The 2023 NBA playoffs are smartly underway and after the Celtics’ victory over the Hawks in Game 6, 3 out of 4 matchups for the second one spherical have already been set. Unfortunately for the East, it kind of feels Joel Embiid will not be have compatibility to play within the No. 2 76ers’ opener towards the No. 3 Celtics because of a knee damage, while Julius Randle’s readiness for the No. 5 Knicks’ opener towards the No. 4 Heat is unsure, leaving lovers fearful for the renewal of a longtime rival.
Meanwhile, within the West, we all know that the No. 1 Nuggets will face off towards the No. 4 Suns in a showdown that guarantees to be action-packed. As for the No. 2 Grizzlies and No. 7 Lakers matchup, it’s lately being contested because the No. 3 Kings pressured a Game 7 towards the No. 6 Warriors on Friday. The winners of those two matchups will sooner or later meet within the convention semi-finals.
Our personnel individuals have shared their picks for every of the matchups already set. Reiter and Botkin’s predictions for the Knicks vs. Heat sequence are in favor of the Knicks, while Herbert and Ward-Henninger again the Heat to win. Kaskey-Blomain and Maloney are each in favor of the Heat, while Quinn and Wimbish each are expecting the Knicks to come back out on best.
For the Celtics vs. 76ers matchup, Reiter and Ward-Henninger have each predicted a win for the Celtics, while Botkin and Herbert imagine that the 76ers will emerge victorious. Kaskey-Blomain predicts a win for the 76ers, while Maloney and Quinn are each in favor of the Celtics.
Finally, for the Nuggets vs. Suns matchup, Reiter predicts a win for the Suns after a hard-fought seven video games, while Botkin and Maloney are backing the Nuggets to win. Herbert may be predicting a win for the Suns, albeit after seven video games. Ward-Henniger predicts the Suns to win in six, while Kaskey-Blomain and Wimbish are each in favor of the Suns.