hoopsjunkies

[hoopsjunkies]

Round 1 Update!!

As the first round is in full swing, I'm taking the time to look back at my initial predictions and see how accurate or inaccurate I was.

First off starting in the west, the OKC Thunder have swept the Grizzlies. I predicted a sweep and was correct. What I did not predict were the injury concerns. I was on the fence for the Grizzlies winning one game but the ankle sprain and hip injuries to Ja Morant sealed the deal for OKC. 

The second series is Denver and the Clippers. I had the Clippers winning in 7 and my prediction so far looks promising. The series is currently 2-2 after a crazy last second buzzer beater by Aaron Gordon to save Denver. The Clippers are playing very well though and were a possession away from going up 3-1. 

The next series is Golden State and Houston. I originally had the Rockets winning in 7 and was very nervous after the first few games to be honest. The Warriors looked very good and were going to take a commanding lead until the injury of Jimmy Butler. Jimmy Butler got accidentally undercut by Amen Thompson and remains questionable for game 4 as the Warriors are up 2-1. 

The final series in the West is the one I am most concerned about. I predicted the Lakers winning in 6 against the Twolves; however, as the Lakers find themselves down 3-1 the best I can hope for is a win in 7. The Lakers were very close to winning in both games 3 and 4 and could not close it out. Coach JJ Reddick controversally played a shift of Doe, Luka, Lebron, Rui and AR the entire second half of game 4 which has caused some in the media to question his coaching. I actually agreed with this decision and thought that game 4 was a must win game and they needed to do whatever they could to win. However, since they lost, this now puts them in a tougher position going back to Minnesota down 3-1. 

In the East, while no one has advanced yet, Cleveland is up 3-0 against the Heat and I predicted the Cavs to win in 5. Both Boston and the Pacers series are both 3-1 with them up against the Magic and the Bucks respectively. I predicted Boston in 5 which is a real possibility and the Pacers in 6. With Dame out for the rest of the year with an achilles tear, the Pacers look like they’re going to win in 5. 

The biggest series of the East is the Knicks and the Pistons. While the Knicks find themselves up 3-1, the Pistons were one missed call away from tying the series. Something I didn’t take into account was the clutchness of Jalen Brunson and the playoff experience they have versus the Pistons. Overall I am not super confident in this pick anymore, but I can still see them going to 7. 

[hoopsjunkies]

My official playoff predictions

East:

Cavs beat the Heat in 5

Pacers beat the Bucks in 6

Pistons beat the Knicks in 7

Boston beat the Magic in 5

West:

OKC beat the Grizzlies in 4

Nuggets beat the Clippers in 7

Lakers beat the Twolves in 6

Rockets beat GSW in 7

[hoopsjunkies]

NBA Playoffs!! pt 2

This is a part 2 where I am going to share my opinions on the East. If you are curious about what my thoughts were on the West I encourage you to check out that post below.

The first series that jumps out to me is the Knicks Pistons series. I picked Detroit to upset the Knicks in a chippy 7 game series. After watching game 1 I am still confident in my pick despite New York taking game 1. Detroit was up by 8 in the 4th quarter before giving up a huge run. If I'm Detroit I am very happy and optimistic still and their goal should be to try and steal game 2 before going back to Detroit.

The next series that I think will be close is Pacers Bucks. Despite the Bucks not looking great and losing to the Pacers in game 1, I still trust Giannis to try and carry this team. If Dame was healthy this would be a completely different series but I'm still gonna have to go with the Pacers to win. They just have too many weapons with Hali and Siakam and Turner and a good supporting cast. I also feel the combination of Doc Rivers and Darvin Hamm is a recipe for a playoff loss.

The Celtics magic series is going to be over quick. While I do like this magic team, I feel they got an unlucky draw with Boston and just don't have the star power to beat them. I think Banchero is a great player and Franz is very solid too. However, at any day the Celtics have 6 guys that can go off for 30+ with Tatum, Brown, Holiday, Porzinguz, White or Pritchard.

Finally similar to the Celtics Magic series, I have the Cavs beating the Heat off of star power alone. I commend the Heat for fighting though the playin and I think Spo is one of the best coaches in the league. The Cavs have just been dominant all year and have great chemistry and a great supporting cast with Mobley, Garland, Ty Jerome, Allen and Strus. They also have a star in Donnovan Mitchel who can get you 40 if your not careful. They just have too much size and scoring for Bam and Herro and the Heat. I do trust Spo to win at least a game, but I do have the Cavs winning in 5.

[hoopsjunkies]

NBA Playoffs start!!

It's finally here. The start of the NBA playoffs is upon us. There are so many good matchups in the East and West as well as a couple matchups that might be over rather quickly.

In the west, a couple series I am really intrigued by is Denver and the Clips and Houston and Golden State. Starting with Denver and the Clippers, I have a hard time betting against Jokic. Even with the Westbrook curse, Jokic just controls so many aspects of the game and is so hard to stop. An X-factor for the series is big Zu. Big Zu had an amazing season and has my vote for most improved. I feel like he is one of the better bigs capable of slowing Jokic down from a size perspective as well as is good for 20 and 15 on any given night.

In the Golden State Houston series, I still have Houston coming out on top. Despite looking horrendous on offense and GSW taking game 1, I still trust the coaching of Ime Udoka and the size and athleticism of Houstons guards. However, I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. Steph is playing very well despite the physical defense and playoff Jimmy has been balling too. If Houston is going to win, they need more production from Jalen Green and Fred Vanvleet. Other than Sengun, no one else was able to score. An X-factor in this series in my opinion is going to be Jalen Green. He gives the Rockets a spark on offense and can go off for 30+ when hes hot. Howerver, if he isn't hot, he can go 3/20 with 10 points and be a liablity.

When talking about the OKC Grizz series, I feel like this will be over quick. The Grizzlies might get one game when OKC takes their foot off the gas but I have OKC winning in a landslide. They killed them by 50 in game 1 and it wasn't even that close. Personally I do not like JJJ and in my opinion if he's not hitting 3s he doesn't give much else offensively. He is a solid defender but I feel like he will be neutralized by Chet and Hartenstein in this series.

Finally in the West, the Lakers Twolves. As a Lakers fan, I am nervous after watching game 1 ngl. Despite having the lead in the first quarter, I feel like Luka had the ball a little too much and should have gotten guys like Rui and Doe and AR involved more. I am very interested to see what adjustments JJ makes moving forward. I felt really good about the matchup at the start and thought Rudy and Julius Randle would be liabilities; however, they looked good against our smaller lineup.

[hoopsjunkies]

End of the NBA regular season

With only about 4 games left in the regular season, the West is as close as its ever been. These last 4 games can determine if a team like the lakers place as the 2nd seed or the 8th seed.

What are your thoughts on how this year has been?

[hoopsjunkies]

End of the Big Dance

With the Florida Gators coming back on the Houston Cougars yesterday and winning the national championship and the Uconn Huskies rolling through the women's bracket, March Madness 2025 is officially over.

I did have both UCLA for women and Duke for men winning both brackets and was unfortunately wrong. Did anyone else have Florida and Uconn winning it all?

[hoopsjunkies]

Start of March Madness!!

The start of the big dance is tonight. Who are some teams looking to have a cinderella run this year?

A sleeper pick I have going far is UCSD with their ability to force turnovers and get out in transition. What do you guys think?

[hoopsjunkies]

LAKESHOW!!

The Lakers are on a tear right now!! I didn't know how the Luka Lebron combo would fit but it looks really good right now.

[hoopsjunkies]

How many LEGIT contenders are there in the West

As now the west is very tight with seeds 6-10 only being seperated by a couple games. With that being said how many teams have a legit chance of winning.

In my opinion OKC are the clear favorites. After that the only other teams I think have a chance are the Lakers and Denver.

Let me know what you guys think? Who else am I missing?

[hoopsjunkies]

What is the best basketball era?

Warriors star Draymond Green just came out and stated on his latest podcast that he thinks the 2015-2019 era basketball was the best of all time.

While I disagree with his opinion, it would be foolish of him not to say the era where he won his four championships.

In my opinion 2016 is the greatest year of basketball ever; however, the greatest era of basketball is the current one. What do you guys think? What is the greatest era of basketball in your opinion?

[hoopsjunkies]

Welcome!

Hello I am the creator of HoopsJunkies.

I am an avid sports follower, especially basketball. Have you ever watched or seen sports media and disagreed with what they are saying? If so this is the place to voice your opinion.

I can't wait to hear what you have to say!