I'd still be quite surprised if anyone besides the Warriors won the championship. But, it's a testament to this NBA season that I'm at least up to "quite surprised" rather than "shocked." Besides Golden State as the obvious favourites, I'd say Houston, Milwaukee and (deep breath) Toronto all have legitimate shots to win the title. You could maybe make a case for Utah, Boston, or Philadelphia if you really stretched but I don't think it's happening.
* Warriors over Clippers in five
* Rockets over Jazz in seven (this will be the battle of the first round, as Utah has quietly been one of the best teams in the league since January)
* Nuggets over Spurs in seven
* Thunder over Trail Blazers in six
* Bucks over Pistons in four
* Celtics over Pacers in six
* 76ers over Nets in seven (if Joel Embiid is actually badly hurt, all bets are off for this one)
* Raptors over Magic in five
* Warriors over Rockets in seven
* Nuggets over Thunder in six
* Bucks over Celtics in six
* Raptors over 76ers in six
* Warriors over Nuggets in six
* Raptors over Bucks in seven
* Warriors over Raptors in six
I feel like this is only kind of a homer pick, as the Raptors are probably the deeper team than Milwaukee, though obviously the Bucks have the best player (perhaps in the entire league) in Giannis. What's ultimately stopping me from predicting the Raptors or Bucks from actually upsetting Golden State is that the Western Conference was once again way better than the East, so I feel the Warriors might be more than a couple of streets ahead of even the other conference's top dogs. It'll nonetheless be a huge accomplishment for the Raptors to even make the NBA Finals for the first time in team history, and they'll certainly put up more of a fight than Cleveland did last season.
* Warriors over Clippers in five
* Rockets over Jazz in seven (this will be the battle of the first round, as Utah has quietly been one of the best teams in the league since January)
* Nuggets over Spurs in seven
* Thunder over Trail Blazers in six
* Bucks over Pistons in four
* Celtics over Pacers in six
* 76ers over Nets in seven (if Joel Embiid is actually badly hurt, all bets are off for this one)
* Raptors over Magic in five
* Warriors over Rockets in seven
* Nuggets over Thunder in six
* Bucks over Celtics in six
* Raptors over 76ers in six
* Warriors over Nuggets in six
* Raptors over Bucks in seven
* Warriors over Raptors in six
I feel like this is only kind of a homer pick, as the Raptors are probably the deeper team than Milwaukee, though obviously the Bucks have the best player (perhaps in the entire league) in Giannis. What's ultimately stopping me from predicting the Raptors or Bucks from actually upsetting Golden State is that the Western Conference was once again way better than the East, so I feel the Warriors might be more than a couple of streets ahead of even the other conference's top dogs. It'll nonetheless be a huge accomplishment for the Raptors to even make the NBA Finals for the first time in team history, and they'll certainly put up more of a fight than Cleveland did last season.
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