In the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, the #1 seeded Golden State Warriors (67-15) will take on the #8 seeded Portland Trail Blazers (41-41). The Warriors won the regular season series 4-0. Game 1 will be played on Sunday at 3:30 PM EST on ABC in Golden State.
It's nearly impossible to argue a case for how the Portland Trail Blazers can win this series. They are sitting right on the .500 mark and barely made the playoffs, edging the 40-42 Denver Nuggets by one game. The Warriors on the other hand have the top record in the NBA and are one a mission to win another NBA championship. They are determined to prove that the addition of Kevin Durant was worth it, wanting to move on from this series as quickly as possible.
What the Trail Blazers do have going for them is they have Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum in the backcourt. Lillard is averaging 27.0 points and 5.9 assists per game on 44.4% shooting from the field, 37.0% shooting from three-point range, and 89.5% shooting from the foul line. As for McCollum, he's averaging 23.0 points per game on 48.0% shooting from the field, 42.0% shooting from three-point range, and 91.2% shooting from the foul line. Both guys are elite scorers and shoot the ball very well from all ranges on the floor. If those guys get hot, they have the chance to beat anybody on any given night.
The problem is that it's hard to win four games that way. The Trail Blazers will need others to step up in order to give the Warriors any sort of a scare. If there's one guy who could actually do this, it's Jusuf Nurkic, who may or not be available to play due to a right leg fibular fracture that he is recovering from. If Nurkic is able to go and be productive, that will be huge since he gives the Trail Blazers a third scoring option (15.2 points) and a big body down low (10.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks). In addition to Nurkic, the Trail Blazers need guys like Allen Crabbe, Maurice Harkless, and others to step up and produce to take some pressure off of Lillard and McCollum. If the Trail Blazers turn into the Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum show, this series will be over quick.
The Trail Blazers can't rely on Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum to carry them because the Warriors are simply too loaded. Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, and Klay Thompson combine for nearly 73 points per game and are all capable of getting hot from beyond the arc. In addition to their offensive potency, the Warriors are playing elite level defense thanks to Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala, and Kevin Durant, who is averaging a career high and team high 1.6 blocks per game. The Warriors are simply the more talented team in this series and they should be able to put the clamps on both Lillard and McCollum on the perimeter.
My prediction for this series is the Warriors win in five games. The Portland Trail Blazers will win a game in Portland. They have a good home crowd and have the pieces to defend their home floor for one night. Once it shifts back to the Bay Area for a Game 5, the Warriors will win in a blowout and close out the series. The Warriors will simply prove to be too much for the Trail Blazers to handle. It's that simple.
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