4 teams left -- who wins the title?

[xinxin]

I voted Lakers, just because.


But I wouldnt be surprised if any of the other 3 win it all. they all deserve to win

[Kalela]

Everything I see makes me think it will be the Lakers. I think the NBA wants that too and will try to help make it happen. Based on just the teams though, I think the Nuggets are the most complete team left and should win it.

[pontius]

Celtics are massive favorites to win it all right now.

Vegas knows.

Vegas had the Bucks as favorites and the Suns coming out of the west at the start of the playoffs.

[GatorbaitDD]

I got the Heat

[Apz]

I go nuggets. Have the best player left in the po and a pretty good team around him. But it probably comes down to who can stay injuryfree

What do you mean Jokic is literally the best player in the world

Maybe. But it still doesnt change what i wrote? If u think he is the best player in the world he still is the best plauer left in the po right?

[Johnny Bball]

The fact Lebron has a massive mental edge over the Celtics isn’t really anything to do with the Lakers, that was all from before he joined them. This isn’t some Lakers homer theory, it’s believing what’s happened in the past will happen again (mainly because of Lebron who I just can’t count out because look where that gets people).

I can see Tatum laying some serious bricks - he’s had some awful games/periods in this playoffs, we saw it last finals too, then add Lebron in to the mix, then add going up against the Lakers (he loves Kobe bla bla bla), he’ll get in his own head.

And it’s not a lack of objectivity. Lebron has beaten the Celtics five series in a row in the playoffs. That’s a stat. It’s a fact. I’m betting on the same thing happening again until I’m proven otherwise.

There is no mental edge, the last time LeBron faced the Celtics was in 2018, which was a completely different team. You're just trolling at this point, but we know how this will go. This post won't see the light of day if the Celtics will win and I'm sure excuses will come out about injuries/health/coaching/inferior roster etc.

Like I said... I'm not that surprised by the lack of objectivity given the situation. But I'm with you I think the Nuggets have a better shot of coming out of the West.

Most the Celtics fans I’ve spoken to are scared of Lebron, it’s a real thing. And I would be too with his record against them!

‘A completely different team’ … You know 4/5 of the starters from 2018 are the same as now right so you’re completely wrong there? Horford (who has a terrible record vs Lebron and has come out multiple times stating how intimidated he is by him), Brown, Smart and Tatum - albeit they’re better players now than then (except Horford) but they looked really uneasy in the finals last year and that would only be heightened vs the Lakers and Lebron.

As I said before, my logic isn’t just fan based delusion (probably an element of that too tbf), it’s predominantly based on factual results in the past.

This entire idea is pure fantasy and there is no logic. And Celtics fans don't play for the Celtics.

[PierceFan4ever]

Celtics over nuggets in 6. Lakers arent beating the nuggets.

[Bobbymcgee]

Rooting for the Celtics to make it to the Finals but only because I want to see them lose in the Finals two years in a row. So, I am hoping either the Lakers or Nuggets win the title.

[TacoLord]

I can't see the NBA missing an opportunity for a Lakers/Celtics Finals at this point. I want the Nuggets to win it all, but they have a tough road ahead of them.

[nomansland]

Celtics are massive favorites to win it all right now.

Vegas knows.

There’s a huge gap between Vegas and RealGM right now, some people here should put money on the Western teams if they’re so confident. 538 being high on Miami is interesting, but I wonder if them beating a broken Bucks team is screwing with their Elo model

Remember Vegas places odds on how they think people are going to bet, not on who they think is going to win.

Not surprising they think people are going to bet on the Celtics in the East and have the Lakers and Denver splitting the West bets.

[_NoMas]

Denver is the deepest team left. Lakers are the most top-heavy team left. Boston is the best defensive team left.

I'll just say Denver.

Genuinely confused by this. Are Denver deep? They have a strong starting 5, Bruce brown is a solid 6th man - after that they are relying on rookie Braun (whose been solid, admittedly) and old man Jeff Green… doesn’t strike me as that deep.

Bostons current bench includes the 6th man of the year and and guy on first team all defence, plus Grant Williams, to go with a stacked starting 5.

[nbafan38]

Unfortunately my pick is lakers but not the team i'm rooting for.

[nbafan38]

Celtics are massive favorites to win it all right now.

Vegas knows.

Yea they also had Bucks as the favorite in the east and Suns are the favorite in the west at the start of the playoffs. The celtics were also an underdog in the 76ers series after game 5. The odds flip flop a lot honestly. I don't really love future bets because of injuries etc but assuming health is good Lakers at +330 is objectively crazy good value.

[nbafan38]

I mean on paper the celtics absolutely should win the title, what other team has two top 15 players or so in their primes plus tons of depth, the problem is you don't know what you are getting with them, if you get game 7 celtics no one is beating them but then there was game 5 in Atlanta series, game 1 and game 5 celtics in the Philly series..

Meanwhile the heat, nuggets, and lakers have not really had any bad playoff losses so they seem more easy to trust. Celtics ceiling is the highest though so I agree with them being favored in Vegas but they;ve also already lost 3 times in playoffs as >-200 favorites.

[Noodlesoop]

There is no mental edge, the last time LeBron faced the Celtics was in 2018, which was a completely different team. You're just trolling at this point, but we know how this will go. This post won't see the light of day if the Celtics will win and I'm sure excuses will come out about injuries/health/coaching/inferior roster etc.

Like I said... I'm not that surprised by the lack of objectivity given the situation. But I'm with you I think the Nuggets have a better shot of coming out of the West.

Most the Celtics fans I’ve spoken to are scared of Lebron, it’s a real thing. And I would be too with his record against them!

‘A completely different team’ … You know 4/5 of the starters from 2018 are the same as now right so you’re completely wrong there? Horford (who has a terrible record vs Lebron and has come out multiple times stating how intimidated he is by him), Brown, Smart and Tatum - albeit they’re better players now than then (except Horford) but they looked really uneasy in the finals last year and that would only be heightened vs the Lakers and Lebron.

As I said before, my logic isn’t just fan based delusion (probably an element of that too tbf), it’s predominantly based on factual results in the past.

This entire idea is pure fantasy and there is no logic. And Celtics fans don't play for the Celtics.

The following are facts:
1 - 4/5 Celtics starters from 2018 are the same as now
2 - Lebron is 5-0 in playoff series against the Celtics since 2010
3 - Horford is 0-5 against Lebron in playoff series and while the video uses a first take type heading, Horford gives the impression he’s genuinely intimidated by Lebron - https://youtu.be/wyifjnZ8adw
4 - on the biggest stage in the finals last year this same Celtics team (Brogdon is a good add but there’s some drop off in the centre rotation with Horford getting older and Williams’ injury struggles so they’re about as good) went 2-0 up to before losing four games in a row to the same team the Lakers just beat 4-2 (the Warriors lost Porter Jnr and that’s pretty much it, you can’t quantity bad vibes)

You can add whatever context you want to the above facts but it does help inform what might happen in a Lakers vs Celtics series.

For what it’s worth I think Denver will beat the Lakers anyway.

[mademan]

I got the Nuggs

[Kobe187]

Most Deserving (Pressure) to Win:

1. Celtics - Last year finals loss - 0 Rings for Tatum/Brown
2. Nuggets - Jokic 2 Time MVP - 0 Rings (bad injury luck, finally healthy)
3. Heat - Previous finals loss - Butler 0 Rings (Heart & Soul Team)

[shrink]

I like the Nuggets slightly over the Celtics, but I thought BOS would be the top vote-getter.

Kind of surprised to see the Lakers so high, since they’d have to beat both the Nuggets and Celtics.

Maybe some Lakerfans wishcasting. Vegas is probably closer.

[JB2]

If Lakers win WC, they'd be easy favorites over Miami while Boston would be a tough matchup - probably toughest matchup still in PO.
If Denver wins WC, they'd fair much better against Miami than Boston although Boston would be a defensive nightmare for them
If Miami wins EC, both LA or Denver would be tough and they'd be underdogs to both and I couldn't see them beating either.
If Celtics win EC, they'd be favored over LA and Denver and tbh I'm not sure who they'd prefer in a matchup.

I want Lakers versus Heat but I think it ends up Lakers - Celtics.

[akula1488]

Celtics over Denver in 6. Cinderella stories for the two play in ends now