NBA Playoffs 2015: Postseason Standings, Championship Odds and Predictions
On Sunday, ESPN broadcaster and former NBA coach Doug Collins talked about two different types of teams in the playoffs: those trying to win a championship and those trying to build something.
As examples, Collins pointed to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who have bigtime title aspirations, and Boston Celtics, a young team working toward the future.
Just over a week into the postseason, it’s relatively clear which teams have a legitimate chance to win it all and which are looking down the road.
According to Odds Shark, the Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors are the two teams most likely to win the championship. Let's take a deeper look into the odds.
Updated Bracket
| Eastern Conference | |
| Atlanta Hawks lead Brooklyn Nets | 2-1 |
| Washington Wizards def. Toronto Raptors | 4-0 |
| Chicago Bulls lead Milwaukee Bucks | 3-1 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers def. Boston Celtics | 4-0 |
| Western Conference | |
| Golden State Warriors def. New Orleans Pelicans | 4-0 |
| Memphis Grizzlies lead Portland Trail Blazers | 3-0 |
| Los Angeles Clippers are tied with San Antonio Spurs | 2-2 |
| Houston Rockets lead Dallas Mavericks | 3-1 |
Championship Odds
| Cleveland Cavaliers | 11/5 |
| Golden State Warriors | 11/5 |
| San Antonio Spurs | 7/2 |
| Atlanta Hawks | 12/1 |
| Chicago Bulls | 12/1 |
| Houston Rockets | 16/1 |
| Los Angeles Clippers | 18/1 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | 28/1 |
| Dallas Mavericks | 40/1 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | 40/1 |
| Washington Wizards | 75/1 |
| Brooklyn Nets | 200/1 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | 250/1 |
Finals Predictions
East
The Cavaliers appeared to be far and away the top contender in the Eastern Conference, but when Kevin Love jogged off the court Saturday, he took some of his team’s momentum with him.
While chasing a loose rebound early in Game 4 against the Boston Celtics, who the Cavs swept, Love got tangled up with Kelly Olynyk, and his arm jerked in a way arms are not supposed to jerk.
Love is probably going to be nursing this injury for “a minimum of 2 weeks,” according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst.
Because of the injury, Cleveland’s championship odds will take a hit—just not a crushing one.
Yes, Love’s absence offensively and on the glass will hurt. Badly. But this is still a team with LeBron James, the best player in the world, and Kyrie Irving, one of the most prolific guards in the league.
The Cavs might be dazed by Love’s injury, but they haven’t dropped to the mat.
It’s likely that the Cavaliers will see the Chicago Bulls in the next round, so they will be rooting hard for the Milwaukee Bucks today. The longer that series goes, the more time Love will have to rest up.
Chicago has looked great at times and vulnerable at others, like at the end of Game 4, for example. After going on a scoring tear, Derrick Rose turned the ball over and then surrendered the game-winning layup.
That potential series will become significantly harder if Love can’t go for the first few games.
But thanks to in-season acquisitions like Timofey Mozgov, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert, the Cavs are deep enough to keep their championship hopes afloat while one of their stars works his way back.
West
There’s really no wrong answer here. The Rockets, Warriors, San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies could all come out of the West.
But this just feels like the year of James Harden.
Houston’s bearded MVP candidate singlehandedly carried his team to the No. 2 seed in the conference despite not having Dwight Howard, arguably the most dominant big man in the league, for half of the season.
Golden State sure is dominant, but the New Orleans Pelicans held their own against the No. 1 seed. Anthony Davis, while he had to work for everything he got, went on such powerful streaks that there were times the Warriors couldn’t stop him.
Houston has two stars in Harden and Howard. Throw in Magic Johnson Jr., also known as Josh Smith (kidding!), and strong role players like Jason Terry, Corey Brewer and Trevor Ariza, and this has the makings of a championship team, even without starting point guard Patrick Beverly.
One of Harden’s biggest attributes is his ability to get to the foul line. Golden State has a tendency to live—and potentially die—by the jumper, while the Rockets are more determined to get to the basket.
“Getting fouled is definitely an art, and he’s very good at it,” coach Kevin McHale told Andrew Keh of The New York Times. “You either know how to draw fouls or don’t, and I’m not sure you can teach it. It may be innate.”
Nick Mathews of the Houston Chronicle put Harden’s knack for drawing whistles into perspective:
So far, he’s averaging 30 points, 8.7 assists and four boards a game while shooting 94.6 percent on 12.2 foul shots a game.
Harden will need to continue dominating if he is to take his team all the way. But throughout the season, with a diminished supporting cast, he proved that he can.
With a newly healthy team, Harden's title hopes are looking brighter and brighter.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
