Predicting the Winner of Every First-Round Series of the NBA Playoffs – Complex

Kudos to Nate McMillan for keeping it real. And shame on the NBA for fining him because he did.

If you missed it, the Hawks interim coach earned the ire of the league this week, to the tune of a $25,000 hit to his wallet, when he suggested the NBA wants and needs the Knicks in the postseason and that theres going to be a lot of calls that probably wont go our waythanks, in large part, to the huge crowds expected at Madison Square Garden.Hes right, of course, because having one of the most glamorous franchises and its absurdly loyal fan base in the postseason for the first time in eight seasons will be nothing short of awesome and officials, studies have shown, are subject to the influence of the audience.

Knicks-Hawks, the 4-5 matchup in the Eastern Conference featuring Julius Randle vs. top 10 point guard Trae Young, is one of the most exciting series of the first-round of the NBA Playoffs as youll see outlined below. The postseason mercifully tips off Saturday after a tumultuous regular-season that saw COVID ruin everyones good time, too many injuries to too many of the leagues superstars, and more blowouts than we can reasonably count.

Were beyond hyped for meaningful, extremely intense, and truly consequential basketball, and it starts with the Heat visiting the Bucks at 2 p.m. ET tomorrow and doesnt end until July when the NBA crowns a new champion becauseyou heard it here firstthe Lakers arent repeating. Heres a run-through of all eight first-round playoff series to get you primed for the next two weeks with predictions on how long each one will last.

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Predicting the Winner of Every First-Round Series of the NBA Playoffs - Complex