The NBA Play-In Tournament aka “The Playoffs” started on April 12th and they have not disappointed. The Minnesota Timberwolves & Patrick Beverley took care of the LA Clippers (109-104) in a great game. The Timberwolves got the win without a good game from Karl Anthony-Towns. KAT didn’t play well but the one thing he had working for him was D’Angelo Russell/Anthony Edwards who combined for 59 points. It’s amazing seeing the emergence of Anthony Edwards as he was able to score inside and out with extreme ease. On the flip side, Mr.Ice In His Veins D’Angelo Russell put on a show making sure people remember he was an NBA All-Star a couple of years ago. The Timberwolves advanced to play the Memphis Grizzlies which left the Clippers to play the winner of the Pelicans/Spurs at home. The Spurs worked their way into the Play-In grinding out some big wins to end the regular season.

The Pelicans were able to do the same as the tag-team of CJ McCollum & Brandon Ingram was blossoming nightly. The Spurs fought hard in this game but fell short to the Pelicans (113-103) on Wednesday. It was just tough as Spurs star Dejounte Murray was in foul trouble from the start and it had Coach Pop searching for answers from different players. While that was going on CJ McCollum & Brandon Ingram were putting on a clinic combining for 59 points. Both CJ & BI were able to create their own shots time after time. The Pelicans were able to hold them off after a late push from Devin Vassell’s hot shooting. Paul George was put in the health and safety protocols and was unavailable for the Clippers game vs New Orleans. So with Paul George being out the Clippers fought as much as they could but Brandon Ingrams 30 point performance was too much to proper the Pelicans into the playoffs against Phoenix.

No. 1 Phoenix Suns (64-18) vs. No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans (36-46)

The Phoenix Suns dominated the regular season series 3-1 against the Pelicans. Going into this series the Pelicans have fought their way in and look to use that momentum to make some noise in an upset. With the Suns well-rested and waiting for them it will be an interesting series for sure.

Suns Can Win If: It’s going to be a tough task for the Pelicans in this series. The Phoenix Suns are rested and have been waiting to see who they were going to play. Now that they will be playing the New Orleans Pelicans it’s safe to say they will be ready. Devin Booker & Chris Paul are the driving force to this Suns team and I look for both to dominate. Booker & Paul still have some revenge on their minds with getting back to the NBA Finals and they will be looking to make light work of the Pelicans. Devin Booker is unguardable as he can score anywhere on the floor. They will put CJ on him but it will be a tough assignment as all you can do is defend and hope he misses. Chris Paul is the key to this matchup because the Pelicans don’t have a true point guard that can stay in front of him. When CP3 gets into Point Gawd mode he’s unstoppable and that’s what he will be displaying against the Pelicans as he has a high IQ. The Suns depth is key in this as well because you have Bridges/Crowder/ who can help impact the game without even having the ball. Deandre Ayton is going to have to come up big in his matchup with Jonas as well but overall this should be light work for the Suns who are loaded. The Suns didn’t have the best record for no reason and as long as there are no injuries (knock on wood) this postseason I don’t see anyone stopping them.

Pelicans Can Win If: CJ McCollum & Brandon Ingram combine for at least 65 PPG against the Suns. They didn’t play well against them in the regular season but this is a new season. The only way they win is off they just go off against Phoenix. CJ will have Crowder/Bridges on him so he will have to cook every time. Brandon Ingram is the key factor for the Pelicans in this series because he can get his shot at any time with his height and length. The Pelicans are outmatched in this series with the starting lineup and their depth but if they can continue this momentum since the Suns haven’t played anything is possible. The way the Suns are built as a team it will be tough for the Pelicans to walk out this series with 4 wins. BI & CJ will have to combine for 65 PPG in this series and I meant that for them to even have a chance. Because if Devin Booker gets hot this series can be over quick as you saw in one of the games this season Booker only played 3 quarters. The Pelicans will have to defend and use Herb Jones a lot more on the perimeter this series if they want to make it to round 2.

SneakerReporter Prediction – Phoenix Suns Win (4-1)

No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies (56-26) vs. No. 7 Minnesota Timberwolves (46-36)

During the season Minnesota and Memphis tied the head-to-head series (2-2). This is going to be one of the most entertaining series in the 1st round of the NBA Playoffs because of Patrick Beverley vs Ja Morant. Leading into the series Ja Morant made it clear that the Grizzlies aren’t ducking any smoke. Throughout the season meetings, Ja Morant & Patrick Beverley talked a lot of trash. Now with the matchup here right in front of us, it’s time to get the popcorn ready.

Grizzlies Can Win If: The Memphis Grizzlies can win this series if they stick to their identity. Memphis is known for grinding it out and making you work for everything on both ends of the floor. The key factor will be the way that the Grizzlies attack Karl Anthony Towns in this matchup and try to get him in foul trouble. Steven Adams will have the assignment of guarding KAT and he will have to make it tough for him like the bigs of the Clippers did. Jaren Jackson will have to put in some work against KAT as well so if they can slow him down throughout the series and get in his head it could be a good series for Memphis. During the regular season, Karl Anthony Towns averaged 23.3 PPG & 9.3 REB in the four matchups against Memphis. The Grizzlies have a lot of length on the perimeter and they will be able to defend Edwards/Russell with Bane/Anderson/Melton. Ja Morant is the key factor in this matchup because the Timberwolves don’t have anyone that can stay in front of him. Ja Morant has been in the MVP conversation as he finished the regular season with 27.4 PPG, 5.7 REB, and 6.7 AST. Even though he struggled against the Timberwolves in the series with 20 PPG I think he’s going to take his playoff moment. The Timberwolves will have Patrick Beverley trying to get Ja off his game but we will see how that works. When Ja gets into his bag he can go for 50 or he can finish with 15 assists.

Timberwolves Can Win If: Karl Anthony Towns dominates the paint in this series. It’s that simple for the Timberwolves if they can get KAT involved early and impose his will on Adams/Jackson it will be an upset. One thing about Towns is he can definitely stretch the floor with his 3-point shot and get Adams outside his comfort zone aka “The Paint”. With Towns drawing defenders towards him it will lead to open shots for Anthony Edwards & D’Angelo Russell who showed up big time against the Clippers. We are seeing Edwards take that step and he looks like a complete player who’s able to beat you inside and outside with ease. D’Angelo Russell has proven that he can make some clutch shots when it matters and he should be able to continue doing that especially if Patrick Beverley can distract Minnesota. The Playoffs are full of emotion and I think it will come down to who’s in the game and who makes a serious impact as well. Patrick Beverley’s capable of getting into it with a player to try to get them ejected too. Minnesota has what it takes but they have never been able to get over the hump with their new big 3. If they have everything clicking on all cylinders against Memphis they can beat the Grizzlies for the 2/7 upset. This whole series will depend on Karl Anthony Towns and if he wants to showcase his dominance on a huge stage. Also, it depends on the bench players and I believe that Beasley/Reid could play a major part if things were to get rough for a key player.

SneakerReporter Prediction – Minnesota Timberwolves Win (4-2)

No. 3 Golden State Warriors (53-29) vs. No. 6 Denver Nuggets (48-34)

During the season Denver beat Golden State 3 out of the 4 times they played. The one issue is that both teams were missing key players in those 4 contests. Denver has already ruled out Jamal Murry & Michael Porter Jr from the playoffs so the Joker will have to continue carrying the load. The Golden State Warriors should be getting Steph back for Game 1 after missing time with a foot injury. With that being said check out who I have winning this series below.

Warriors Can Win If: It’s very simple if the Splash Brothers aka Stephen Curry & Klay Thompson are on fire then it will be a done deal. The combination of Curry & Thompson haven’t been on the court together in the playoffs for over a year now. It will be a special sight to see and the way Klay Thompson finished the season is scary for any team. Klay Thompson closed out the season averaging 30PPG in his last 6 games and seems to have his rhythm intact for the playoffs. Klay has been hungry to prove that he should have been one of the Top 75 players in NBA history and I see him using the playoffs as a way to prove the doubters wrong. Stephen Curry has been a sniper all season and we all know when he gets it going then it can be a long night for any team. I don’t think that the Nuggets have the guard play to defensively to hold Curry in check. In the 3 games that Curry played against Dever, he averaged 27.3PPG and proved that he can get his shot no matter the situation. Now you add Klay Thompson and Draymond Green who didn’t play against them at all this season to the mix it could be trouble. Draymond Green is the vocal leader, emotional leader, and playmaking leader on this team. When Draymond gets his teammates involved and defends at a high level this Warriors team is tough to beat. You have to also factor in that a lot of the young players like Poole benefitted from Curry not playing and have grown over the season. The young players on the Warriors are battled tested and the Warriors bench has become even deeper now from getting a chance. The experience they got with Draymond, Klay, and Stephen down should help them in this series when they have the All-Stars with them now.

Nuggets Can Win If: Nikola Jokić will have to play out of his mind and I’m talking about beyond his MVP numbers last season. Just last season he averaged 26.4 PPG, 10.8 REB, and 8.3 AST and that was impressive. In this series for the Nuggets to win he will need to average somewhere against 31 PPG, 13 REB, and 11 AST to get the job done against the fire power the Warriors have. The crazy thing about this situation is the fact that Joker can get it done. The Warriors don’t have a big man that can defend Jokić and make his life a little tougher on both sides of the ball. Without any bigs for the Warriors, I look for Demarcus Cousins and  Nikola Jokić to eat in the paint all night. The issue is the Warriors will let you get the 2 points while they’re splashing their 3 pointers. It’s going to come down to who will be the next man to step up to help Joker in this series. With the Nuggets being limited they will need someone to step up to the plate and contribute in a manner that they haven’t all season long. We know it won’t be Facundo Campazzo for at least 1 game as he will be serving his suspension after showing Wayne Ellington in the last game of the season. The player that I think will need to step his game up and bring it to another level will be Aaron Gordon. This season he’s averaging 15 PPG and during this series with a tough Draymond Green probably defending him he will need to get in that 24 PPG range to help Jokić in order to secure the series victory. The good thing about this Nuggets team is they have experience with Jeff Green/Will Barton. Both of them can help his team win and make an impact in many ways besides scoring the basketball.

SneakerReporter Prediction – Golden State Warriors Win (4-3)

No. 4 Dallas Mavericks (52-30) vs. No. 5 Utah Jazz (49-33)

The injury to Luka Donicić will be a huge factor in this series if the Mavericks are going to advance. On the other hand, the Utah Jazz is tired of people sleeping on them and want to prove they have what it takes to make a playoff push. Check out my prediction for this series down below.

Mavericks Can Win If: Luka Doncić is able to get back on the court ASAP. It will be up to the rest of the Mavericks players to step their game up. The one player that’s been waiting on a moment to showcase his talent and worth is Spencer Dinwiddie. We don’t know how long Luka will be out with his calf strain but Spencer will have to carry the load until Luka gets back on the floor. In the two games that Spencer played without Luka, he scored 36 & 26 points. If Luka does come back in this series Dallas could be in shape especially if they get a split against Utah. If the Mavericks are down 0-2 or 0-3 I doubt Dallas will let Luka try to come back. With Luka in the lineup, he’s a beast but without Luka, in the lineup, this team is a borderline playoff team. Jalen Brunson is another player that will have to step his game up as well. It’s just going to be tough for this Mavericks team if Luka is out for a long period of time. The amount of time that the ball stays in Luka’s hands makes it unknown who will be the players that will step into the limelight.

Jazz Can Win If: Donovan Mitchell & Rudy Gobert DOMINATE……It’s as easy as 1,2,3 for the Utah Jazz without Luka in the lineup. If Donovan Mitchell takes over this series like the All-Star player we know he is then it will be quick & easy for Utah. In the 4 games against Dallas, Donovan Mitchell put up 23.8 PPG, 3.5 REB, and 5.3 AST. Without Luka for at least the 1st game look for Spida to put his foot on the gas offensively and put on a show. It helps Mitchell that he has a rim protector like Rudy Gobert who also can take over a game on the defensive end. The Mavericks don’t have a true center that can stop Rudy and he will be a huge problem with his length as well. Look for both of Utah’s All-Stars to put them in a prime position to win. The Jazz even has a huge advantage off the bench too with the reigning 6th Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson in the mix. Clarkson can get hot at any moment and even if Mitchell is out of the game the Jazz has someone that can create his own shot. The Jazz have the experience and they also have been battle-tested in the past so I look for them to will themselves in this series.

SneakerReporter Prediction – Utah Jazz Win (4-0) If Luka Is Unavailable, If Luka Comes Back By Game 3 Mavericks (4-3)

All Photos Used Were Taken – (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images), (Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images), (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images), (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)