NBA Playoff Standings: Full Outlook, Updated Predictions After Opening Weekend
Although the 2015 NBA playoffs are just one game old across the board, it seems appropriate to analyze the postseason landscape to see if anything changes.
Especially in a seven-game series, it's never advisable to read too much into one game. Then again, sometimes cracks can appear in a team's facade that you never noticed before. Or that one small problem area a team had entering the playoffs looks to be an even larger issue.
One game doesn't decide a series, but it can serve as a road map for how the rest of the battle will unfold.
Here's a look at how everything looks so far in both conferences.
Eastern Conference Outlook
| No. 1 Atlanta Hawks vs. No. 8 Brooklyn Nets | Atlanta leads, 1-0 | ATL in 5 |
| No. 4 Toronto Raptors vs. No. 5 Washington Wizards | Washington leads, 1-0 | WAS in 7 |
| No. 3 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 6 Milwaukee Bucks | Chicago leads, 1-0 | CHI in 5 |
| No. 2 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 7 Boston Celtics | Cleveland leads, 1-0 | CLE in 5 |
Very little has changed much after one weekend in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. The Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers still appear to be on a crash course for the conference finals. Neither team really coasted to victory in Game 1, but there's little to no chance that one or both of Atlanta and/or Cleveland loses a seven-game first-round series.
Hawks forward Paul Millsap argued that Atlanta's 99-92 win over the Nets only illustrated the team's playoff mettle, per USA Today's Dan Wolken.
"It's the playoffs. We have to win all type of ways," Millsap said. "You never know how you have to win a game. Tonight we've shown we can win it ugly."
Meanwhile, for the Cavs, Kyrie Irving didn't look overwhelmed by his first appearance in the postseason. He dropped 30 points on 11-of-21 shooting against the Celtics.
According to ESPN Stats & Info, only one other player in franchise history scored 30 in his playoff debut:
Barring a catastrophic injury to a key member of the Hawks and/or Cavaliers, those series should be over in relatively short order.
The same can probably be said of the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks' first-round matchup.
According to NBA.com, the Bucks finished the regular season 25th in offensive rating (100.5), the lowest of the 16 playoff teams. The Bulls don't have an electric offense themselves, but they clearly outgun Milwaukee on that side of the ball.
Chicago picked up a 103-91 Game 1 win, the most encouraging aspect of which was Derrick Rose's 23 points and seven assists.
The Bucks' defense might be enough to get them a game or two, but their offense simply isn't good enough to keep up with the Bulls.
The toughest series to call in the East is the Toronto Raptors vs. Washington Wizards. Both teams pretty much backed into the postseason after poor finishes to the regular season. In a way, it was somewhat fitting the two had the least aesthetically pleasing Game 1 of the weekend:
John Wall and Bradley Beal combined for 26 points on 11-of-41 shooting, while Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan were a combined 8-of-30 for 22 points.
The difference between these teams is relatively small, so it was big for the Wizards to take Game 1 in Toronto and get home-court advantage.
Yes, Paul Pierce isn't going to score 20 points every night, but as long as Wall and Beal improve, Washington should be able to advance.
Western Conference Outlook
| No. 1 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans | Golden State leads, 1-0 | GS in 4 |
| No. 4 Portland Trail Blazers vs. No. 5 Memphis Grizzlies | Memphis leads, 1-0 | MEM in 6 |
| No. 3 Los Angeles Clippers vs. No. 6 San Antonio Spurs | Los Angeles leads, 1-0 | SAS in 7 |
| No. 2 Houston Rockets vs. No. 7 Dallas Mavericks | Houston leads, 1-0 | HOU in 6 |
Whereas the East has one competitive series and what look to be three walkovers, the West is the complete opposite.
As good as Anthony Davis is—and he's really, really good—he can't single-handedly get the New Orleans Pelicans past the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors are the best team in the league and have a matchup advantage at nearly every position.
Over seven games, New Orleans can't keep up with Golden State.
And then you have the three other series, all of which were extremely hard to handicap before the playoffs and remain that way after the weekend.
The potentially easiest to call is the Portland Trail Blazers vs. Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies won Game 1 100-86. This tweet from Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver was a nice visual representation for how the game unfolded:
The Blazers' lack of depth was a serious issue coming into the postseason. Getting Arron Afflalo back for Game 2, per NBA TV, will certainly help Portland, but he alone might not be enough.
As long as the Blazers still have LaMarcus Aldridge and Damian Lillard—two players capable of putting up monster nights—they're not out of this series by any stretch.
Between Memphis' physical style and the lack of home-court advantage, though, Portland should still be considered the underdog.
A team that might be shedding the underdog label is the Los Angeles Clippers. They flipped a switch in the second half against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday night, demonstrating how devastating they can be offensively. Aron Baynes in particular learned that the hard way.
Much like the Blazers, the Clippers get significantly worse when their starters aren't on the floor. Aside from Jamal Crawford, the bench is a massive liability for L.A., and the Spurs feasted when Doc Rivers rotated his first unit out of the game.
San Antonio has issues of its own, though.
Perhaps it's naive to expect the Spurs to wake up one day and become their playoff selves at some point. Maybe the aging veterans don't have one more run left.
San Antonio deserves the benefit of the doubt, though, and the Spurs' depth might prove more and more valuable the deeper the series goes. Chris Paul and Blake Griffin might not be able to carry L.A. over the course of a six- or seven-game series.
Another series that's bound to go six or seven games is the Houston Rockets vs. Dallas Mavericks. Houston drew first blood, beating Dallas 118-108.
Grantland's Zach Lowe highlighted two key points that could swing the outcome:
Dwight Howard wasn't spectacular. Foul trouble limited him to 17 minutes on the court. In those 17 minutes, though, he had 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting, five rebounds and five blocks. If Howard can stay on the floor and not pick up early fouls, the Rockets will be in business.
There's also the Rajon Rondo question, which has been a constant topic of discussion ever since he was traded to Dallas.
Will Rondo's offensive deficiencies hurt the Mavericks offense more than he helps Dallas on the defensive end?
Hardwood Paroxysm's Chris Manning argued that the NBA has changed but the 29-year-old point guard hasn't evolved with it:
"It’s also really no fault of his own that Rondo isn’t as effective at this point. In the seven seasons since Rondo won a title, the league has fundamentally changed. Three-point attempts are up and spacing has never been more important. Rondo is facing this head on against Houston, the franchise that values just about everything Rondo does not do on the court.
"
It would be somewhat ironic if the Rondo trade, which was supposed to put Dallas over the top, instead serves as a catalyst for the team's downfall in the playoffs.
Obviously, the absence of Patrick Beverley continues to scare you about Houston, but the Rockets should be able to get by the Mavs in the first round.
