NBA Playoffs 2016: Schedule and Key Factors for Championship Matchup
As compelling as the NBA Conference Finals have been thus far, they are only the appetizer to the delicious entree that is the NBA Finals.
In the West, we are either going to see the greatest regular-season team of all time emerge to defend its title or the dynamic duo of Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant get a second crack at the NBA's biggest stage. That's a win-win situation for the neutral observer.
On the other side of the bracket, we're either going to see LeBron James make another bid to capture a title for a city that desperately needs one or the ultimate underdog in the Toronto Raptors.
Here's a look at the full schedule for the series when the matchup is finalized:
| Game 1 | Thursday, June 2 | 9 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Game 2 | Sunday, June 5 | 8 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Game 3 | Wednesday, June 8 | 9 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Game 4 | Friday, June 10 | 9 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Game 5* | Monday, June 13 | 9 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Game 6* | Thursday, June 16 | 9 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Game 7* | Sunday, June 19 | 8 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
Although all four teams are still alive, it's never too early to start looking ahead. Here are some of the key matchups that could determine who wins the title based on the teams that could make the finals, starting with the most likely matchup and moving to the least probable.
Key Potential Matchups
Russell Westbrook vs. Kyrie Irving
Make no mistake about it: Oklahoma City Thunder's Russell Westbrook is terrorizing the Golden State Warriors. His explosiveness and dynamic playmaking with the ball in his hands has been the biggest difference in the Western Conference Finals, as the Warriors haven't had a consistent answer for him on the defensive side of the floor.
To understand Westbrook's important role in the series, one only has to look at Games 4 and 5. In Game 4—the Thunder's most impressive win in the series—Westbrook put up a triple-double with 36 points, 11 assists and 11 rebounds.
In the Game 5 loss, the point guard turned the ball over seven times and was held to 39 percent shooting from the floor.
If the Cleveland Cavaliers and Thunder meet in the playoffs, the Cavs will have to find a way to slow Westbrook. That won't be an easy task. His regular-season stats against Cleveland resemble the numbers he's put up against Golden State in this series:
| WCF | 28.0 | 41.3 | 11.0 | 6.6 | 4.0 |
| vs. CLE (Reg. Season) | 23.5 | 51.5 | 10.5 | 6.0 | 2.0 |
Kyrie Irving isn't exactly a defensive maven. The Cavaliers might opt to rotate some of their longer, athletic wings to guard Westbrook at times, but that means Irving would still have to match up with a larger opponent on the defensive side of the ball.
With LeBron presumably canceling out Durant and the Cavaliers' rotation of bigs matching up with Steven Adams and Enes Kanter, stopping Westbrook is the only question the Cavs don't have an immediate answer for.
Draymond Green vs. LeBron James
If we do see a rematch between the Warriors and the Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, it's because Draymond Green turned things around in the Western Conference Finals. In the pivotal Games 3 and 4, Green was out of his element and went 1-of-16 from the field with just five assists.
Green talked about the need to step up ahead of Game 5 with Uninterrupted and did just that, as the Warriors kept their hopes alive and got the series to 3-2:
Green's contributions will be even more important against the Cavs. His size and strength make him the ideal defender against James, and he's done well on the offensive side against Cleveland in the past, putting up 19 points and 8.5 assists per game against the Cavs this season.
In the past, James has been complimentary of Green's tenacious approach to the game, per Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com:
"I think as two competitors, you like going against guys you know are going to compete every possession, every play. He's one of those guys and you relish that. You have fun with that. It's a game of basketball that you always love and at the end of the day you always want to be around people who compete no matter if they're on your team or versus.
"
Defending against Stephen Curry will obviously be an important storyline to watch too. It stands to reason that if Westbrook could be an issue, Curry wouldn't be much easier to guard. However, if the Western Conference showdown has shown anything, it's Golden State has a much harder time being dominant when Green is forced out of the series.
Kyle Lowry vs. Russell Westbrook
If the Raptors come back to beat the Cavs, the matchup between Durant and DeMarre Carroll would play a vital role. If Carroll can't at least slow Durant, the series will be over in four games.
But if you're looking at a matchup in which both players play an important part on offense, Lowry against Westbrook should be both scintillating and key.
Simply put, the Raptors are tough to beat when Lowry has been on. The point guard's emergence from a funk in Games 1 and 2 gave Toronto wins in Games 3 and 4, as highlighted by Synergy Sports Tech:
Lowry's postseason splits in wins and losses are about as dramatic as you'll see. When the Raptors have lost in the playoffs, he's seen a 10-point drop in points per game (from 23 to 13) while shooting just 31.5 percent in losses.
The Thunder would roll through the Finals easily unless Lowry could match Westbrook offensively.
Bismack Biyombo vs. Golden State's Front Line
Bismack Biyombo is the only player who has a case for being more important to Toronto's success against Cleveland. He's outplayed Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love on the boards in the series and morphed into a big-time player while Jonas Valanciunas recovered from an ankle injury.
NBA TV visualized his performances against Thompson in Games 3 and 4:
The Warriors are known for flashy offense and uptempo play, but they can struggle when they can't control the glass. Andrew Bogut, Festus Ezeli and obviously Green still play big roles in keeping teams off the glass, especially on nights when they might not be shooting as well.
That's where Biyombo comes in. By out-rebounding the Cavs bigs, Toronto was able to create second opportunities and limit those chances on the other end. The end result was two upset wins.
If the Raptors are able to advance to the Finals, they'll need some more of the same from their breakout big man.
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