Five bold-ish predictions for NBA playoffs, including Warriors' fate

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The 2022 NBA playoffs officially arrive Saturday, and the championship field is as wide open as it has been in quite some time.

The Phoenix Suns enter the postseason as the title favorite, but the Warriors and Memphis Grizzlies will present a significant roadblock in the Western Conference. Meanwhile, the Eastern Conference sets up to be a bare-knuckle brawl between the Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, and Philadelphia 76ers.

The postseason never disappoints, and the lead-up demands I dust off my crystal ball and make some semi-bold predictions that will get me ethered by Old Takes Exposed in a few weeks.

Philly Flop

James Harden looked like the James Harden of old in his first handful of games with the 76ers. But the effort has dipped, the hamstring is achy and it doesn't look like he can summon his MVP form anymore.

The 76ers drew a first-round matchup with a Toronto Raptors team that is athletic, versatile, and primed to run the slow Sixers off the court. Couple that with Matisse Thybulle being unavailable for games in Toronto and the 76ers' postseason stay will be short-lived.

Joel Embiid does all he can to will the 76ers to Round 2, but Harden goes missing and the 76ers are bounced in six games.

Doc Rivers has seen enough of Harden and leaves to coach the Lakers, a decision he might regret in a year.

Grizz Get De-Clawed

Ja Morant and the Grizzlies' ascent has been one of the best stories in the NBA this season.

Whether Morant was in the lineup or street clothes, the Grizzlies have had their way with pretty much everyone. They aren't afraid of anyone but are just young enough to get got.

The first round brings a battle with another team that is young and unafraid -- the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Anthony Edwards' explosion in the play-in win over the Los Angeles Clippers has me thinking the Ant-Man could be the breakout star of these NBA playoffs. As long as Karl-Anthony Towns doesn't go missing for long stretches as he did vs. the Clippers, the Wolves can give the Grizzlies fits.

Minnesota shocks Memphis in Game 1 but the Grizzlies battle back to take Games 2 and 3. Edwards explodes for 37 points in a Game 4 win. Morant responds with a 40-piece in Game 5. Towns dominates in Game 6 to force a Game 7 and Edwards outduels Morant in the Grind House to send the Wolves to a Round 2 date with the Warriors.

KD Goes Super Saiyan

It's true, the Nets can't stop anyone. Hell, Kyrie Irving scored 34 points on 12-for-15 shooting on Tuesday night and the Nets almost lost to a Cavs team without Jarrett Allen and Collin Sexton.

And no, I don't think Ben Simmons is going to walk through the tunnel in anything other than a Louis Vitton hockey jersey and some questionable shorts.

But I just can't quit the Nets. As long as they have two of the most gifted scorers in the game, they have a puncher's chance. Remember, Durant almost single-handedly beat the Bucks last year with Irving out and Harden playing on a half-a-leg.

Durant once again will take it to another level this postseason. Durant and Irving combine to average 72 a game in a six-game win over the Boston Celtics in Round 1 before getting revenge on the Bucks in a seven-game slugfest in Round 2. The Eastern Conference finals see Durant take over against the Miami Heat, winning in six games to send the Nets to the NBA Finals.

Where they will face ...

They're baaaaaaaaack

The Warriors were never fully healthy during the regular season. But with Steph Curry expected to return for Saturday's Game 1 against the Denver Nuggets, the former kings of the NBA will have their entire roster, minus James Wiseman, ready for the series opener.

While Nikola Jokic will present challenges, the Nuggets lack the secondary and tertiary scoring to be able to knock off the Warriors. Golden State brushes aside the Nuggets in five games, which is enough time for coach Steve Kerr to experiment with his rotation and for the Warriors' core to get reacquainted with each other.

A second-round matchup with the Timberwolves is nothing more than an inconvenience as the Warriors dispatch KAT, Ant-Man, and D-Lo in six games.

The Western Conference finals bring a bout with the Suns. Curry and Klay Thompson trade blows with Chris Paul and Devin Booker for the first five games, but the Suns hold a three-games-to-two lead heading into Game 6.

RELATED: Why Warriors' regular-season record vs. Nuggets is irrelevant

But momma, there goes that man.

Game 6 Klay returns with a 38-point barrage to stave off elimination and force a decisive Game 7. Curry silences the crowd in the desert quickly in Game 7, scoring 25 first-half points as the Warriors head back to the Finals thanks to a 107-97 win.

JK arrives, Klay's storybook Finals

After seeing limited minutes early on in the postseason, Kerr dusts off rookie Jonathan Kuminga for extended minutes against the Timberwolves and the young wing never relinquishes his role.

Kuminga proves to be an X-factor in knocking off the Suns, averaging 16.3 points per game in the seven-game series while giving the Warriors another athletic body to battle Booker.

In the Finals, the 19-year-old does an adequate job making life hard for Durant. However, this is where Brookyln's porous defense finally catches up to it, as Curry, Thompson, and Poole combine to average 77 points in the series and the Warriors end KD's blistering hot run in six games to return to the winner's circle.

Klay Thompson is named Finals MVP after averaging 25 points on 44 percent shooting from 3-point range in the series.

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