to win the rebound battle 47-23 in Game 1, and despite a much closer margin in Game 2, they blocked 10 shots and continued to connect better on the offensive end.

Memphis must do a better job of creating its own open looks and knocking down shots at a higher rate, as the Clippers are much more balanced and possess the high-powered attack to up the tempo.

The Grizzlies have to slow the game down with their offense and capitalize on every second-chance opportunity. Unfortunately, L.A. is just as solid defensively, not to mention it has the ability to spread the ball around and force Memphis to match pace.

Prediction: Clippers over Grizzlies