there’s an old christmas song by andy williams– “it’s the most wonderful time, of the year!” well, for me, i have that line ringing through my head NOW. why? because the nba “playoffs” begin. my heart is also singing– ALLELUIA!! God created the nba to make me and millions of people around the world happy.
the league has changed the format for the playoffs. now, there is a play-in tourney. the seventh to tenth seeds in each conference battle it out for seeds seven and eight. after the play-in, the playoffs technically begin. i’ll post my playoff predictions this weekend.
the nba has harnessed the strength of the ncaa format: win or go home. these six games will have maximum playoff intensity. here is the set up:
since i am primarily a clipper and knicks fan, i have no skin in the play-in. but i will cheer for the following teams to advance: in the west: the grizzlies and blazers. in the east: the heat and the wizards.
i love portland’s backcourt of lillard and mccollum. memphis’ ja morant is one of the most exciting players in the association right now. the heat play intense defense and i love bam adebayo. washington’s russell westbrook has a complete game and is a total beast and plays with reckless abandon.
i am neutral with indiana and charlotte. they are good teams and i’m fine if they advance. i might cheer for them in the playoffs. i will cheer against: the warriors and the spurs. this is mostly for historical reasons– they have won too much already and i like to spread the nba playoff wealth instead seeing them both again. that being said, i am a big fan of james wiseman on golden state. dejonte murray on the spurs is an exciting player and from rainier beach.
also, what warms my heart is that the okc blunder missed the playoffs this year. as i look at their roster, only shai gilgeous-alexander is a noteworthy player. it seems to me that they will be relegated to the dungeon of the nba– much like the sacramento kings– for many years to come. yes, my nba schadenfreude runs deep: bring back the sonics!!
so there are my nba play-in musings. now, let me see if i have enough popcorn to last the next few days
Art and Sol Podcast ... Random Musings 