NBA Playoffs 2017: Updated Championship Odds and Conference Finals Preview
Welcome to the Western Conference Finals, where the points don't matter because the Golden State Warriors will come back no matter what.
(Whose Line Is It Anyway?, people.)
On Sunday, the San Antonio Spurs blew a 25-point lead after Kawhi Leonard, their star, retweaked an ankle injury after landing on Zaza Pachulia's foot.
Anthony Slater of the Bay Area News Group contextualized how colossal the Claw's injury was:
Golden State finished with a 113-111 victory. According to ESPN.com's Michael C. Wright, the 25-year-old MVP candidate didn't seem too dinged up after the loss:
Then again, it's the same ankle that sidelined him for Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Houston Rockets. Injuries are bad; reinjuries are often worse.
Below you can find information on Game 2 and the rest of the league's conference championships.
Championship Odds
| Golden State Warriors | -240 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | +220 |
| San Antonio Spurs | +1400 |
| Houston Rockets | +3300 |
| Boston Celtics | +4000 |
| Washington Wizards | +6600 |
It's important to note that these odds were posted on Thursday before the Dubs captured Game 1. According to OddsShark.com, they've opened as 12-point favorites for Game 2.
Leonard's uncertain status figures to feed into that number.
X-Factors
Western Conference: Patty Mills
While playing 37 minutes in a game San Antonio had pushed its lead to 25 points in the first half, Patty Mills had a minus-15 net rating.
That's incredible.
Starting in place of Tony Parker, the 6'0" shooter put forth easily his worst game of the postseason. In the team's second-most minutes, he totaled its second-worst net rating. Mills finished with just five points on 1-of-8 shooting. He also clanged all six of his looks from beyond the three-point arc.
Mills turned the ball over just once while totaling three assists, though, which might be why head coach Gregg Popovich let him flirt with the 40-minute mark.
That, or Pop's not ready to give rookie floor general Dejounte Murray substantial minutes.
The 20-year-old former Washington Huskies star notched six points on 50 percent shooting, two assists, a steal, a block and a single turnover—all in 12 minutes.
Before Game 1, Popovich joked with reporters that he didn't want to heap too much praise on Mills, who seamlessly stepped into Parker's place last round.
Pop's reason was the punch line, per R.J. Marquez of KSAT 12:
He didn't have to worry about that after that game.
All kidding aside, Popovich might be forced to eventually give Murray more of a run. As Mike Finger of the San Antonio Express News noted on Saturday, the lanky Murray could at least make the Warriors' superstar backcourt sweat:
"If Golden State has a weakness, it's interior defense, something Aldridge exploited way back in the regular-season opener. And while no rookie guard figures to worry Steph Curry or Klay Thompson, Murray's 6-foot-5 frame and cartoon-level athleticism might help the Spurs keep up even when the Warriors push the pace."
"I don't want to be an average player," the 29th pick of the 2016 draft said after notching 11 points, 10 rebounds and five dimes against Houston in Game 6, via Finger. "I want to separate myself. Some dudes get satisfied by just making it to the NBA, I want people to look back and say, 'He was a hell of a player.'"
Popovich is a man of adjustments. Ask Houston. One of those, after dropping the opening conference finals contest, could be unleashing Murray in hopes of quelling the Dubs' overwhelming expositions.
It might be like trying to put out a raging fire with a watering can, but some water is better than none.
Eastern Conference: LeBron James
On Monday, the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards will clash for the right to take on the Cleveland Cavaliers.
A little translation: They're playing for the right to lose to LeBron James.
GQ Magazine's Nathaniel Friedman concurs:
Neither team has a player capable of slowing down the King. The Indiana Pacers had Paul George and the Toronto Raptors threw P.J. Tucker at him, and LBJ still averaged 34.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 7.1 dimes while shooting 55.7 percent from the field and leading the Cavs to a flawless 8-0 record.
Imagine what he'll do to whoever wins the Wiz-Celtics series.
Should Leonard return at full strength, Golden State and San Antonio could give fans a must-see series. Don't overthink things out East, though.
There's no guarantee James and Co. lose another game before the NBA Finals.
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