3 First Round predictions that are so specific if they come true you will claim me as your God.
Diving into some first round NBA Playoff action
Welcome to the ground floor of the Zakarian Chronicles. This will hopefully be the first of many, borderline insightful ramblings about all things NBA. Am I using this platform as a justification for all the hoops I’m watching? Absolutely. But you’re also part of the problem by reading this. We’re all in this together.
The NBA playoffs kick off this weekend, I think. Maybe you’re a play-in truther and believe THAT is the official kick off. I was in that camp until I learned the stats accrued during those games don’t count as playoff stats. What are we doing here? So I can only assume you’re all with me now that the playoffs officially begin this weekend, let’s get excited.
Today we’re going to dive in with 3 First Round predictions that are so specific that if they come true you will claim me as your God.
The first round series with the most intrigue around it has to be the New York Knicks vs the Atlanta Hawks. The Knicks are making their first playoff appearance since BZ (Reader note: BZ/AZ refers to Before Zakarian moved to NY and After Zakarian moved to NY). New York is hungry for this opportunity. Earlier in the season when the Knicks moved above .500 there was a parade outside MSG. They are ready. The Atlanta Hawks on the other hand are desperate for a deep playoff run to try and get us to forget that they traded Luka for Trae Young. The Hawks fired their coach Lloyd Pierce midseason and since Nate the Great took over they are 23-11.
Julius Randle has a really good chance to be the best player in this series. The Hawks most likely will have the 2nd through 6th best players. Right now, my neighbor is peering over and screaming ‘REALLY MIKE, NAME THE 5 GUYS ON THE HAWKS BETTER THAN RJ BARRET AND HEY I’M WALKING HEEERE!’ Classic New York.
Trae Young
Bogdan Bogdanovic
Clint Capela
John Collins
Deandre Hunter
Okay, you could fight me on Collins and Hunter. Hunter’s been out for a long time but played 20+ minutes the Hawks last regular season and was playing incredible basketball before the injury. If this series goes 7 games, Collins will be better than Barrett in at least 4 of them. You know what’s wild? That’s not even my bold prediction. I love this series so much, we’re cheating and having 2 of our 3 predictions come from the Hawks/Knicks matchup.
THE FIRST PREDICTION THAT IS SO SPECIFIC IF IT COMES TRUE YOU WILL CLAIM ME AS YOUR GOD
Julius Randle will average at least 30 points, 11 boards and 8 assists while also getting bounced in the first round. Randle is an absolute beast. He has to be your Most Improved Player of the Year and he’s most likely ending up on an All NBA Team. The Hawks have zero answers for him. He’s going to absolutely eat up John Collins, Hunter, or whoever the Hawks throw at him. He will dominate every single one of the 7 games these two teams will play but it won’t be enough. The Hawks are too deep and if they get hot from 3 the Knicks just don’t have the offensive firepower to stay with them.
THE SECOND PREDICTION THAT IS SO SPECIFIC IF IT COMES TRUE YOU WILL CLAIM ME AS YOUR GOD
Bogdan Bogdanovic is going to win 2 games for the Hawks. This dude is a killer. He was buried in Sacramento the last few years so the only person aware of this man is Lady Bird. He spent the first half of the season injured with Atlanta, but has come on strong as of late. His per 36 splits have him just under 20 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. He’s someone who can take some of the pressure off of Trae’s playmaking ability but also can just go get you buckets when you need them. Even though during his time with the Kings they averaged what feels like 3 wins a year, he amassed a collection of game winning highlights. He was also known for his clutch abilities when he was playing overseas before his time in the NBA. I’m excited for the casual NBA fan to be introduced to Bogdan this postseason and (Charles Barkley voice) GUAAAARAAAANTEE he will win two games in this series in the clutch.
The other first round series that has me salivating is over in the Western Conference between the Denver Nuggets and the Portland Trailblazers. The Nuggets team is absolutely decimated by injury with Murray out for the season and question marks around Barton and Dozier. On the Portland side of things, their starting 5 is really, really good and the bench is really, really bad. They have 6 playable guys and then the drop-off is real (sorry Kanter, but this will be a tough series for you).
There will be 2 consistent ‘sexy’ upset picks for the first round. The Miami Heat over the Bucks and the Blazers knocking off the Nuggets. I’m here to tell you this will not happen. Jokic, soon to be MVP, will be the clear cut best player in the series. He’s going to serve as point guard, big man, and 3 point marksman carving up the Blazers how he sees fit. Saying Jokic is going to be the best player of a first round matchup where his team is favored is not a bold prediction…
THE THIRD PREDICTION THAT IS SO SPECIFIC IF IT COMES TRUE YOU WILL CLAIM ME AS YOUR GOD
Michael Porter Jr. will average 30-10 in the first round! Over the last 3 months MPJ (aka the Young Republican as 89 Cavs cohost Steve Jeanty would call him) has averaged over 21 points a game with that seeing an uptick since Jamal Murray went down. This man is a matchup problem for almost any team in the league but this is especially true for the Trailblazers. When you look at the starting 5 of the Blazers you have Dame, CJ, Norman Powell, Covington, and Nurk. At first glance, you see the name Covington and you’re like OH HE’S A GREAT DEFENDER. I think he’s fine, but we don’t have to debate that right now because it doesn’t matter. Covington is going to be forced to guard Aaron Gordon which leaves *GULP* Norman Powell to stay with Michael Porter Jr. I like Powell as a player but this is a brutal matchup. Porter Jr. will easily be able to rise up above him to get any shot he wants or just straight up body him down low.
Casuals are about to meet 2 exciting players in the first round in Bogdan and Michael Porter Jr.