The curtain of the NBA regular season has come to an end. Just when people are hotly discussing the 72 wins created by the Trail Blazers and once again dominating the scoring list, rebounding list, and blocks, the rankings of the Eastern and Western regular seasons and the format of the playoffs are also changing.
It’s out.
In the 2016~17 season, the Eastern Conference regular season rankings are as follows:
First in the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics 54 wins and 28 losses
Second in the Eastern Conference, the Chicago Bulls 52 wins and 30 losses
Third in the Eastern Conference, Cleveland Cavaliers 50 wins and 32 losses
Fourth in the Eastern Conference, Toronto Raptors 49 wins and 33 losses
Fifth in the Eastern Conference, Washington Wizards 48 wins and 34 losses
Sixth in the Eastern Conference, Atlanta Hawks 44 wins and 38 losses
Seventh in the Eastern Conference, Milwaukee Bucks 43 wins and 39 losses
Eighth in the Eastern Conference, Indiana Pacers 42 wins and 40 losses
Ninth in the Eastern Conference, Miami Heat 41 wins and 41 losses
Tenth in the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons 37 wins and 45 losses
Eleventh in the Eastern Conference, Charlotte Hornets 36 wins and 46 losses
Twelfth in the Eastern Conference, New York Knicks 31 wins and 51 losses
Thirteenth in the Eastern Conference, Orlando Magic 29 wins and 53 losses
Fourteenth in the Eastern Conference, Philadelphia 75ers 28 wins and 54 losses
Fifteenth in the Eastern Conference, Brooklyn Nets 20 wins and 62 losses
First round of Eastern Conference playoffs:
Boston Celtics vs Indiana Pacers,
Chicago Bulls vs Milwaukee Bucks,
Cleveland Cavaliers vs Atlanta Hawks,
Toronto Raptors vs Washington Wizards!
Because of the butterfly effect, Derrick Rose, the leader of the Chicago Bulls, did not find his decline due to injuries. Although he still suffered some injuries and his strength declined, he did not fall from the MVP level player he once was.
In the cloud, become a role player.
Although the Bulls have now become Anthony Davis' team, Rose still maintains All-Star level skills. Coupled with Dwyane Wade, who was recruited last summer, the overall strength is much stronger than in his previous life.
The Flash returned to his hometown of Chicago to play for the Bulls this season. He is still able to average 18 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.4 steals in all-round data this season. He has the ability to serve as the core of a championship team
The third boss is still more than enough.
As we all know, Flash Wade is a typical playoff player, he was born for the big scene.
From a large sample of Wade's career, we can find that for most of Wade's career, his playoff data is stronger than his regular season data. This is a rare player who can continue to improve in the more brutal competitive environment of the playoffs.
A tough guy who transcends himself.
Coupled with Rose, who averaged 18 points and 9.5 assists per game during the regular season, and Davis, who averaged 27.5 points, 12 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game, the outside world is still looking forward to the performance of the Bulls' Big Three in the playoffs.
Apart from the Bulls, there are currently only two teams in the Eastern Conference that have championship potential. They are the Boston Celtics and last year's Eastern Conference champion and overall runner-up, the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Needless to say, the Cavaliers will always be the most promising team to break out of the Eastern Conference as long as the core lineup of James Cousins and Irving remains unchanged.
As for the Celtics, one of the two traditional giants in the NBA, this season has fully demonstrated what it means to go from black to bottom.
This season they chose Thomas, who is only 1.75 meters tall, as the core of the team, which made them not optimistic from the beginning of the season. However, as the regular season progressed and after the All-Stars, the Celtics' performance
Getting more and more exciting, Thomas became the scoring king in the final quarter of the regular season this season, proving to the outside world that he lived up to the high expectations of the Celtics management.
But the regular season is different from the playoffs. In the playoffs, Thomas' height will limit his biggest shortcoming. Many people believe that although the Celtics have some championships, they are not many.
Considering that the last time the Celtics reached the conference finals was five years ago in the 2011-12 season, they basically stopped in the first round in the remaining seasons, and failed to even make the playoffs in two seasons.
Go, so in this recent playoff preview, many media and basketball experts have the greatest expectation for the Celtics, which is a second-round trip.
There are three teams in the Eastern Conference that have championship potential. Wang Zelin is more concerned about the Bulls and Celtics. Anyway, the Cavaliers have James. As long as nothing happens, the Cavaliers will definitely occupy a spot in the Eastern Conference finals.
Before 2018, James' strength was undoubted, and his dominance in the Eastern Conference was at a historical level.
In his previous life, he made eight appearances in the Finals and became a legend. I don’t know how many teams in the Eastern Conference were broken up by James, and I don’t know how many stars were knocked away by James.
In comparison, he is looking forward to the Bulls and Celtics teams more.
In his opinion, the Bulls' upper limit is actually higher than that of the Celtics.
Don't look at the fact that the Celtics achieved the first record in the Eastern Conference in the regular season, but as many media predicted, the intensity of the playoffs will be much higher than that of the regular season. The same core players are 1.75 meters tall and 1.0 meters tall.
With heights of 85 and 1.95 meters, the difficulty of performing brilliantly in the playoffs is completely different.
It is true that the Celtics have created an offensive system for Thomas that is very consistent with his technical characteristics, but precisely because Kelton's offense relies heavily on Thomas, Thomas' offensive ceiling almost represents the Celtics.
The team's offensive ceiling.
A simple truth is that when two players are at the same level, a player with a height of 1.75 meters will have a much lower shot chance when handling the ball at critical moments than another player with a height of 1.95 meters.
This is why, in the 2016-17 season, the Celtics, who had the best record in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, actually played 6 games to decide the winner when facing the Chicago Bulls, who were eighth in the Eastern Conference.
When they faced the Wizards in the second round, they had to go through a tiebreaker to barely get through.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Finally, in the conference finals, the Celtics were directly swept by the Gentlemen 1:4 in a contest with the Cavaliers.
Although this has something to do with the fact that Thomas was injured after playing two games in the Eastern Conference Finals and did not play in the next three games, it is not difficult to see from Thomas's offensive performance in the first two games of the Eastern Conference Finals.
On top of that, his height of 175cm really has a big impact on him.
During the regular season, Thomas' offensive output averaged nearly 30 points per game. During the playoffs, his average points per game dropped sharply to 23.3 points.
Three of the field goal percentages have declined. The field goal percentage has dropped from 46.3% during the regular season to 42.53%. The field goal percentage has dropped from the original 37.9% to 33.3%. The free throw percentage has also dropped from 90.9%.
82% point.
As strong as Allen Iverson back then, he also had a height of 183cm. Thomas Jr.'s height of 175cm was really too painful.
Perhaps it was precisely because the performance during the playoffs was not as good as the regular season that the Celtics management chose to reject Thomas's request for a large contract next season after careful consideration.
At this point, the once strongest 175 on the planet has completely become a representative of a flash in the pan in NBA history.
Compared with Thomas, the Bulls not only have a Big Three that is more in line with the current trend of the times, but they also have a total of three Big Three. Whether it is Rose, Wade or Davis, they have proven in their previous lives that they are not weak players in the playoffs.
The rose has not completely withered, the Flash's sword has not aged, and the thick eyebrows have not yet become obsessed with e-sports...
On a higher level stage, Wang Zelin believes that the Bulls can burst out with stronger energy than the Celtics. This year's Eastern Conference finals will probably be the Cavaliers vs. Bulls.
If that's the case, Wang Zelin will take time to watch the Eastern Conference Finals anyway.
Not to mention anything else, James and Wade's first playoff encounter after leaving the Heat one after another, this topic alone can attract the attention of countless people.
After the opportunity in the Eastern Conference was announced, many netizens left comments online. From these comments, it can be seen that many people have basically the same idea as Wang Zelin.
Like him, netizens are very much looking forward to the meeting between James and Wade in the Eastern Conference Finals. If the media publicizes it a little bit, won't it be a battle of the century full of topics?
Compared with the clear distinction between Jingwei and Jingwei in the east, here in the west...
It turned into a mess again.
In the 2016~17 season, the Western Conference regular season rankings are as follows:
First in the Western Conference, Portland Trail Blazers 72 wins and 10 losses
Second in the West, Golden State Warriors 68 wins and 14 losses
Third in the Western Conference, San Antonio Spurs 61 wins and 21 losses
Fourth in the Western Conference, the Houston Mosaics have 58 wins and 24 losses.
Fifth in the Western Conference, Oklahoma City Thunder 54 wins and 29 losses
Sixth in the West, Los Angeles Lakers 53 wins and 30 losses
Seventh in the West, Memphis Grizzlies 52 wins and 31 losses
Eighth in the Western Conference, Utah Jazz 50 wins and 32 losses
Ninth in the Western Conference, Los Angeles Clippers 49 wins and 33 losses
Tenth in the Western Conference, Sacramento Kings 35 wins and 47 losses
Eleventh in the Western Conference, New Orleans Pelicans 34 wins and 48 losses
12th in the Western Conference, Denver Nuggets 32 wins and 50 losses
Thirteenth in the Western Conference, Dallas Mavericks 32 wins and 50 losses
Fourteenth in the Western Conference, Los Angeles Clippers 26 wins and 56 losses
Fifteenth in the Western Conference, Phoenix Suns 24 wins and 58 losses
First round of Western Conference playoffs:
Portland Trail Blazers vs Utah Jazz,
Golden State Warriors vs Memphis Grizzlies,
San Antonio Spurs vs Los Angeles Lakers,
Houston Mosaics vs Oklahoma City Thunder!
Seeing that the Utah Jazz, the lowest ranked team in the top eight in the Western Conference, all had 50 wins in the regular season, countless fans exclaimed, are all the Western Conference playoffs like this?
This guy is only in the first round, does he want it to be so scary?!
Unlike the Eastern Conference, which has only three championship-worthy teams, a full seven teams in the Western Conference have championship-worthy teams.
The first is the Trail Blazers and Warriors. As the only two teams with a regular season record of over 70 wins last season, their regular season record this season is still far ahead of the other 28 teams in the league.
One team has 72 wins and 10 losses, and the other team has 68 wins and 14 losses. It’s scary to think about it!
Looking down, the San Antonio Spurs, ranked third in the Western Conference, actually exceeded 60 losses in the regular season...
In a single season, two teams in the same division have exceeded 60 wins, and one has exceeded 70 wins. Such a terrifying performance is quite explosive when compared to any previous regular season record.
The Trail Blazers, Warriors and Spurs are recognized by the media and fans as the first-tier teams in the Western Conference, and are also the teams with the most championship potential.
There is only one team in the second tier, and that is the Houston Mosaics!
What does the Mosaic team say?
Their position is a bit awkward. They are not as good as those above but more than those below.
But considering its strong lineup and the two super scorers who play a role in the team, coupled with the fact that they play magic ball, the Mosaics have become the most elusive team in the Western Conference playoffs.
Once the two super scorers Harden and Anthony suddenly break out, or the Mosaic team's shooters suddenly shoot from the outside, the offensive threat will be very terrifying.
Therefore, this season's Mosaic team has completely replaced the role that the Grizzlies played in the Western Conference playoffs in the past.
The Mosaic team's probability of winning may not be as good as that of the first-tier teams, but thanks to their extreme offensive output, no one dares to underestimate them in the playoffs. This is the hardest nut to crack in this year's Western Conference playoffs.
The last echelon is the Thunder and Lakers.
The reason why the Thunder are favored is also very simple, mainly because Russell Westbrook, the boss of the Thunder, averaged an astonishing triple-double per game during the regular season this season, making this team a hot topic.
And the traffic is directly filled up
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! If nothing else, everyone now wants to see if Westbrook can continue to average a triple-double in the playoffs?
The media knew very well what the fans wanted to see, and began to vigorously promote this topic. The result is that the Thunder's championship momentum in the outside world is no less than that of truly strong teams such as the Trail Blazers and Warriors.
The reasons why the Lakers are optimistic are somewhat similar to the Thunder.
First of all, the Lakers have Kobe Bryant. As long as Kobe does not retire for a day, his every move will become the focus of countless fans.
21 years of accumulation of reputation is not something to be built on!
Regardless of the fact that fans pay attention to the Lakers during the regular season, it may not be as good as the Trail Blazers, Warriors, Cavaliers, or even the Bulls.
But once the Lakers successfully enter the playoffs, there will be support from all directions, and the Lakers will become one of the most watched teams during the playoffs.
Regarding this strange phenomenon, the majority of 60E said: They are just getting old, but they are not dead.
As Kobe Bryant's career enters his twilight years, there is a high probability that Kobe Bryant and Kobe Bryant will now face life. How can they have so much time to pay attention to the Lakers on weekdays?
But when it comes to the playoffs, it's different.
In order to support their former idols and reminisce about their youth, countless old fans will subconsciously click on games about the Lakers.
After all, the NBA is a business league. The Lakers' attention during the playoffs has greatly increased, and the league will benefit from this. It is indispensable to unite the media to build momentum for the Lakers to win the championship.
In recent seasons, this has almost become a reserved program during the playoffs every year.
Secondly, with the Lakers' current lineup of the Big Three, they really have some hope of winning the championship.
Don't worry about whether he is old or not. Just judging from the strength on paper, the combination of Kobe and Paul will give the fans the feeling that they can play well as long as they play together.
There is a classic saying in the NBA: Never underestimate the heart of a championship!
The performance of the three old Lakers guys in the regular season is not weak. Kobe averaged 23 3 4 per game, Paul averaged 19 10 per game, and my sister-in-law averaged 18 10 per game. Moreover, each of them has experienced the test of the big stage in the playoffs. No one can say
Is it possible that he will suddenly explode?
It has only been a few years since Dirk Nowitzki won a championship in the 2011 playoffs. Many old fans naturally have the same expectations for the Lakers and these three old Lakers guys.
The right way is not to be afraid of ten thousand, but to be afraid of the worst.
As for the Utah Jazz…
Emmm, considering that they faced the defending champion Portland Trail Blazers in the first round, who had just won 72 wins in the regular season, and there was no legendary veteran on the team like King Notre Dame, they were inevitably criticized by the media and fans.
Round trip label.
It’s not that you don’t work hard, but there is a Gundam on the opposite side!
When you meet New Oriental, you'll be...ah, when you meet the Pioneers, you'll consider yourself unlucky.