May 02, 2015

My picks:
Cleveland in 7
Atlanta in 7
Los Angeles in 6
Golden State in 6

East Rebounding leader: Pau Gasol
West Rebounding leader: Blake Griffin
Three pointers made: Kyle Korver
Assist Average: 9.0

posted by Ufez Jones at 11:47 PM on May 02, 2015

I'm cheating by starting my picks on Notepad before Ufez posts the pick'em. Tomorrow is Sunday, that means early to rise for church and then a busy day after that. If I don't get to the picks now, I won't have another chance.

Let's start with the East and Atlanta vs Washington: Washington pulled off the sweep against Toronto and looked good doing it. I did not expect the sweep, but the series win happened just about the way I figured it would with Pierce and Wall leading. Atlanta will be an entirely different bird. While there is no real "superstar" that will take over a game, there is no real weakness to be exploited. Wizards have talent and probably learned a lot from the first round, but they just don't seem to have enough. It won't be easy, but I'll say Atlanta in 6.

Chicago vs Cleveland: Until game 4 in Boston, I would have said that Cleveland would walk into the East finals. Without having Kevin Love, playing Chicago could be a very tough proposition. Bulls can match up well enough up front and as long as Rose stays healthy, they might have an advantaage at the point. James is the best player on the floor, but without Love, is he enough? Irving hit all the shots when Cavaliers needed them, but I noticed that Cleveland's bench was not as good as Boston's. This could be the deciding factor. It is very hard to pick against LeBron, so I won't, but it will go the limit. Cleveland in 7.

Westward ho! (no, I'm not giving a lady directions here) and Memphis vs Golden State: The Grizzlies were just what I figured against a depleted Portland team. Now they are up agains what may be the very best in Golden State. I cannot see Memphis doing much here. My prediction is short and sweet, Golden State in 5.

LA Clippers vs Houston: The Rockets have James Hardin, Dwight Howard, Corey Brewer, and Josh Smith. The Clippers have Blake Griffin, Jamal Crawford, J. J. Redick, and most importantly Chris Paul. This last-named player will have the largest impact on the series. Houston does not have a point guard who is the equivalent. One major liability is DeAndre Jordan. San Antonio used the deliberate foul against Jordan to good effect. Kevin McHale is no dummy, so look for him to go that route too. This series could be as good as the LA - San Antonio series just completed. I look for LA Clippers in 7.

Rebounders:

East -- Gasol, Chicago Bulls West -- Jordan, LA Clippers

3-point goals: Kyle Korver, Atlana hawks

Assists per Game: 8.6

posted by Howard_T at 11:56 PM on May 02, 2015

Cleveland in 6
Atlanta in 6
Los Angeles Clippers in 7
Golden State in 6

Gasol rebounds in the East
Howard rebounds in the West
James Harden for threes
9.2 assists/game

posted by dfleming at 10:06 AM on May 03, 2015

Cleveland in 6

Atlanta in 7

Houston in 7

Golden State in 5

Eastern rebounder: Joakim Noah

Western rebounder: Dwight Howard

Three pointer: Klay Thompson

Assist average: 8.8

posted by rcade at 12:57 PM on May 03, 2015

Wow, that's a really quick turnaround from the first round to the second round. Sorry I didn't see this earlier.

Cleveland in 5
Washington in 7
Los Angeles Clippers in 6
Golden State in 5

Kevin Love on the glass
DeAndre Jordan on the other glass
Stephen Curry from downtown
7.8 assists

posted by bender at 11:11 AM on May 04, 2015

Hmm, guess I have been outed as not watching the NBA playoffs. That guy looks like he's good for at least 3 boards a game, though.

posted by bender at 12:31 PM on May 04, 2015