16 teams. 4 rounds. 1 goal. The AD report welcomes you to the NBA edition of playoff tossup. For each series in each conference, I shall give you all my predictions on the latest playoff series per round. As I name the two teams playing against each other, i’ll list their seed, record, brief explanation on why I think a certain team will win, and give a guess on how long the series goes for. So without further ado, let’s tip off with the Western Conference.
(1) Golden State Warriors 73-9 vs. (8) Houston Rockets 41-41 In a rematch of the Western Conference finals of last year, the Curry lead Warriors take on the Harden led rockets. Oh my have things changed. I had thought the Rockets had a shot at winning the west this year. Instead, they put on their best 2012-13 Lakers impression. The Warriors have dismantled functional teams so I would like to see what they do to a topsy-turvy Rockets team. James Harden probably doesn’t deserve this but Dwight Howard…never mind. Golden State wins 4-0 (2) San Antonio Spurs 67-15 vs. (7) Memphis Grizzles 42-40 Among all playoff teams, the Lance Stephenson Grizzles are last in PPG. They’re going up against one of the best defensive teams in NBA history. In addition to that, they’re 40-1 at home so it’ll be hard for Memphis to grit and grind their way to sneak one in Texas. Especially at the fact that they’re missing two of their best players. I respect Dave Joerger enough to where I think they’ll be competitive in a few games. However in the end, there is only so much you can do with Matt Barnes as one of your primary offensive weapons. Spurs win 4-0 (3) Oklahoma City Thunder 55-27 vs. (6) Dallas Mavericks 42-40 Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are playing together in a playoff series for the first time in almost 3 years. They’ve been both top 5 players this year and that alone should make OKC the favorite. Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavs have their work cut out for them but I do think they’ll do their thing. Dirk specifically is a 25 and 10 playoff average performer so I’m not worried too much about him his offense. His supporting cast is eh. And while I have my concerns for OKC and their inconsistent defense along with their knack for turnovers (they’re tied for third in most turnovers), they should win this series handily. Thunder win 4-2 (4) Los Angeles Clippers 53-29 vs. (5) Portland Trailblazers 44-38 Portland was supposed to be a lottery team after losing a lot of key pieces in the offseason. However, head coach Terry Stotts, guards Damian Lillard, C.J. McCollum, and crew, defied expectations. Can they keep things going against the Clippers? The answer to that question is a resounding no. I’m aware of the Chris Paul playoff curse, the Doc Rivers experience, the rustiness of Blake Griffin, and the factor of waiting for the Clippers to Clip. However, this team from top to bottom is all around better on both sides of the ball ranking 7th in the league in both Offense and Defense. I expect Dame and C.J. to ball out though, that’ll be fun. Clippers win 4-1 Eastern Conference (1) Cleveland Cavaliers 57-25 vs. (8) Detroit Pistons 44-38 The Pistons have made the playoffs for the first time in over six years thanks to the nice core of young pieces that they have and the brilliance of head coach Stan Van Gundy. Who looks to create a similar type of team as the one he had with Orlando a few years back. Cleveland on the other hand, have been playing well this year on the court and in the headlines. Both sides to it have been entertaining and funny. I expect the defending Eastern Conference champs to breeze by Detroit. However, if LeBron sends out another Bryson Tiller Nike cap Instagram caption or Tweet again, I’ll give Detroit another game to win. Cleveland wins 4-0 (2) Toronto Raptors 56-26 vs. (7) Indiana Pacers 45-37 Let’s be clear, if I were a Toronto fan, I’d be a bit worried. The Indiana Pacers can play. Paul George is back like he’s never left, they’re well coached, and most importantly they can defend. Is this necessarily a trap series? Not really. As I think Toronto should pull this out because I’m banking on them to continue to play well behind the terrific Kyle Lowry. If the Raptors can shake off the Drake Curse and take advantage of the lack of presence Indy’s bigs have on the glass, then things should be swell (I kind of don’t trust them though). OVO Raptors win in 6 (3) Miami Heat 48-34 vs. (6) Charlotte Hornets 48-34 This is where it gets very tricky. The 3-6 seeds are all tied with the same record and each of them are good in special ways. Miami has really come along nicely even with the sudden indefinite absence of their best player Chris Bosh. On the other side, Charlotte has enjoyed a breakout season led by a young team that includes Kemba Walker among others. I believe in this match-up Hassan Whiteside will be the x-factor. He recently got installed back into the starting lineup and yet he has been productive as he was coming off the bench. This team is pretty deep too and has home court advantage on its side. I believe if the Hornets want to win this series, they’ll have to continue to shoot well from beyond the arc like they have been doing against Miami. Especially Nicolas Batum and Marvin Williams. I’ll roll with Miami with a slight edge over Buzz City but IF I’m wrong, I won’t be surprised. Miami wins 4-3 (4) Atlanta Hawks 48-34 vs. (5) Boston Celtics Fun fact; the Hawks are 2nd behind the Spurs in defensive efficiency. That says a lot about this team because in the playoffs, one of the key things I look for is the ability to defend. And that’s not to say Boston can’t do that. Defense you could say, is their calling card. I’m looking forward to this series as I believe it could go either way. Boston is pretty balanced and head coach wizard Brad Stevens is due for a series win. The intriguing match-ups include Isaiah Thomas against the Hawks guards, the rebounding battle between these bad rebounding teams, and the all-around performance of Hawks ace; Paul Millsap. Counting a deep team like Boston out could make me look foolish but at the end of the day, Big Boi > Tom Brady. That is the final factor in my decision. ATL wins 4-3
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The 2015-16 NBA season has come to an end *tear tear*. It was a fun season to say the least. Watching the Warriors win 70 games, Damien Lillard go on a mission, watching the Spurs’ defensive excellence, the Kobe Bryant farewell tour, Durant’s revenge, and getting excited for MY Minnesota Timberwolves future. During this season, there were plenty of things to take note of and be impressed about. With that said, the AD report would like to reward those with its first ever All-NBA awards! *cues Award Tour by A Tribe Called Quest* (R.I.P. Phife Dawg).
This list is strictly based off of opinion. You’re free to give me your thoughts on who you think should be a part of these teams in the comment section below. On each player’s name, there is a link to their basketball reference page with this season’s statistics. Take it however you please. Let’s start with the 1st team All-NBA 1st team G: Wardell Stephen Curry II - Golden State Warriors G: Russell Westbrook – Oklahoma City Thunder F: Kevin Durant (still not calling him the Servant) - Oklahoma City Thunder F: Kawhi Leonard – San Antonio Spurs C: Boogie Cousins – Sacramento Kings All-NBA 2nd team G: Dame D.O.L.L.A. (that’s how he spelled it not me) – Portland Trailblazers G: Chris Paul – Los Angeles Clippers F: LeBron James (Huh? What the h e double hockey sticks?!) – Cleveland Cavaliers F: Draymond! – Golden State Warriors C: DeAndre Jordan – Los Angeles Clippers All-NBA 3rd team G: Kyle Lowry – Toronto Raptors G: James Harden – Houston Rockets F: PG13 – Indiana Pacers F: Paul Milsap (Hawk 1) – Atlanta Hawks C: *Al Horford (Hawk 2) – Atlanta Hawks *Or Karl Anthony-Towns, your choice 1st Team All-Defense G: Ricard Rubio I Vives – Minnesota Timberwolves G: Cliff Paul – Los Angeles Clippers F: Kawhi Leonard – San Antonio Spurs F: Paul Millsap (Hawk 1) – Atlanta Hawks C: Draymond! – Golden State Warriors 2nd Team All-Defense G: Kyle Lowry – Toronto Raptors G: Grit & Grind Allen – Memphis Grizzles F: Jae Crowder – Boston Celtics F: PG13 – Indiana Pacers C: DeAndre Jordan – Los Angeles Clippers All-Rookie 1st team G: D’Angelo Russell – Los Angeles Lakers G: BookEND – Pheonix Suns F: KAT (He probably should be on my All-NBA team…) – Minnesota Timberwolves F: Kristaps PorzinGAWD – New York Knicks C: Nikola isn’t a joke (I thought the analytic guys were being…them) - Denver Nuggets All-Rookie 2nd team G: Justise Winslow – Miami Heat G: Josh Richardson – Miami Heat F: Jahlil Okafor (Father catch these hands) – Philadelphia 76ers F: Myles Turner – Indiana Pacers C: Willie Cauley-Stein – Sacramento Kings (I wish I could do a 3rd team) Note: This review reflects thoughts and opinions before Monday night Raw the following night.
WrestleMania 32 was a fine show. Leading up to the show I was concerned with how the end product was going to turn out. Why? Well injuries to key stars such as Randy Orton, Cesaro, John Cena, and Daniel Bryan among others became a factor. Another contributing factor could be the booking on some stars felt flat. The creative writers seemed to be on a cold streak (in fact, the WWE are in the process of hiring new writers). I don’t envy the job however. It’s tough to do! At the end of the day though, I can say that WrestleMania 32 exceeded my expectations. I enjoyed it and everyone involved did a great job of putting together a quality product. The AD report will gladly rate and give a brief review on each match on the card. Starting with the first match I saw, the Intercontinental Title Ladder Match. Intercontinental Title Ladder Match; Winner: Zack Ryder I was pretty surprised by the outcome of this. My original pick was to see Sami Zayn win and continue his feud with the defending champ at the time Kevin Owens (who is one of my favorite heels right now). I thought him, Owens (retaining), or even Dolph Ziggler winning the match would’ve been an expected outcome. However, it was Zack who came through. The match itself was full of energy and fun moments. It was easily the top 2 match of the night. However, I’m not sure what to make of Ryder winning. He was so buried down the roster that I had no idea how to react. We’ll see where it goes from here. 9/10 *IT looks like the Miz put an end to his day old reign* AJ Styles vs. Chris Jericho (W) The fourth installment to their series, the phenomenal one took on Y2J. I enjoyed this match and it was probably the 2nd time I’ve seen them face off. There was suspense and good spots included. I’m confused on the Jericho win though. It looked like the WWE was going to launch Styles in as a marquee player and yet Jericho was booked to win. Maybe that means the feud continues and Styles gets the last laugh but as of now, it seems strange. 7.3/10 *AJ Styles appears to be the new no.1 contender for the WWE WH Title* League of Nations (W) vs. the New Day I picked the League of Nations in this one and I was happy to see that I was correct (not really because I like to see my black brethren succeed!). This match was satisfying and the post-match segment where Shawn Michaels, Stone Cold, and Mick Foley buried pretty much everyone afterwards was good for nostalgia purposes. Other than that, this whole moment was a fine one. 6/10 Brock Lesnar (W) vs. Dean Ambrose In the Street Fight contest, Ambrose took on Lesnar in what was again a fine match, however, I feel a bit disappointed in this one. The match felt like it ended early and Brock came out with the W. The WWE should be taking these opportunities to push newcomers/young stars and I’m not sure how this makes Ambrose look strong. Yeah he put up a good fight and Brock seemed vulnerable for a few moments but this ended flat. This was my pick to being the best match of the night and it fell short of that. 6.5/10 Triple Threat Match for Women’s Title; Winner - Charlotte Becky Lynch, Charlotte, & Sasha Banks. The winner of this triple threat would take home the new belt which was introduced in the pre-show by Hall of Famer Lita. High risk moves, near-falls, and good tactics resulted in possibly the best match of the night along with the ladder match. The Women’s wrestling division has come a long way and is about to enter a golden age with these three women at the helm. Charlotte picked up the victory thanks to her dad Ric Flair’s antics by restraining Sasha from breaking up Charlotte’s figure eight hold on Lynch. I don’t agree with Charlotte winning over the other two but you figure, one of the other two ladies will get their due. 9.5/10 Shane McMahon vs. the Undertaker (W) This Hell in a Cell bout had plenty on the line. If Shane won, he takes control over WWE over his father Vince and the Undertaker’s WrestleMania career would be over (it probably should have been over by now). This match had its spots but this isn’t worth revisiting in all honesty. It had low energy and grinding pace. Also, the outcome didn’t make much sense. If Shane had won, the possibilities going forward would have been endless. Undertaker winning does what now? He already lost once. Regardless, this match WILL be in fact remembered for this (Vince how could you!). 6/10 Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal; Winner - Corbin There were a few surprised entrants including Tatanka, DDP, Corbin (from NXT), and the recently named Basketball Hall of Famer (his entrance was the best of the night, don’t argue with me!). I expected someone like Mark Henry or Kane to win it but instead Corbin won it. It was a good decision considering the aspect of building the resume of younger stars. He now has some momentum to build upon for when he gets called up. The Battle Royal felt somewhat rushed and the funny thing about this was I had no idea some of the entrants were still employed by the company. 5/10 (The Rock & the Wyatts promo) In terms of the verbal segment, Bray and Rocky did pretty good here and this was like Steph Curry starring up to Karl Anthony-Town. They are so different from each other, it was fascinating. This then turned into a 6 second bout between Erick Rowan & the Rock (He rock bottomed him and that was it). As the Wyatt family was prepared to jump rocky, John Cena came in and helped the great one dispelled of them all. The moment was pretty dope, however like I said, this doesn’t help a younger star like Bray (in fact, him among others have been booked oddly in the past year). 8/10 Triple H vs. Roman Reigns (W) With the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the line, current COO Triple H took on Roman Reigns. Their rivalry has been a good one all starting since late last year (or two years ago by technicality). The match had its back and forth in addition to each other being good at selling each attack. Reigns eventually came out on top to become the new champion much to the dislike of the crowd in Dallas. This hard hitting bout was a decent one but the creative behind this was a bit lukewarm. There was a shocking twist when Reigns accidentally speared Stephanie McMahon but for the most part many weren’t feeling it. It’s not a good thing when the corporate heel champ in HHH is being cheered and your savior face in Reigns is being booed. The company is trying to push Reigns as the heir apparent to John Cena and the fans aren’t having it. I’m not really sure what to do at this point to put Reigns over. He isn’t bad at all and has improved both on the mic and in the ring. This is a deeper topic within itself but for now. Congrats to Reigns! 7.5/10 |
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