Bing predicts Golden State Warriors as 2017 NBA Champions

Still, the Celtics were gifted the No. 1 seed in the East by the Cavaliers and they have not been the pillar of consistency with a 4-4 stretch in early March, then losing 3-of-5 in late March and early April.

View the entire top 10 in the gallery above. Those are they types of plays we have to take away.

Will someone be able to knock the Cleveland Cavaliers off the pedestal in the Eastern Conference in this year’s playoffs? They’re playing better team basketball heading into the playoffs than the last two teams were.

Are the Warriors as good or, as some expected, better this season than they were on the way to 73-9? Ironically, the teams that led in the categories we made a decision to focus on all happen to play in the Western Conference. They are just sounder and the better-coached team overall. Paul George will help Indy get one on their home court, but Irving, James and Love will heat up in time to take care of the Pacers fairly quickly.

Leonard’s rise to superstardom has been remarkable. He’s the NBA’s best perimeter defender, and now he’s one the league’s most efficient scorers, putting up 25.5 points on 17.7 shots per game.

The Western Conference features four coaches who have won NBA Coach of the Year, including the reigning victor, Steve Kerr.

Curry is an interesting case. But the Warriors are the top team in the league.

So yes, that means we’re in for an epic third showdown between the Warriors and Cavs for the NBA Finals. Houston’s efficient offense, led by MVP-candidate James Harden, will need 7 games to beat Oklahoma and their own MVP-candidate (and Harden’s former OKC teammate) Russell Westbrook. Before we get too far, he was only given two options in a television interview, Blazers in 6 or Blazers in 7.

The rest of the West is full of longshots, with the fourth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers (51-31) the best of the bunch at +2500. He missed 21 games in the regular season, but he was incredibly important to the team’s success when healthy. I can’t even fathom the points, rebounds and assists totals that the Beard and the Brodie would each have.

The NBA has some mastermind coaches, and a lot of them just so happen to be in the Western Conference.

He isn’t a mainstream star yet because he plays in Milwaukee, but Antetokounmpo is the NBA’s next big thing.

The Pacers and Hawks have split their two meetings this season, with the road team winning each time. Then, both players exploded on their own teams to be MVP candidates, averaging almost 30 points per game and more than 10 assists per game (and one of them is actually averaging a triple-double). With their defensive upgrades, the No. 3 seed Toronto Raptors (+900) are capable of making noise if Kyle Lowry gets back to 100 per cent.

Yes, the Cavs lost seven of their last 11 regular season games. Klay Thompson averaged 22.3 points per game while Draymond Green also finished in double-digits with an average of 10.2 points per game. Guard play wins and John Wall and Bradley Beal are the superior duo. “We’ve got to have our bodies as fresh as possible going into Game 1 on Saturday”.

Though most believe the Warriors and Cavs have a good chance to meet up in the NBA Finals, let’s not forget about the all of the first-round matchups, as here are predictions of which teams will win in the first round of the NBA Playoffs.