NBA: *** Official 2015 NBA Playoffs Thread ***

[CycloneRulzzz]

WESTERN CONFERENCE
No. 1 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans

No. 2 Houston Rockets vs. No. 7 Dallas Mavericks

No. 3 Los Angeles Clippers vs. No. 6 San Antonio Spurs

No. 4 Portland Trail Blazes vs. No. 5 Memphis Grizzlies


EASTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 Atlanta Hawks vs. No. 8 Brooklyn Nets

No. 2 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 7 Boston Celtics

No. 3 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 6 Milwaukee Bucks

No. 4 Toronto Raptors vs. No. 5 Washington Wizards

 

[BallSoHard4Cy]

GSW 4 NO 1
HOU 4 DAL 2
LAC 4 SAS 3
MEM 4 POR 3

ATL 4 BKN 0
CLE 4 BOS 0
CHI 4 MIL 2
TOR 4 WAS 3

GSW 4 MEM 3
LAC 4 HOU 2

ATL 4 TOR 2
CLE 4 CHI 2

ATL 4 CLE 3

GSW 4 LAC 2

GSW 4 ATL 2

 

[JHUNSY]

WESTERN CONFERENCE
No. 1 Golden State Warriors vs. No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans

No. 2 Houston Rockets vs. No. 7 Dallas Mavericks

No. 3 Los Angeles Clippers vs. No. 6 San Antonio Spurs

No. 4 Portland Trail Blazes vs. No. 5 Memphis Grizzlies


EASTERN CONFERENCE

No. 1 Atlanta Hawks vs. No. 8 Brooklyn Nets

No. 2 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. No. 7 Boston Celtics

No. 3 Chicago Bulls vs. No. 6 Milwaukee Bucks

No. 4 Toronto Raptors vs. No. 5 Washington Wizards

Golden State in 5, Houston in 5, San Antonio in 7, Memphis in 6.
Atlanta in 4, Cleveland in 5, Chicago in 5, Washington in 7.

Golden State in 6, Houston in 6.
Atlanta in 5, Cleveland in 7.

Golden State in 5.
Atlanta in 6.

Golden State in 7.

 

[Cy$]

GSW in 5, Houston in 7, Spurs in 6, Memphis in 6

Atlanta in 5, Cleveland in 4, Chicago in 6, Washington in 7

Semis:
GSW in 5 over Memphis, Spurs in 6 over Houston
Atlanta in 6 over Washington, Cleveland in 5 over Chicago

Conf. Finals:
Spurs in 6 over GSW
Cleveland in 5 over Atlanta

Finals
Spurs in 6 over Cleveland

 

[CloneFan4]

Go Raptors! And yes Naz Long isn't the only Raptors fan in Ames.

 

[ClonesTwentyOne]

Warriors over cavs

 

[isuchicago]

Rose inexplicably destroys both knees in one play. Hawks choke. I cry, then laugh, then drink.

 

[CycloneRulzzz]

West gets more and more interesting every year. Houston win Midwest with 56 wins and Memphis and SA were right behind at 55.

 

[CyJack13]

Memphis is the big winner last night, gets to play Portland while the Clippers and Spurs, the two hottest teams in the West have to meet in the first round.

 

[chuckd4735]

Golden State over New Orleans in 5
Houston over Dallas in 6
Clippers over Spurs in 7 (this series will be amazing)
Memphis over Portland in 5

Atlanta over Brooklyn in 5
Cleveland over Boston in 7
Chicago over Milwaukee in 5
Toronto over Washington in 5

Golden State over Memphis in 6
Houston over Clippers in 7

Cleveland over Chicago in 6
Toronto over Atlanta in 6

Golden State over Houston in 5
Cleveland over Toronto in in 6

Golden State over Cleveland in 7

 

[CyArob]

Shame...
Adam Gray ‏@AdamJGray17 12h12 hours ago
Just got done doing a LEGENDARY NBA playoffs podcast with @brentblum ....only to find out the @ChrisMWilliams didn't record it. GoodJobCW

 

[CyArob]

GSW 4 NO 2
HOU 4 DAL 1
SAS 4 LAC 2
MEM 4 POR 3

ATL 4 BKN 1
CLE 4 BOS 1
CHI 4 MIL 3
WAS 4 TOR 2

GSW 4 MEM 2
SAS 4 HOU 2

ATL 4 WAS 2
CLE 4 CHI 2

CLE 4 ATL 3

SAS 4 GSW 3

SAS 4 CLE 2​

 

[FarminCy]

Jordan and Pippen are just too good to not win the east. Ewing and Starks as well as Shaq and Penny could make an interesting eastern finals against the Bulls but in the end the Bulls win the east regardless of who they end up against.

The west is more interesting. Clyde and the Blazers have looked good. Sir Charles and Thunder Dan have looked unstoppable at times. The Glove and Shawn Kemp have the potential to come out of the west. And as always never look past The Mailman, Stockton, and Horny. In the end I just think this is Sir Charles and the Suns' year. Last weekends interview Ahmad Rashad did on Inside Stuff with Barkley just has me thinking he is super focused and driven this year.

Call me crazy but I'm picking the Suns over the Bulls in 7.

 

[Rural]

Bron over the Clippers.

 

[huntt26]

Okay Bulls, STAY HEALTHY.

 

[jbindm]

First Round -

Warriors over the Pelicans in five - Anthony Davis does something incredible to snag a game for New Orleans but the Dubs are just too damn good.

Mavs over the Rockets in seven - The Rockets are a one man show on offense and in the playoffs, coaching matters. I'll take Rick Carlisle over Kevin McHale on the bench ten times out of ten.

Spurs over the Clips in six - If it was only the starting five I'd be tempted to take LA. But their bench is atrocious, and if this turns into a marathon series I like the team with more depth. Plus the Spurs can unleash Kawhi Leonard on CP3 and slow down the Clippers' halfcourt offense.

Grizzlies over the Blazers in seven - This will be an ugly, ugly series. I can't think of much else to say.

Hawks over Nets in six - To quote the Raptors' GM, "F**k Brooklyn."

Cavs over Celtics in five - Stevens is a great coach but he is outmanned. Celts need more talent. Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving get a cushy matchup for their playoff debut.

Bucks over Bulls in six - Yeah, I said it. Bring it on, Bulls fans. In all seriousness, I cannot get a good feel for this series. Kidd's proven to be a pretty damn good head coach and the Bucks are just unpredictable enough to steal a couple games. I just felt the need to pick another upset. This is as good a choice as any. Fear the deer!

Raptors over Wizards in five - Time to go, Randy Wittman. You had a good run.

 

[CyJack13]

First Round -

Warriors over the Pelicans in five - Anthony Davis does something incredible to snag a game for New Orleans but the Dubs are just too damn good.

Mavs over the Rockets in seven - The Rockets are a one man show on offense and in the playoffs, coaching matters. I'll take Rick Carlisle over Kevin McHale on the bench ten times out of ten.

Spurs over the Clips in six - If it was only the starting five I'd be tempted to take LA. But their bench is atrocious, and if this turns into a marathon series I like the team with more depth. Plus the Spurs can unleash Kawhi Leonard on CP3 and slow down the Clippers' halfcourt offense.

Grizzlies over the Blazers in seven - This will be an ugly, ugly series. I can't think of much else to say.

Hawks over Nets in six - To quote the Raptors' GM, "F**k Brooklyn."

Cavs over Celtics in five - Stevens is a great coach but he is outmanned. Celts need more talent. Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving get a cushy matchup for their playoff debut.

Bucks over Bulls in six - Yeah, I said it. Bring it on, Bulls fans. In all seriousness, I cannot get a good feel for this series. Kidd's proven to be a pretty damn good head coach and the Bucks are just unpredictable enough to steal a couple games. I just felt the need to pick another upset. This is as good a choice as any. Fear the deer!

Raptors over Wizards in five - Time to go, Randy Wittman. You had a good run.

Spurs or Warriors coming out of the West?

 

[Cy$]

The Oklahoma City Thunder are expected to spend time evaluating the partnership with coach Scott Brooks before committing to bring him back for the final year on his contract, league sources told Yahoo Sports.

Brooks is guaranteed for the 2015-16 season on his deal, with the Thunder holding a team option for 2016-17, sources told Yahoo Sports.

Oklahoma City missed the playoffs for the first time in six years on Wednesday, finishing 45-37 with superstar Kevin Durant lost for most of the year. Thunder general manager Sam Presti has to decide an organizational direction for the final year of Durant's contract, and that will include a decision about whether Brooks is ultimately the coach most capable of delivering a healthy Thunder roster to a championship. Brooks is well liked within the organization and has forged close relationships with management and players in his seven years as head coach.

Several league sources close to Brooks have doubts about his job security.

If a change comes, University of Florida coach Billy Donovan could emerge as a serious candidate to coach Oklahoma City, league sources said. Presti has a longstanding friendship with Donovan, a two-time national championship coach who has been open about his interest in moving to the NBA.

Two years ago, Presti and Brooks' representative had a difficult negotiation process on an eventual four-year contract extension, and several teams with openings, including Portland, were interested in hiring Brooks. If Brooks were to become available this spring, Orlando and Denver would have significant interest in hiring him, league sources said.

 

[cyclonespiker33]

Baby Bron Bron gets his third ring by beating the Splash brothers in 6

 

[jbindm]

Spurs or Warriors coming out of the West?

Tough call. Can't discount the amazing regular season the Warriors just had and they're nearly unbeatable at home, but there's just so much experience on the SA side and they're versatile enough to match up with just about any style. I guess I like the Spurs but I'm not super confident about it.