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NBA Playoffs Predictions: First Round Western Conference · The Stop and Pop

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: So if you listen to this,
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: you must have listened to the Eastern Conference player predictions that I posted.
• 0:09
  SPEAKER_00: So now this is the Western Conference predictions.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: So as we know, the Kings have knocked out the Warriors in the playing tournament.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: So the Warriors are out of the playoffs and the Kings will compete for the 8th seed
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: against the Pelicans,
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_00: who lost to the Lakers for the 7th seed.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: So, the standings go as followed.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: The seventh place Lakers will face the second place Nuggets.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: The sixth place Suns will face the third place Timberwolves.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: The fifth place Mavericks will face the fourth place Clippers.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: And the first place Thunder will face the winner of the Kings and Pelicans matchup.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: So, I believe that
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: the Thunder will advance to the second round.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: I know Shannon Sharp said that he feels like this is the worst first seed in recent years.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_00: And in a previous post that I made,
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: in a previous podcast,
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: I did say I feel like the Thunder need experience to advance in the playoffs.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: And
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: ultimately win it.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: But I did say I feel like they will get past whoever they face in the first round.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: So if it ends up being the Kings or the Pelicans, I feel like OKC has that.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like that will go possibly five games.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: Kings and the Pelicans don't have a lot of playoff experience as well.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: So it will be a battle of mostly youth.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: And I feel like the Thunder will have that on their side because they have the best player in the series.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: We have Shea Gildress Alexander.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: Now the two incentive seed, Nuggets and the Lakers,
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: I said on my previous podcast that I feel like the Lakers don't have enough to beat
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: the Nuggets,
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: and I stand by that.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like the Nuggets are a well-oiled machine.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: They don't have enough to stop Nikola Jokic, the reigning Finals MVP, the reigning champions.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: So I feel like the Nuggets will beat them in five games, I believe.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: I could be wrong.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: I don't want to doubt LeBron James, but
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: It's hard to bet against the Nuggets right now.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: I doubted them last year.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not going to lie.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: I doubted the Nuggets last year, and they ended up winning it.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: So the Timberwolves versus the Suns.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: It's interesting because with the amount of talent that the Suns have, they're not really a six seed.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: And they've just been hit with a lot of injuries this year, especially with Bradley Beal.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: I do feel like nobody wants to face the Suns in the first round.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not sure if the Suns could win it, though.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like if the Timberwolves are going to continue without Carl Anthony Towns,
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: who's been out due to injury,
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like the Suns could win it.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: But I do feel like if Tim was half Carl at these times for the first round, they couldn't win it.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: Four and five, like I said before, it's always the hardest to basically predict who's going to win.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: So that's the Clippers and the Mavericks.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: Honestly, I feel like the Clippers will win that.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: Luka is...
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: probably the best player in the league right now sledding and scoring this year
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_00: playing out of his mind you have kairi who's also playing out of his mind but i
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: feel like if the clippers are in sync healthy they can they can go possibly to the
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: conference finals they're really deep this year
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_00: They've been playing well most of the season.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: I went on record and said that I feel like it's not going to work.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: But it has been working so far.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: But we have to see how they perform playoff time.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: But I do feel like the Clippers can.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: If things go perfectly for them, go right, they stay healthy, they can beat the Mavs.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: So...
• 5:01
  SPEAKER_00: With that being said, I have the Thunder in five games.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_00: I have the Clippers in seven games.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: I have the Suns in five, at most six games.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I have the Nuggets in four games, at most five.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: That's my Western Conference predictions for the first round.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: I will continue this series of my predictions throughout the playoffs as time progresses.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: Don't forget to like, subscribe, and share this with your basketball junkie friends.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: And also, if you want, leave a comment on both posts about who you think will go further in the playoffs.