The Western Conference Finals are set!!!

Dude…..

The NBA Playoffs are now down to 4 teams. Each matchup at least went 6 games and was mostly back and forth throughout the entire second round. All 8 teams desperately wanted to keep their season going, and only 4 made it out of the bloodbath still standing. Here is the recap of the second round in the Western Conference, what lies ahead for the two teams remaining, and what each team needs to do to win the convenient NBA Championship.

#1 Denver Nuggets vs #4 Phoenix Suns

Ok I’m sorry I’m a biased writer. It’s not my fault I picked the Suns as my favorite team and was desperately hoping they would beat the Nuggets. I thought KD and Devin Booker would put the team on their back and ride us off into the next round. I forgot this was the PHOENIX SUNS I’M TALKING ABOUT!!!!! I picked the team that’s never won a championship and probably never will. The series started off in Denver and the Suns couldn’t make a shot if they were in the gym by themselves shooting. I don’t think Chris Paul could shoot it in the ocean, he would probably shoot it, hit off a buoy, and come back onto the beach! KD and Devin Booker did their thing with D Book having 27 and KD having 29, but that’s all this team could muster in the offensive category. Let’s not even begin with the terrible defense DeAndre Ayton played on Nikola Jokic as The Joker had 24 points and 19 REBOUNDS!!! Jamal Murray led all scoring with 34 points, and the Nuggets got a nice contribution from Aaron Gordan who had 23 points. The Nuggets won in blowout fashion when they won game 1, 124-107. In game 2, no one could shoot except for one player on each team. D Book had 35 and made 4 threes. The Joker had 39 points with 16 rebounds. KD had 24 points but shot 2-12 from three which simply isn’t good enough. Again, CP3 and Ayton were a non-factor and CP3 actually left the game with a groin issue and wouldn’t come back for the rest of SERIES! I mean come on, I get it injuries are a part of the game, but why does it always seem like CP3 gets hurt when he’s playing like crap. Jamal Murray went 0-9 from three and only had 10 points. The Nuggets had multiple guys in double figures and that led to the Nuggets taking a 2-0 series lead. The series headed to Phoenix with all the pressure resting on the home team. KD and D Book did not disappoint. In game 3, Devin Booker went on a scoring tear. He was tired of the lack of help the role players were giving him and decided to put the series in his own hands. He scored 47 on 20-25 shooting from the floor. KD backed him up and went off for 39. Jamal Murray showed up and had 32 while the Joker had a quiet 30 points and 17 rebounds. The Suns won game 3, 121-114 thanks to their two stars. In game 4, it was the same story. D Book and KD both had 36 points and they got help off the bench FOR ONCE as Landry Shamet scored 19 points. The Joker had his way down low scoring 53 points and 11 assists but the rest of the team fell short. The Suns won 129-124 to even the series back at 2 apiece. This is where D Book’s hot streak would end. Going into game 5, it was a clear strategic move to try and slow down D Book. If they could slow one of the big two down, they would most likely win the game. That’s exactly what they did. D Book still had 28, but he went 8-19 from the floor. KD had 26 and went 10-24 from the floor. That’s all the Nugs needed. Joker posted 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 assists to lead the Nuggets to a 118-102 win to take a 3-2 lead in the series. Game 6 was back in Phoenix and all the Suns fans (including myself) was hoping for some life in the other players other than KD and D Book. Us Suns fans were gravely disappointed. It was Deja Vu from last year’s game 6 against the Mavericks. The Suns stars were struggling again and no one around them could score. This game was over at halftime as the Nuggets were up 30 POINTS IN A GAME 6 ELIMINATION GAME!!!! I mean it’s so frustrating to see. Joker and company steamroll the Suns and win 125-100 and move on to the Western Conference Finals. The Nuggets are a great team, with a lot of depth. If their role players can support them like they did against the Suns, they’re going to be really tough to beat.

#6 Golden State Warriors vs #7 LA Lakers

It’s Steph vs Lebron once again in the playoffs. Basketball lovers around the world got their popcorn ready to watch these two juggernaut superstars battle it out for a chance to play in the Western Conference Finals. In game 1, The Bay Area was electric for this matchup of Goliaths. It went back and forth. One team would go on a run, and then the other team would come back on a run of their own. Steph Curry didn’t shoot the ball insanely well, but still hit 6 threes and ended with 27 points. Klay Thompson also didn’t shoot the ball well but also made 6 threes and scored 25 points. Jordan Pool must have seen a baddie courtside because he also has 6 threes and 21 points coming off the bench. The Lakers also had great scoring of their own. The Unibrow Anthony Davis posted a game-high 30 points and 23 REBOUNDS!! 23 REBOUNDS ARE YOU KIDDING ME??! HELLO GOLDEN STATE YOU MAY WANT TO I DON’T KNOW… BOX THIS GUY OUT??? The King Lebron James has 22 points and 11 assists and a rare game from Dennis Schroder off the bench who had 19. The big difference between these two teams also came down to the role players. DeAngelo Russell had 19 and that was the biggest factor as the rest of the Warriors couldn’t produce as much. The Lakers stole game 1 with a 117-112 victory. There was no way Steph and company was going to allow themselves to go down 0-2 going to LA. In game 2, it was Klay Thompson who caught fire from three scoring 8-11 from downtown. Steph shot the ball well scoring 20 points, but his biggest asset was his passing in game 2. Steph ended up with 12 assists and every starter for the Warriors scored in the double figures. The Lakers weren’t bad. Lebron had 23 and Rui Hachimura had 21 off the bench. AD, however, disappeared. AD tends to do that once in a while and it proved to be the deciding factor as he only had 11 points. The Warriors stomped on the Lakers and won 127-100. With the series even heading to LA, all eyes were on the Lakers. They would not disappoint. In game 3, AD decided to show up and play the game of basketball. AD had 25 points to lead all scorers. He also posted 13 rebounds which was huge. Lebron did Lebron things and had 21, along with De’Angelo Russell who also had 21. The Warriors played ok as Steph posted 23, but the rest of the team was non-existent. Klay had 14 points and went 5-14 from the field. Jordan Poole forgot how to shoot and had a measly 5 points. The Lakers were just in complete control from the opening tip and showed it in blowout fashion, beating the Warriors 127-97. In game 4, the Warriors needed to steal one back to hope they wouldn’t go down 3-1. In game 4, Steph showed up once again and had 31 points. However, his team was already thinking about drinking on the beach in Cancun because he had no help. Lebron and AD played well, but both players struggled from the floor. Austin Reeves proved to be a major help to keep the game close. The reason the Lakers end up winning this game is because of Lonnie Walker IV. Lonnie wasn’t playing at all and got in during garbage time of game 2. He showed he could score and Lonnie got some key minutes in the 4th. Lonnie would end up with 15 points and put the team on his back and helped the Lakers edge out the Warriors 104-101 to take a 3-1 series lead. For all the young players out there who maybe ride the bench and don’t get a lot of playing time, be Lonnie Walker. He barely played at all this season. In garbage time he proved he could be an asset to the team and ended up being the key player in the win. Be a Lonnie Walker, not a Ben Simmons. The Lakers now being up 3-1 just needed one more win. In game 5, the Warriors handled business. However, in game 6 we got our second elimination game blowout as the Lakers beat the Warriors 122-101 to advance to the Western Conference Finals to take on the Nuggets. The key for the Lakers is how well AD plays. In games that the Lakers lost, AD disappeared from the offense. He wasn’t involved and he wasn't calling for the ball. If AD flexes his muscles and plays every game as the all-star he can play as, the Lakers are going to give the Nuggets all they want.

So, the Nuggets are playing the Warriors starting tomorrow, May 16th. I think this will be an interesting matchup between two teams with the same type of playstyle. The Nuggets need Jamal Murray to play well and have the role players contribute. The Lakers need AD to show up and need help also from their role players. The Nuggets Nikola Jokic and the Lakers Lebron James will both be in their bags and will score. The matchup is going to come down to which supporting cast is going to help out more. If I was a gambling man, (I can be but I’m pretty broke at the moment), I would bet on the Nuggets. The Joker is a tough matchup even with AD playing him. If Jamal Murray gets going there isn’t someone who can guard him either. I also have more faith in guys like Aaron Gordan, Micheal Porter Jr., and bench guys like Bruce Brown to play better than the likes of Austin Reeves and Denis Schroder. I think this series will go all 7 games, with another blowout win in game 7 by the Nuggets.

Come by later this week for the Eastern Conference recap and predictions!! Grab some popcorn and a cold brewski from the fridge (if you’re 21), because this series is going to be one you don’t want to miss!!!