After more than half a month of competition, the first round of the playoffs finally came to an end, all 8 semi-final teams were released, and the dust of the 4 groups of second-round showdowns was settled.
In the final set of matches in the first round, the Timberwolves, who once forced the series into The King Mountain, once again suffered a reversal, and the big score was eliminated 2-4.
In this way, in the first round of the series competition, there was no situation in any set of below the gram, not even a round of seven, and only the Green Army vs Nets appeared in this round.
This means that the gap between the teams this season is not large, especially the teams in the first half, no team has absolute dominance, and everyone has more or less a chance to compete for the championship.
Such a situation naturally makes the competition in the second round more interesting, after all, the one-sided game is not good, and the match-matching duel is the favorite of fans.
In response to the upcoming second round of duels, the US media "fivethirtyeight" also gave the promotion probability for the first time, of which the warriors' promotion probability was only 54%, and the 76ers fell to 44%.
The four groups of duels are: Heat vs 76ers, Green Army vs Bucks, Suns vs Lone Rangers, Warriors vs. Grizzlies.
As in the first round, the top half of the four-group showdown is still the more favored team, namely the Heat, Green Army, Suns and Warriors.
Because most of them have the top stars necessary to compete for the championship, the balance of the squad, the experience and the stable coaching staff.
Of course, compared to the first round of competition, the competition in the west is more intense, and in the semi-final matchup, it is obvious that the strength of the two groups in the east is closer.
First of all, look at the heat and the 76ers this group of duels, the original 76ers is the only team in the lower half of the division that has always had the advantage, and once had a 53% probability of promotion.
As a result, the team's core Embiid injury situation was released, which directly led to a sharp drop in the team's promotion probability of 9 percentage points, because Embiid suffered a fracture of the right eye orbit + concussion, and is expected to be absent for three weeks, returning as early as G3.
Although the Heat's Butler, Lowry and Maurice Jr. have also suffered injuries, all three are in a daily observation state and believe that after a few days of rest, they are expected to play in the two teams G1 matchup.
As a result, injury issues will be key around this series, with both teams likely to win the series in perfect health, with the 76ers having a better star ceiling and the Heat having a better team floor.
After Embiid's absence, Harden must take on greater responsibility, if he can steal a victory before Embiid returns, then the series is expected to be very sticky, otherwise the Heat will most likely advance.
The Bucks' series against the Green Army also suffered from injuries, and Middleton, the second head of the Bucks, is expected to miss the entire series due to injury problems.
This gives the Green Army a 75% chance of qualifying, far ahead of the defending champion Bucks, and another reason for the disparity in the probability of promotion is also the gap between the cores.
Although Alphabet Brother is one of the best players in the active campaign, he lacks the ability to finish at key moments, even in the championship season, the Bucks are more dependent on Middleton at key moments, and in such a round of pin-point vs. McMan, Middleton's absence is the fatal shortcoming of the defending champion.
As for the two groups of the Western Conference, the suspense of the Warriors against the Grizzlies seems small, but the US media only gave the Warriors a 54% chance of promotion, compared with the Suns, who have the highest 77% probability of promotion.
There is some controversy about such data, because from the performance in the first round, the Suns faced a very young team and did not show the temperament and dominance of the league first.
Instead, the Warriors were very restrained in the face of the style of the ball and the configuration of their Nuggets, beating MVP Jokic to the point of no temper.
As a result, the Warriors clearly had an absolute advantage in the second round against the Grizzlies, and for the time being, the Grizzlies did not see any longboard that could beat the Warriors in a 7-game series.
Instead, the Suns have to be careful because the team can't expect Paul to play 14 of 14 in every game, and Doncic's personal ability and comprehensiveness are stronger than Ingram.
Coupled with Brunson on the guard line, the Suns' advantage is not very obvious, the only good thing is that the Lone Ranger's athletic ability and height can not be compared with the Pelicans, which may make the Suns feel much more comfortable up and down.