NBA Playoffs 2014: Preview and predictions
By Brad Rowland
CONFERENCE FINALS
Eastern Conference
No. 2 Miami vs. No. 4 Chicago – Remember the 2012-2013 playoffs? Well, the Heat ran through the Bulls in 5 games and only one of Miami’s wins was particularly competitive. If Miami plays their game, there is almost no scenario in which they lose to this far less talented Chicago roster, and to be honest, it is a tip of the cap to Thibodeau and Noah that we’ll give the Bulls two wins in the series. Pending health to the “big three”, you have to take the champs. Heat in 6
Western Conference
No. 1 San Antonio vs. No. 2 Oklahoma City – Perhaps my favorite series on the entire board pits the defending Western Conference champions against the team that they dethroned last season. Oklahoma City fans would tell you (and they would be right) that entire landscape would have been different if Russell Westbrook was available, but even with that, San Antonio blitzed through the West last year, even grabbing a sweep over Memphis in the conference finals. I believe these were the best two teams in the NBA this season, but with the money on the table, San Antonio is the one collective unit (Pop, Duncan, etc.) that I would pick to game-plan against Durant and Westbrook. Give me the Spurs, but I don’t feel great about this one. Spurs in 7