With the Lakers' 110-106 victory over the Pelicans to lock up the seventh place in the West, the NBA play-offs have come as scheduled. The Lakers defeated the Pelicans twice in a row in the regular season and the play-offs in the regular season, which not only proved the identity of the Lakers' nemesis, but also allowed them to take the lead in locking the playoffs.
After the Pelicans lose, they will continue to face the challenge of the Kings and compete for the last playoff ticket, however, Zion's injury and retirement will undoubtedly be a huge trouble for the Pelicans, despite the home-court advantage, but the lack of the team's leader, the Pelicans' breakthrough road is still extremely dangerous, especially Zion's absence, which will inevitably bring great benefits to the Kings, and even let Fox and Sabonis's firepower output very likely to defeat the Pelicans.
The Lakers' performance of this wave of gifts, not only let the Suns sit in the sixth place in the West one after another, but also may allow the Kings to get the last playoff ticket, the Lakers' successive heavy blows to the Pelicans will make this team that has worked hard in the regular season still unable to get rid of the curse of fate, and even Zion will not be able to stay healthy, even if this season once became Zion's best season, it is still impossible to withstand the pressure at the last moment, if Zion is not injured, the Pelicans are even expected to have a fight with the Lakers, and now even in the face of the King, there will be no advantage at all, it is very likely to make a wedding dress for others, so that this team that has worked hard for a season will be happy。
After the Lakers won the game, the Nuggets' opponents finally settled, facing last season's old opponents, for the Nuggets, psychologically occupy a certain advantage, after all, last season the Nuggets swept the Lakers, but still can not be taken lightly, after all, as the champion team of the mid-season championship, the Lakers are still not to be underestimated, and the Lakers' lethality to the restricted area will make the Nuggets miserable, whether it is Mr. Joshua or Aaron Gordon, they will suffer from the huge impact of the Lakers, and even will fall into foul trouble, so the Nuggets still can't despise the opponent。
In the last meeting, Ham let Hachimura against Jokic's defensive position, which was extremely effective, and Hachimura was once again pinned on high hopes in the play-offs, and I believe it will also be Ham's tactical system for the Nuggets, which can reduce the pressure on Davis, but also avoid foul trouble, so that Davis can retain more physical energy on the offensive end and do more damage to the team. James's ability to read the game, as well as his rich experience, will be unmatched in the league, so such a Lakers still cannot be underestimated, and there must be a certain reason why they can come to this position.
After the All-Star break, the Lakers' record is amazing, all the way from the tenth place in the West, to the play-offs, and even to finish the regular season in seventh place, the Lakers' path to promotion seems to be very similar to last year, but last season the Lakers went all the way to the division finals.
Therefore, this time in the face of Denver, the second place in the West, the defending champion still needs to be cautious, a little careless, although the Nuggets have a natural restraint for the Lakers, from last season's playoffs, to the regular season 3 kills, the Nuggets have 7 kills for the Lakers, but James' existence will also be the biggest variable in this playoffs, after all, the deterrent power of the almighty Zhan, as we all know, the Nuggets cannot be taken lightly.
After the Lakers locked up the seventh place in the West, the two teams of Jandu will stay in the bottom half of the West, while the Clippers can do whatever they want in the top half, and if the Clippers can beat the Mavericks, the sky will be their limit for this team with four stars. But the Mavericks, as the biggest nemesis of the Clippers, brought huge trouble to the Clippers one after another during the playoffs. In the 2020-21 season, the Mavericks once won 2-0 against the Clippers without home-court advantage, and finally the Mavericks narrowly defeated the Mavericks in seven battles with the power of the two stars.
This time, although the twin stars have superstar Harden next to them, Doncic also has Irving by his side, not so much the Clippers Big Four, in fact, there are only Leonard and George, Harden is at best a master of organization, Wei Shao has become a cheerleader on the bench, and the Mavericks are a real duo of the Big Two.
Strictly speaking, the two sides can be described as a needle-to-needle, and the Clippers have one more Harden, but if the team cannot use Harden reasonably, this biggest variable is very likely to become a talisman for the Clippers to defeat like a mountain, and on the contrary, it will become the Clippers' executioner. Therefore, in the current situation between the two sides, the Clippers have a slight advantage, but on the whole, they can be described as evenly matched.
Whoever is able to limit the opponent's reasonableness will be the key factor in winning the series. Obviously, the Mavericks are not afraid of the Clippers, which can be seen from the last few games, Kidd gave up directly, took a break from the players, and did not seize the home court advantage, it can be seen that Kidd's self-confidence in this round of the series, after all, once the Eastern European combination played a fairy performance, I believe that it is difficult for anyone in the league to limit, even if the Clippers have the best forward defensive combination, it is still difficult to limit the attack of the gods, and the showdown of this group of gods will also be quite interesting and hotly discussed.
As the celebrity said, who of the two teams can stand out, it is very likely to kill all sides in the West, especially after the Warriors are out, whether it is the Thunder, the Kings, and the Pelicans will be three young teams without much experience, and the Thunder does not have a real inside player, which will also make the Thunder suffer greatly on the stage of the playoffs, and even in the face of a team like the Lakers, it will completely lose the barrier of survival, Harden, Doncic's high emotional intelligence, will inevitably give Zubac, Lively and other players in the restricted area have more opportunities to eat cake and hit the lifeline of the Thunder, so for these two teams, whoever can break through is expected to be the biggest winner in the top half.
After locking the sixth place in the West, the Suns are also fast, with lightning speed, and signed a 4-year 70 million contract with the sharpshooter Allen, the Sun's behavior is obvious, it will be a reassuring pill for the sharpshooter in advance, and it will also allow Allen to have no worries and devote himself to the game, so that he can exert the greatest deterrent, help the Big Three, assist the team in adversity, and lay a solid foundation for winning the championship in advance。
After the Lakers lock the seventh place in the West, it will be a boost for the Suns, although the Lakers' strength on paper is far from the Nuggets, but as a two-giant team, the Lakers will still bring some trouble to the Nuggets, and it will inevitably make the Nuggets even if they break through, it will not be so easy, as a potential opponent in the Suns Division semifinals, the Lakers' blocking of the Nuggets will bring certain benefits to the team, which will consume the hard power of the Nuggets to a certain extent, as well as the physical energy and fatigue of the playersIt's bound to put a lot of pressure on the superstar.
On the defensive end, Davis and Hachimura's ability to protect the frame will also have a certain impact on stars such as Murray, and James' strategic performance cannot be ignored, so for the Lakers, even if they can't win the game, it will make the Nuggets take off a layer of skin, it seems that the Nuggets have killed the Lakers 7 at present, but in the face of James's team, it is still extremely difficult to get out.
On the contrary, if the Suns can improve their concentration and end the fight with the Timberwolves earlier, they still have a physical advantage, with the Suns' natural restraint on the Timberwolves, as well as better star ability, the Suns are expected to end this round of the series in five games and advance to the divisional semifinals, which will allow the Suns to save more physical consumption, and will also allow the Suns to better face the winner of the Nuggets and Lakers for the impact of the divisional finals.
To sum up, the Lakers' outstanding performance will have a certain impact on the upper and lower halves of the West, the Thunder, Kings, and Pelicans in the first half of the region are too young, no matter who stands out, it is difficult to stop the winner of the Clippers and the Mavericks, these two 4 or 5 teams, are expected to enter the stage of the division finals, on the other hand, the Lakers' turmoil will make the situation in the second half of the region abruptly change, even if the Nuggets can win the game, it will be extremely difficult.
It is greatly hindered and troubled. After all, in the face of every game of the Lakers, the impact of the penalty area will inevitably make the Nuggets physically and mentally exhausted, and the Suns are expected to fight out of the encirclement in advance and successfully lock the semifinals in the region, whether facing the Lakers who lack outside projection ability, or the Nuggets who are physically and mentally exhausted, they will occupy a certain advantage, especially in the case of Beal's continuous improvement and Allen's lack of worries, the Suns' road to winning the championship seems to be clearer and clearer。
Therefore, the Western Division finals are likely to be the winner of the Mavericks and the Clippers, facing the showdown between the Suns in the second half of the region, although the Suns have no overwhelming advantage in the regular season for both teams, but the baptism of the playoffs still makes it not what it used to be, and it is still unknown who will die, the Lakers, as the Suns, not only personally lifted the Suns to the sixth place in the West, but also are expected to help the Suns soar into the sky, not only to kill the West, but even to redeem the talent and win the championship trophyIt will also be the greatest reward and respect for the boss of the sun.