NBA Playoffs 2018: Power ranking the first round matchups

The field for the 2018 NBA Playoffs is set, but not all series were created equal. I power-ranked all eight first-round matchups in order of watchability, from lowest to highest.

Birds are chirping, spring blooms around us, and after the long, winding road of the 82-game regular season, we finally reached our destination of the playoffs. The race to the postseason was fun this year, with most of the seeds determined on the last night of games, including Denver and Minnesota’s loser-leaves-town overtime thriller for the West’s 8-spot.

Some teams are coming in hot while others limped their way across the finish line. It all makes for intriguing TV. I present the first-round power rankings, starting from the bottom and working our way up.

8. No. 1 Toronto Raptors (59-23) vs. No. 8 Washington Wizards (43-39)

As far as off-court soap operas go, the gurgling undercurrent of teammates not liking John Wall rates high. As soon as Wall went down with a knee injury, they became the ‘everybody eats’ Wizards — an allusion to improved ball movement and a clear slap in the face to their best player.

While compelling on the petty scale, it hasn’t produced great basketball. Washington is 10-15 since the All-Star break, the worst record of all the playoff teams. They were supposed to be establishing themselves as a postseason mainstay in the Eastern Conference, but the Wizards found themselves on the fringes this year.

Washington facing Toronto is interesting because they mirror each other to a degree. Similar in team makeups, both are driven by an all-star backcourt tandem, a traditional big man, and flanked by 3-and-D wings.

Toronto though, celebrated their best season in franchise history. Aside from winning 59 games and finishing in the catbird seat of the East, they evolved from last season. DeMar DeRozan expanded his offensive stylings, no longer subsisting in the mid-range. The team overall plays a more modern style, hoisting nearly 10 more 3’s per game than a year ago. They rank in the top-5 in both 3-point makes and attempts. Washington is in the bottom third of the league for both.

A worse sign for the Wizards is their league-average offensive and defensive ratings. Toronto’s ratings are elite, third in offense and fifth in defense. This series might get relegated to the NBA TV.

Prediction: Wake me when it’s over. Raptors in four.

Game 1 between the Raptors and Wizards will be at 5:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 14. ESPN will have the national telecast from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.