The Conference Finals everyone expected. Right?

The outcomes were almost unanimously expected; however, no one could have anticipated the path that brought us here.

 

The conference finals were set before the season began: Rockets – Warriors, Cavaliers – Celtics. These four teams were unarguably acknowledged as front runners to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy.

Could Chris Paul give the Rockets the veteran leadership and stability to the point guard position to knock off the defending champions, and historic juggernaut, Golden State Warriors?

Could the NBA’s newest “Super-Team”, the Boston Celtics, led by new acquisitions Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward, prevent LeBron from his 8th straight Finals appearance?

Quickly the answers to these questions not only became unclear, they became almost irrelevant. On the first night of the 2018 NBA season, Gordon Hayward gruesomely broke his leg, with an expected return at some point during the 2019 season.

Okay, but the Celtics have All-World talent Kyrie Irving. The player that wanted his shot at being “The Guy” on his own team, out of the shadows of LeBron James. The same guy who launched the dagger into the hearts of Warriors fans two years ago, bringing the first NBA championship to “The Land”. All is not lost. Until it was.

Kyrie Irving battled a knee injury for most of the season. Finally undergoing surgery before the playoffs began, thus ending his season.

 

With all that adversity in Boston, Cleveland would waltz their way back to a fourth straight Finals appearance. Right?

Wrong, well… sort-of.

The Isaiah Thomas experiment lasted all of 15 games. He was shipped out of Cleveland for role players Larry Nance Jr. and Jordan Clarkson.  Kevin Love broke his hand and missed almost two months from January to March.

The team ended the regular season as a downtrodden fourth seed in the frail Eastern Conference. In the midst of turmoil, LeBron was having one of his statistically best seasons in year 15, and it was looking to be all for not.

 

The Warriors played much of the season missing at least one of their All-Stars. Steph Curry missed the final 16 games of the regular season, as well as the entire first-round playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs.

Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, and Draymond Green have missed a combined 17 games toward the end of the season. Could this banged up team keep up with the red-hot Houston Rockets?

 

Since the playoffs have started, the Philadelphia 76ers became a quiet favorite to reach the finals riding a 17-game win streak into the playoffs and making quick work of the Miami Heat during the first-round.

The Celtics have rallied around unlikely heroes Terry Rozier, rookie Jayson Tatum, and Al Horford, grinding out a Game 7 win against the Milwaukee Bucks. Next, they sent home the young stars in Philadelphia in five games. Boston is rolling behind head coach Brad Stevens, but they are rolling right into LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Indiana Pacers struck fear into the hearts of Cavs fans as Victor Oladipo led his team to Game 7 in Cleveland. However, with 45 points and a near triple double effort, LeBron willed his team to a 105-101 victory, moving to the second round against Toronto. The Toronto series is the series everyone expected from the Cavs in round one, eliminating the Toronto Raptors in four dominating games. One of these games coming from LeBron’s second buzzer-beating shot of the playoffs.

The Boston Celtics and the cohesive unit of young talent led by veteran leadership will attempt to spoil LeBron’s career surge, but will it be enough?

Give me Cleveland in 6.

 

In the Western Conference, the Rockets and Warriors seamlessly decimated the West, ending both their first and second rounds in five games. The Warriors and Rockets currently sit at 110.3 (1st) and 109.5 (3rd) points per game, respectively. They are also both top ten teams in the playoffs in defensive statistics such as rebounds per game, steals per game, and blocks per game, although they are both at the bottom of the barrel as far as defensive efficiency.

This game will be a shootout and should give fans an exciting Western Conference Final

I’ll go Warriors in 7.

 

This NBA season calls to mind one of my favorite quotes:

“Adversity causes some men to break, others to break records.”

Some of the NBA’s most favored teams endured a gauntlet of injuries and hardships, ultimately proving they indeed belong in the Conference Finals.