NBA Playoff Predictions: N.Y. Knicks and the 5 Teams Bound for Colossal Upsets
The NBA playoffs are around the corner and both the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference are just about set. This year, it seems as if the playoffs are as exciting as they could possible be.
In both the East and the West there are teams that are playing at a much higher level than what their current place in the standings indicates. There are also teams that are underachieving significantly as the season comes to an end.
Taking several factors into consideration including recent play, favorable match-ups, among others, here are the top 5 teams that will have the strongest chance to an upset come the end of April.
5. Philadelphia 76ers
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The Philadelphia 76ers are a very interesting team. They defend with the best of them and have hard working players on the court at all times. They also have an incredible coach that has literally turned garbage into gold.
Currently holding the seventh spot, only Miami and Boston seem like the teams that are likely to face Philly in the first round. Neither team posts a strong advantage against Philly. Although Miami and Boston are both better basketball teams than Philly, they will both face a potential upset.
This inexperienced Philly team is one of the most focused team in basketball. Expect their focus to translate into well played ball games against better teams and possibly success and victories.
4. Memphis Grizzlies
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When Rudy Gay went down with a bad shoulder injury, many NBA fans expected the team to drop in the standings and out of the playoffs. Many expected Phoenix or Houston to jump into the playoff picture as Memphis faded away. Wrong, very wrong.
The Grizzlies are one of the hottest teams entering the post-season for the first team in several years. Night in and night out they put up a fight against any team they face regardless of their talent and very often go home victorious.
Like other bottom-seed teams in the West, the Grizzlies will like face Dallas, San Antonio, or the Lakers. They match up well against all three teams, but have found plenty of success against the Texas powerhouses. If the Grizzlies manage to avoid the Lakers by either losing plenty of winning plenty, San Antonio and Dallas will have their hands full in the first round. If they get stuck against the Lakers, Kobe and company will also have to bring their A-game to make sure this series does not get out of hand.
3. Denver Nuggets
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Absolutely nobody wants to face the Denver Nuggets come the start of the playoffs. The Nuggets are a completely different team since they traded away their two main players at the trade deadline. Of course, completely different also means a much better team in this case.
The roster the Nuggets have lacks a superstar, or even a star. What they do not lack, though, is dirty workers, hustlers, and passionate players. Those kinds of players can take you a long way as well.
The first round mach-up of Denver and most likely Oklahoma City will be epic. Neither of these teams can identify any sort of advantage against one another, even if the last two meetings suggest otherwise. Every game will come down to the last few minutes and turn into a toss-up of lose balls, foul calls, and crunch time shot making.
Of course, there is still a small chance the Dallas Mavericks slip to fourth and play Denver. In that case, there is an identifiable advantage that favors Denver greatly.
2. Portland Trail Blazers
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Gerald Wallace may have only been a Trail Blazer for just a few weeks, but in style and determination he has been a Trail Blazer for his entire career. He is in every sense of the word, a perfect fit for this team.
Just like every other season, Portland managed to make the postseason showcasing one of the most injury plagued teams in the league. Even though they are short-handed, they still have one of the most athletic, hard-working, young teams in the league.
In the first round, it is still a grudge match for the last few playoff positions. Portland will either play Dallas, San Antonio, or the Lakers.
For this team, it will come down to who they play. If they play Dallas, an upset would even be expected the way they have dominated the game against them in the last two meetings. The Lakers might be somewhat harder since Portland lacks enough big guys to defend Gasol and Bynum in the low block. In the other hand, Portland has absolutely destroyed the Lakers tonight. As for San Antonio, it will come down to which team comes out of the gate, the pre-Duncan injury team or the post-Duncan injury team.
1. New York Knicks
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Two names, Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire. Both of these guys can win a basketball game by themselves on a given night. Therefore, two amazing nights by each player could easily turn into an upset of any Eastern Conference team. It also doesn't hurt to have a former finals MVP and legitimate floor general in Chauncey Billups.
In the East, it looks like New York will either play Miami or Boston. Miami seems like a more favorable match-up since they lack inside defenders where Anthony and Stoudemire do most of their damage. Boston has been playing uncharacteristically bad, but in the playoffs they will surely bring their A-game.
The Knicks have been all but impressive since the Carmelo Anthony trade. They have relied on heroics by Stoudemire and Anthony to win games. But again, if heroics is what the team needs to win, they might just keep the same game plan and hope for a few more at the end of April.
